I was disturbed with some of the recent disparaging comments women were making about other women in regards to voting based on gender. Especially women my age and older talking down to younger women. I believe that women should always support women. However, we fought hard for our feminist rights. We continue to fight for our rights. We need women to have equal pay, a place at the C suite, a seat in the board room and so much more.
My work is focused on disability inclusion, accessibility and empowering persons with disabilities. According to the World Health Organization there are over 1 billion people with disabilities in the world or 1 in 7 people. Some countries like the United States are higher. According to the Census Bureau, 1 in 5 persons with the United States are living with a disability. One in five American adults have at least one kind of disability, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Released in July 2015. The study, drawn from 2013 data, says 53 million Americans have a disability. “We know disability types and related challenges can vary,” said Elizabeth Courtney-Long, a health scientist with CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities. “In order to understand and address their needs, we need to understand their diverse circumstances. This report provides a snapshot into that. 1 The Report can be found here
My son and daughter, Kevin and Sara Ruh who has Down Syndrome
Women and girls with disabilities face even bigger barriers and are the victims of two-fold discrimination: as women and as persons with disabilities. Studies conducted by the United Nations women with disabilities are often invisible “both among those promoting the rights of persons with disabilities, and those promoting gender equality and the advancement of women.” 2
Women with disabilities all over the world are shamed, bullied, raped, murdered and treated as if they do not matter. 3 It is past time for all women to be empowered and to support all genders.
Women with disabilities all over the world are shamed, bullied, raped, murdered and treated as if they do not matter. It is past time for all women to be empowered and to support all genders. I have the honor to work with Rosemary Musachio, a brilliant woman and also the Chief Strategic Officer at Ruh Global Communications. Rosemary happens to have been born with Cerebral Palsy. Rose shared her thoughts on this topic with me recently, this is what she said:
“Steinem’s quote is a generalization, which is often detrimental and even dangerous. Her remark may stereotype younger women in a bad light, not caring about anything except self-gratification. If society acquaints this negative image with women who were born after 1990, they may not receive support from other women. They also may not get opportunities that they deserve.
Being a woman with cerebral palsy, I’ve experienced the repercussions of generalization all of my life. The public still automatically links having a disability with not being a productive member of society or my mind being in a wheelchair. Because of this, I constantly have to fight to prove myself. Now, because of Steinem’s comment, millennial women may have to fight to prove themselves.” – Rosemary Musachio, Chief Strategic Officer at Ruh Global Communications
As an undecided voter, I fought for my feminist right to decide on a candidate based on the issues not based on gender. I am also embarrassed of women my age and older telling younger women they don’t understand the fight for equal rights for women. Once while attending a conference for Women Global Leaders, I was talking with several other attendees. One guest brought up how we should be mentoring the younger generation in business leadership. Maybe we could create a program to help millennial women engage with other women on these issues. Several of the women agreed that they would not want to take part in mentoring millennial women. I recall one woman describing young millennials as spoiled, self centered, socially immature and addicted to their devices. I was shocked and commented, “How can you say that? We have fought so hard for women to have a voice. We still have so much work to do.”
How can we decide this of an entire generation? Younger women are not adding value, contributing to the conversation, understand the past fights and are immature? I am personally hooked on social media and my smart devices. I chatter so much on social media about disability inclusion and accessibility for all, that I sometimes stress myself out. The millennial women that I have met are almost always amazing leaders trying to make a huge impact for our world.
As a woman in my late 50’s I meet and work with millennial women all the time. I see many Millennial women highly engaged in social good, social entrepreneurship and “Be-the-Change” type activities. I have met millennial women, including women with disabilities, all over the world that are sacrificing everything to be included. I believe we did not fight this hard for women’s rights to now decide that millennial women do not care for our rights or past efforts. When I speak to young women, they are proud of those who fought for their rights. They look up to these women and it must have really hurt them to hear these comments. I asked the opinion of my Creative Director, Emily Ha. She is a millennial woman whose opinions I’ve come to value. Here’s what she had to say:
Emily Ha – Chief Creative Officer at Ruh Global Communications
“I am a first generation Burmese-American woman who works in the realm of disability inclusion. I advocate for women with disabilities because we all matter and when I say that I’m talking about millennial women as well. Their viewpoint is very unique and at times overlooked. Giving a voice to those who cannot speak for themselves is what I try to do.
