Naked And Ashamed At The Bronx Zoo
It’s 2018 and the disabled are still being treated like animals!
This past week my husband and I took our children and his grandmother to the Bronx Zoo in New York. I hadn’t been there in years, but it was better than I had remembered. The zoo was clean, and the animals well cared for. We were going about our day, enjoying the animals and the different learning opportunities. Then, something that really irked me to my core happened.
I witnessed something that made me sit and wonder how, in the year 2018, are we still not treating people with disabilities with the respect and dignity they deserve?
The zoo started to get extremely busy around lunchtime. There were families, tourists, and large groups of people from various organizations and camps. One larger group, in particular, was one we had seen quite a few times throughout the day. It was an organization that worked with individuals who have intellectual and developmental disabilities. We noticed the staff worked pretty well at carefully managing such a large group of people. That was, until we came across a certain group, where the staff members reminded me that we are still a long way from where we need to be in terms of understanding, acceptance, and equal treatment for all people.
As we were walking through one of the paths near the polar bear exhibit, I witnessed three of the staff members changing a boy, maybe about the age of ten. There were at least a hundred people walking by, as they aggressively stripped this boy down, removed his disposable underwear, revealing his private parts to everyone, leaving him standing there completely exposed. You could see the frustration and impatience pouring out of them. Although he wasn’t communicating through words, you could see that he was not comfortable with what was going on, and rightfully so. Even my son, who is eleven years old, was extremely bothered by what was happening. It took everything I had to not walk up to them and speak my mind, but I decided that would only further embarrass the boy and draw more unnecessary attention to the situation. Instead, my husband and I took down what information we could, and are working hard to track down the organization and file a complaint.
This situation has really weighed on me since. When are we going to stop treating people with intellectual and developmental disabilities like animals? Because that is essentially what I saw the other day, and is something I have seen many times before. Caregivers dragging them about like they do not have their own two feet. People talking about them in a demeaning way, right in front of them, as if they aren’t there listening. Maybe some do not understand what is being said, but they are still human. They deserve the same respect as everyone else. Much of society is still using the “R-word” and it’s sickening. The world is focused on equal treatment for everyone, but sometimes I feel that people forget this includes individuals with disabilities too. I ask myself, would those staff members have handled an individual without disabilities in that same way? I am confident the answer is no. So why did they feel comfortable putting this boy out on display like he didn’t have feelings, or didn’t deserve privacy? I expected more from individuals who work for an organization intended to help and care for the disabled.
I have taught my oldest child to be kind to all people, regardless of skin color, religion, gender, sexual preference, ability or disability.
That all people are different and that’s what makes it exciting. He sees an individual for who they are on the inside, and not how they appear on the outside. He knows we all deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, and using the “R-word” is never okay, even if someone else uses it. I have taught him to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. I will continue to instill these same values in my other three children, and maybe they can instill those in their friends and peers as well. The next generation can be the change we so desperately need, if we lead them in the right direction. Remember that change and open-mindedness starts with you and it starts with me. We can all be better.
