I happened to see a video with 1,607,039 shares. It was about disabled mannequins. The introduction to the video was as follows:
"This video is SO powerful. We are all amazing people. Disabled mannequins will be eliciting astonished looks from passers-by on Zurich’s Bahnhofstrasse today. Between the perfect mannequins, there will be figures with scoliosis or brittle bone disease modeling the latest fashions. One will have shortened limbs; the other a malformed spine. The campaign has been devised for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities by Pro Infirmis, an organization for the disabled. Entitled “Because who is perfect? Get closer.” it is designed to provoke reflection on the acceptance of people with disabilities. Director Alain Gsponer has captured the campaign as a short film. Please SHARE with friends and family. This is such a great message."
We happen to see many people each day who have disabilities. But it takes one person to try out making it visible. But whose fault is it. For no fault of theirs they have been branded as disabled. I also had a chance to talk to a few who have outlived their disabilities in a TV show that I present called Tea Talk on Media One (Episode 35 Please note the video is in Malayalam. Courtesy: Media One) . Let me stop at this point and rephrase it as their physical challenges. Please watch the video and see their confidence.
Now arises the answer to the obvious question. When they can bootstrap their shortcomings and smile or even laugh at the life, it is the person who turns a deaf ear to them who is deaf. It is that person who does not see this who is blind. Or the right way to say it would be that we have a disabled eye, ear, and a deformed heart. They ask no special treatment. They want to strive to success along with us. They March ahead and we tend to discriminate them without looks, words and actions or at least our thoughts about them. They deserve to be treated equal or more.
Every bus in India says the seats are reserved for the challenged, but do they get a chance to board a bus. I have seen in UAE, the difference in treatment. They have their parking space, they have their space and they are given equal and more opportunities to live in unison with the environment. We set apart a day "International Day of People with Disability" (December 3) to think about them. But that is the day we should think about ourselves as a day for us. For the deformed hearts we have we need a special day to be set apart for Love (Feb 14), Mother (May 11 in India and each country has a different date), Father (different for different countries and India doesn't have one), Women (March 8) and Labours (May 1).
The dictionary says Physical Challenge or those challenged are those having a physical disability or impairment, especially one that limits mobility. But when God has given us a heart to move, why it doesn't now!! In scriptures there are messages hidden in stories where with faith you ask the mountain to move and it moves. But have we lost faith so much that our heart does not move for those who need our love and care the most. They ask no special treatment but at least we should refrain from treating them as one among us.
It’s time to open our eyes and say that
Every day is a day for Love,
Every day is a day for Care
If at all we see the need
Let’s tell the world we are there...
Please think about this and spread the word.