I appreciate the struggles of so many human rights advocates from the past, more than I can express. That being said, I am wary of being quick to side with any blanket statement, and certainly don’t appreciate being labeled for having an opinion that may be different. Everyone of us is unique, our experiences and lives differ. Saying that all of one type is like this or that is reductive thinking. Aiding a stereotypical societal view, and one I don’t support. Understanding one another and where people are coming from is tough, but step one is to simply listen before casting judgments. Wouldn’t you assume the same respect of a stranger meeting you for the first time?
Young women are still having to fight those that would limit their voices, freedoms, and equalities. Some Baby Boomers and Generation X-ers have unfairly awarded millennial’s such epithets as “entitled, naïve, coddled, uninformed, lazy, ungrateful, and attention-crazed”. Some even consider millennials to be Tech Savvy to a fault.. But is the vilification fair? We’ve evolved past this ignorance, and we need to stand by our progress.
We should also remember that generational clashes are nothing new. Many past generations of emerging adults have sparked angst and disdain in their predecessors. Even the Baby Boomers had once been labeled the “Me Generation”. Perhaps it’s time we break this pattern and embrace what we each might uniquely offer. – Emily Ha, Creative Director at Ruh Global Communications
We have so many issues to resolve in our world including civil rights for persons with disabilities, climate change, religious freedoms, discrimination, violence and many more issues. I believe it is critical to mentor, empower and encourage younger generations. My generation should support all women of all ages, especially women with disabilities to help them continue to find their voices and join these empowering conversations. Otherwise we may accidentally send the wrong message to others. For example, what messages are we giving to men of all ages especially millennial men? I asked my son, Kevin Ruh a millennial to voice his opinions on this matter.
Kevin Ruh – Chief Marketing Officer at Ruh Global Communications
“Following the campaign news can be tedious. It seems fraught with needless drama and pandering for pandering’s sake. It is a time when we form opinions on who we would like to see become the leader of this country for four years into the future. There are times when I have made quick leaps of faith that people will think the same way as me. At times I am correct, at others I’m dead wrong. Listening to every word out of every potential candidates mouth is not only impossible, but maddening. When someone comes out and makes a late statement, a defining principle, then it is time to really pay attention. Some lost my vote early on by spreading bigoted ideals. I simply cannot support a candidate who is so close minded to human and race relations. When someone tells me that my vote is set to one candidate based on sex they lose my confidence, I support a woman’s right to chose for herself as much as I support anyone’s self choices.
We need to stop falling back into archaic ways, stay alert and listen when it really matters, support the change you want. – Kevin Ruh, Chief Marketing Officer, at Ruh Global Communications
Women should support each other but never take away the right for another woman to vote for someone that has a different gender or opinion than us. Let’s not bully other women that is so sad to watch. Instead we should encourage younger women to find their voice, to have a place at the podium, to fight for their right to decide for themselves. Everyone matters including people like me that are older but please also understand that the Millennials are an amazing generation and they have the ability to change the world and help us evolve.
I am a woman that supports other women. I am a woman that will decide who to vote for based on the candidate that I feel will best lead our country. I am a woman that values diversity. I am a woman that believes that women with disabilities add great value to the world. I am a woman that can think for herself. I am an older woman that is PROUD to work with Millennials to help make the world a more empowering place for all women including women with disabilities. Join us in helping assure that everyone has an empowering voice in our societies especially women and girls with disabilities.
Growing up with spinal muscular atrophy, a genetic neuromuscular disease that affects all muscles of the body, can bring social challenges for anyone. For Alice Wong, the challenges made her angry. Rather than the anger becoming a negative impact on her adult life, she has been able to utilize it to fight for her rights and those of others with disabilities.
