Ableism Exercise


We, the ones who are challenged, need to be heard.  To be seen not as a disability, but as a person who has, and will continue to bloom.  To be seen not only as a handicap, but as a well-intact human being.
—Robert M. Hensel


https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEP-zDasxDFv_7E_3LS8YBnpuSNjL0D1hjz74UOl_kz4EWNAUwc6R-nbUaVkP-RKk1HKGM9bvluymE_CyZim28sjGQEiXx4J31uEFL2vNn7YC-AiKpmexirzKL1E4a3xwKw-NOfQ9qwU/s1600/robert_hensel.jpgPut your Penny in the Cup or Bowl, if… I came across an interesting exercise to that works on overcoming ableistic ideas and identifying privilege. This exercise is incredibly interesting and focuses on two sides of society. The bowl, which is the majority. This is the side of society that dominates and usually causes ableism to occur. It represents the people who are not excluded and who represent the vast majority. The cup represents the minority. Those who usually face ableism from society and who do not overcome the confines that society has placed on them. Originally, I wasn’t going to list the questions of this exercise, but if you would love follow along as you read, please do so. (Questions that could possibly people with disabilities and ableism are bolded.)
  1. If your parents spoke English as a first language, put a penny in the bowl.  If your parents’ first language was another language, put a penny in the cup.
  2. 1f, as a child, you had a room of your own with a door, put a penny in the bowl.  If you had to share a bedroom or sleep in a room that doubled as another room, put a penny in the cup.
  3. If your home, when you were growing up, had more than 10 children’s books and 30 adult books, put a penny in the bowl.  If not, put a penny in the cup.
  4. If, as a child, parents or other significant adults discouraged you from playing in certain sports or engaging in certain activities because of your gender, put a penny in the cup.  If not, put a penny in the bowl.
  5. If police harassed or disrespected you because of your race, put a penny in the cup.  If that has not been your experience, put a penny in the bowl.
  6. If you, or your family of origin, have spent one year or more without health insurance because you could not afford it, put a penny in the cup.  If not, put a penny in the bowl.
  7. If neither you nor your parents had to spend any amount of time on public assistance, put a penny in the bowl.  If either you or your parent was on public assistance, put a penny in the cup.
  8. If your parent, grandparent, uncle, or any other relative, survived or died in a Nazi death camp, put a penny in the cup.  If no relative did, put a penny in the bowl.
  9. If you never had to wait in the rain or snow for a specialty built accessible bus or van, put a penny in the bowl.  If you have had to wait for such a vehicle, put a penny in the cup.
  10. If you have one or more major credit cards, put a penny in the bowl.  If not, put a penny in the cup.
  11. If your religious holidays are regularly recognized in the media, in schools, and by employers, put a penny in the bowl.  If your religious holidays are not recognized in these institutions, put a penny in the cup.
  12. If you never have to consider the gender of the pronouns you use to refer to the person you are dating or who is your life partner, put a penny in the bowl.  If you do have to consider pronouns, put a penny in the cup.
  13. If you do not have to consider if a workplace, restaurant, bank, or friend’s home is physically accessible to you, put a penny in the bowl.  If you have had to consider this, put a penny in the cup.
  14. If security guards in stores rarely or never follow you, put a penny in the bowl.  If you are followed, put a penny in the cup.
  15. If you never have to worry about revealing your sexual orientation to an employer, put a penny in the bowl.  If you do have to worry about this, put a penny in the cup.
  16. If you have ever been ostracized or marginalized due to a medical or physical condition, put a penny in the cup.  If that has not been your experience, put a penny in the bowl.
  17. If you have ever been in a group where people did not hear or heed your suggestions, but they did hear the very same suggestions when made by a man, put a penny in the cup.  If that has never happened to you, put a penny in the bowl.
  18. If you experience being ignored, discounted, or condescended to because of your age, put a penny in the cup.  If that is not your experience, put a penny in the bowl.
Many of these questions do not specifically showcase persons with disabilities, but have covered topics that I have previously talked about on other blog posts that have affected people with disabilities. This exercise sheds light onto what specific areas of society targets those with disabilities. Ways that ableism affects these bolded questions.
3. A home without books may lead to late learning which can potentially lead to reading disabilities.
6. Not having health insurance can greatly affect children and adults with disabilities who cannot get proper care. Also, if they cannot afford the healthcare that they need this can greatly hinder growth for their physical body.
9. Many physically disabled people face waiting in the snow and rain which leads to further isolation of those who cannot easily be admitted onto or into transportation.
13. Many areas in this world do not easily allow access into homes for people with disabilities. (My own house does not have a ramp, but I have neighbors with wheelchairs. When they come to visit, they can’t enter my home and I never realized how this may make my young friend feel on a cold or super-hot day.)
16. Many people with disabilities face marginalization by peers and elders for their physical, mental, or emotional disabilities. Physical disabilities face a different type of marginalization, but it is still damaging to those who are not considered to be able bodied individuals.
17. This question focuses more on gender, but I believe that people with mental and physical disabilities are not heard by women and men and can contribute ideas only to be ignored.
18. I believe that those who have disabilities, especially intellectual ones, are seen as eternal children and face societal handicaps because of it.
These exercise shows a classroom activity that can shed light onto ableism and privilege. I believe that this activity is a well-crafted and important approach to this topic. Educational approaches to incorporating discussions of ableism in the classroom are very important. If we as educators do not discuss our own privileges, then how will our students know their own? It is important to tackle these topics in a way that sheds light, but is also steeped with care and respect in the educational setting. These exercises should not be overlooked or dismissed because they can potentially cause a shift in a student's perspective to become more loving and understanding of the ableism that exists in this world.

Works Cited:
Association , Unitarian Universalist. “Disability Workshop for Adults: How Ableism Hurts Us
All.” UUA.org, Unitarian Universalist Association , 28 Feb. 2017, www.uua.org/accessibility/aim/workshops/adults-youth/ableism.

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