Forming a Disability Identity as a Dyslexic
NOTE: October is Learning Disabilities / Dyslexia / Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Awareness Month.
By Rachelle Johnson, a member of the Young Adult Leadership Council of the National Center for Learning Disabilities.
As a child I was diagnosed with dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Adults told me I was “differently abled” and to not categorize myself negatively, as in “disabled.” This introduced me to a societal view of “the disabled” and how to navigate an ableist society by distancing from the term disabled. The adults wanted this so I would not be treated in the negative ways people with disabilities often were.
I quickly learned how society viewed children with disabilities. I saw differences in how my “disabled versus non-disabled” peers were treated. Other kids made mean remarks because I was pulled out of the room for reading instruction and for the way I read, for which I was embarrassed. I remember a girl teasingly asked, “Why can’t you read?” I explained I had dyslexia, a learning disability that made it hard for me to read. She responded laughing, “So you are stupid and disabled?” I tried to repeat what adults had told me: “No, [...]