Musings on the Future of Disability

Predicting the future is a mugs game. Unless your name is really Madame Zelda, and your crystal ball is set on vague to attract the after-bar crowd, future tellers should keep their thoughts to themselves. That said, educated forecasting is a critical element to charting a path forward. One must have a hypothesis, based in tested observation, to put in place smart goals that achieve continued success. As we look to what will be the future of disability, what changes and what will drive those changes.

Before we look at what is to come, let us first review where we are. Some will tell you that disability now follows a ‘civil rights’ model. This would denote that disability is seen amongst the population on par with economic, legal and PR efforts of the women’s and racial equality movements of the 60s and 70s. The folks that assert that this model is an appropriate description of where disability is today are too close to trying to make that happen; they are lawyers, politicians and non-profits working their tails off to make equality in society occur. The reality is, disability is firmly rooted in the ‘medical’ model, where doctors define language, desires and market wide goals. The ‘civil rights’ model came out of legitimate frustration with the ‘medical’ model where the overwhelming majority of people with disabilities did not want their futures defined by diagnosis or a medical file.

This has all taken place outside of the public eye. Evidence of this abounds. An excellent example of medical branding vs civil rights branding rests in recent Autism Awareness campaigns. Put bluntly, these campaigns are based in fear. They are designed to scare the crap out of expecting parents and the general public, in order to raise money and awareness. Their message is simple, you do not want your kid to get Autism, it’s akin to a death sentence. A medical definition of what is ‘normal’ guides this strategy at its core. This author makes a Joe Nameth guarantee that no people with disabilities were at that table when these campaigns were born. Can you imagine an ad campaign pointing out the downsides of being female or African-American? There would be riots in the streets. An accurate description of this effort is a scorched earth policy. You may reach your goal, but at what cost? The simple existence of these campaigns is telling; the ‘medical’ model still dominates.

To get to the next step, beyond mere awareness to inclusion, a new model is required. Given that government makes up a mere 20% of our society, as denoted by GDP involvement, let’s make the logical assertion that legislation will not do the trick. A ‘market’ model is the route that delivers on three core needs of all people; a) explicit inclusion in the workforce(and the requisite income/esteem that comes with it), b) explicit inclusion in the customer base(and the satisfaction of desires that come with that), and as a result of a) & b) a positive brand in the eyes of society.

Here is the fun part…this is easy to do. The business case is there. Economic entities who engage in a) & b) above will make outsized profits in the near term and grow markets to be harvested in the long-term. There is no need for the ‘Disability Fairy’ to wave her magic wand through legislation; all that’s needed is a sound plan and dogmatic execution. This is not a niche market. It’s 1.1 billion people globally, 74% of which have invisible disabilities. They use toasters, drive cars and take their families on vacation. She wears dresses above the knee, buys his deodorant, and follows Maslow’s hierarchy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needs.svg) just like everyone else. While the government spends it’s time focusing on the bottom two rungs, this market is starving for a little belonging, esteem and self-actualization.

Author’s self-indulgent note – Apparently Abraham Maslow was quoted saying “the study of crippled, stunted, immature, and unhealthy specimens can yield only a cripple psychology and a cripple”. I’m really enjoying the irony here, on many levels. Yo,, Abe…kiss my butt, and thanks for proving my point in an eloquent, ivory tower manner.

The challenge before us is to refocus on the private sector, partnering with the allocators of economic factors to drive disability to its place in an inclusive marketplace. There is a predictable, measurable, and best of all, realistic path to achieving this goal. Working with corporations in executing an emerging market strategy over 5 to 10 years is a leap forward from the quick-sand quagmire that currently surrounds disability.

Seeing past tomorrow is a real challenge for most. They are understandably tied to what they see around them, tempted to tinker rather than build. By following other successes in the Inclusion space and shaking off the legacies of the ‘medical’ model, disability takes up the position that its demographics suggest. Relying on proven empty promises is no longer acceptable, and can be compared to following a palm reading strategy when you’re 12 years old, versus the proven path of education and hard work. Fancy illusions are no longer enough.