Disability is a great deal in the United States since it makes up a relatively large portion of our population. Over 40 million Americans are disabled according to AMNews.com. My decision to write about the national disability symbol is because of its discrimination by "bunching" individuals and its failure to produce peace.Although the construction of this pictogram is fairly simplistic, it represents and serves a much greater meaning than just what meets the eye. To further analyze this, the components used to create this sign must be observed first. The picture is a disabled person sitting in a wheel chair with a dark blue background. The complexity of the picture is not complex at all, and lacks realistic human facial features, gender identification, and clothing. Instead, a stick figure is used to create the picture, thus making it rather difficult to distinguish the person's gender since the complexity and diversity of humans is replaced by a stick figure.
The picture, previously stated, is a disabled person sitting in a wheel chair. This alone is discrimination. Of the millions of Americans who are disabled, everyone have different levels of disability. Some cases of disability may be severe, while others not so much. However, the handicap symbols creates the idea that all handicapped people are equally disabled when that simply is not the case. Although there are those with minor disabilities (ie: sprained wrist) who would gladly jump at the opportunity of not having to pay for parking meters or take the time to find a parking space, there are many people (my father) who does not register for a handicap permit because the discrimination is harder to accept than the the perks provided by the government. This is mostly due to how much we, as people, perceive through pictures, and the handicap symbol is a perfect example of that. The symbol's purpose is for everyone to be more aware of those with a disability. People in wheel chairs are very severely disabled since they do not have the ability to walk. The intention of using this disability as the the national symbol for handicapped individuals shows a sense of urgency and sympathy. However, the positives does not quite exceed the negatives. Not only are many handicapped individuals offended because they are not as severely disabled as how others percieve them, but it also leads to discrimminations towards disabled individuals from those who are not. Instead of creating peace and tolerance, the handicap symbol creates instead discrimmination and disruptions.
In Japan, there are levels of disability. Through a numerical series of 1 through 7, doctors percribe the level of disability for each patient through a disability card. Discounts for public transportation, remodeling etc. are given to everyone with a disability card, but the rates are different for each level. This method is seen as very effective because of the equality and respect behind the practice. It not only protects the government from giving too much to those who does not need as much, but also allows others to give help to those who needs it. The United States' method of "bunching" everyone in one class is certainly inferior to that of Japan.
Although the handicap symbol is intended to help disabled individuals and hold public awareness to others, it produces a deeper unintentional meaning. Underneath the surface of the emotionless and simplistic stick figure is a world erupting of discrimmination.
1 comment:
Dean--you are really improving your posts. This one is well-organized and your writing level has also advanced. The prose is clear and more formal. You have done a fine job of analyzing this object. I also appreciate the narrative you provide to get the reader into the moment.
I am intrigued by the perceptions of disability in Japan that you cite later in the post. To make this even stronger, you could have provided a more specific example and contrasted it with the image you provide.
Overall, good work!
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