When The Washington Post published a piece detailing how a Starbucks employee mocked a customer for stuttering while ordering a drink at Starbucks, I wasn’t surprised. In fact, as a person who also stutters, I was resigned.
I can’t even count the number of times an interaction with a stranger has left me feeling disrespected and defeated — the banker, the customer, the men I’ve dated, just to name a few.
But the incident at Starbucks did surprise me in one way: After the barista openly mocked the customer, Sam, for his stutter — first in conversation and again by printing his drink label in a pejorative fashion (“SSSam”) — people took action.
Largely thanks to a social media post, news of Sam’s encounter gained national attention. In the end, Starbucks let the barista go, and the corporation ― already knee-deep in necessary anti-bias and sensitivity training — has confirmed there will be more training on ”additional topics in the months to follow.”
This may not seem like much to celebrate, but for those of us committed to raising awareness for the disabled population, it feels worth commemorating. Nearly 1 in 5 people in the U.S. have a disability, and yet, the activism for our movement has been an uphill battle. Recently, however, there has been more acknowledgment of the different kinds of prejudice disabled people experience and more visibility for differently abled bodies. Embracing this discussion has been a crucial development for disability advocacy.
Despite setbacks, we can now objectively say that disability awareness is growing.
In fact, from the outside, it would seem as though the disability movement might finally be receiving the attention it deserves. Perhaps prompted by the gross disrespect and erasure by our nation’s new political leadership, it seems we are currently in “a new wave of activism by disabled Americans who want to change the way disability is viewed in the U.S.,” according to Time.
Thanks to the efforts of activists, there is now more representation of disabled characters in television and film. More disabled perspectives and opinions are being shared on the prospective ban on plastic straws ― but only because the needs of the disabled population (who often use straws out of necessity) were not taken into account. There have also been some genuine triumphs for the disability community, of course, such as the clothing brand Aerie and its recently released and incredibly inclusive ad campaign. Despite setbacks, we can now objectively say that disability awareness is growing.