Naty Rico is a disability advocate and educator, and the coordinator of the Disability Cultural Center at the University of Arizona. She talks with us about what ableism is beyond the dictionary definition and how able-bodied people might not be aware of how they are complicit with it, how it's a system of oppression favoring able-bodied/-minded people, the definitions of ableism by Talila TL Lewis and Dustin P. Gibson, being interconnected with other forms of oppression, how removing labels can lead to discrimination/oppression, those with disability are not aiming to be normal, overcoming barriers simply to exist, the learning process, taking the burden off of those with disabilities, the medical model of disability is that a person with a disability is tragic/wrong and needs to be fixed, the social model of disability and how society was not built for those with disability, and people are more disabled by society than by their own impairment, day-to-day life excludes the disabled, seeing disability as just another way of being, the expense and marriage inequality of being disabled, capitalism, insurance coverage (or lack thereof), eugenics, being a culture that takes care of each other, no one is immune to disability, colonialism, cultural and community care, being an individualistic society, protecting our democracy, interpersonal ableism, lack of exposure to people with disabilities, Sound of Metal, Crip Camp, educating ourselves about what we don't understand, having more disabled represented in media, disability as taboo, "feeling sorry" for the disabled, assuming disabled people are in pain, unsolicited advice, misconceptions, religion's role and the moral model of disability (as God's punishment), schools separating disabled children from able-bodied classmates, feeling like an exhibit, stop being "inspired" by disability, being objectified, serving as a lesson/example, low expectations, feel anger instead of pity (about how the disabled are treated), being excluded by society, able-bodied people taking advantage of disabled rights, becoming more aware and wanting more education to stop ableism.

You can find Naty at https://drc.arizona.edu/cultural-center and on LinkedIn @disabold

Episode recorded on 07/16/21

Episode released on 08/18/21

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Music: Shower Beer by GG Riggs