Alice Wong
As she wrote in her essay Hey, Angry Girl, Alice faced a lot of attitudinal barriers while she was growing up in Indianapolis, Indiana. Besides the usual stares and naïve questions from people, she also faced barriers in her education. For instance, to complete her second year drama class, one of the requirements was to do a skit that required physical action. The professor insisted it had to be done standing up, which Alice couldn’t do. So she had to forego it.
Attending the University of California, Alice discovered ways to break down barriers that she had encountered during her youth and still was facing. Works of disability activists and researchers such as Paul Longmore, Irving Zola, Erving Goffman, and others inspired Alice to express her ideas and voice her frustration through writing and research. Her writings have helped people with disabilities to live as independent as possible.
Direct Course Online
For instance, Alice is the Staff Research Associate for the Community Policy Living Center at the University of California where she authors curricula for the College of Personal Assistance and Caregiving and producing reports on Olmstead-related legislation and lawsuits. In fact, Alice is the co-author of several online courses on personal assistance care, which can be found at Direct Course Online. She’s also the founder of the Facebook group “Self-Directed Care Discussion Group”, where members can voice their concerns and ask questions about personal assistance issues.
National Council on Disability Image from: https://www.facebook.com/NCDgov/
Besides personal care assistance, Alice also has motivated other persons with disabilities to make their voices heard. She has launched the Disability Visibility Project, a blog-like platform so persons with disabilities can write about their challenges and successes. These stories make our voices heard, act as a historical resource, and illustrate their diversity. As with the Facebook personal assistance group, she also utilizes Twitter to encourage them to discuss issues that concerns the disability community. Hopefully, agency or government officials notice these discussions and act upon what needs to be done to ensure our basic rights as humans.
President Obama Appoints Alice Wong to National Council on Disability. Image from: www.ucsf.edu
Alice also promotes social media accessibility as a council member of the National Council of Disability (NCD). In 2014, she co-moderated a series of online dialogues to discuss how social media platforms can become more accessible, such as users adding text alternatives to images and including correct captions for videos. “{O}ne of my advocacy efforts is through community-building efforts on social media such as Facebook and Twitter,” Alice says. “I’ve come across some amazing people with disabilities all over the world and we share our experiences that seem to be universal.”
As an avid advocate for persons with disabilities, Alice offers three bits of advice. First, don’t consider yourself the problem. Society creates most of the barriers that you need to overcome. Second, reach out to other persons with disabilities who have experienced similar situations that you do for guidance and mentoring. Third, share your struggles and successes with others who may need help.
Alice turned her anger as a little girl into something positive as a woman—her passion and desire to help others with disabilities.
Kevin Ruh – Chief Marketing Officer at Ruh Global Communications
My name is Kevin Ruh and I support the United Nations “HeForShe” campaign. I hope other men will join this conversation and show women that we support their rights to not be seen only as sexual objects. I believe that men are evolving. We need to raise our voices and show our support of women.
I was raised by a strong mother (Debra Ruh) and have a wonderful sister (Sara Ruh) born with Down syndrome. I am also proud to be in a committed relationship with another strong woman (Emily Ha).
Emily Ha – Chief Creative Officer at Ruh Global Communications
I have seen men treat women as sexual objects or inferior beings – the weaker sex syndrome. It has always annoyed and angered me. I have debated this topic with many male friends and pondered what can be done to stop the violence. Men should never be violent for any reason. If you are in a bad relationship – step away – violence is never the answer. Women should be allowed to dress, walk, or act any way that they choose without fear of men preying upon them.
To make this situation even worse women with disabilities are often victims of violence and the statistics are very troubling. According to the National Rape Response Service:
U.S. National studies estimate that almost 80% of people with disabilities are sexually assaulted on more than one occasion and 50% of those experienced more than 10 victimizations.
Women with disabilities are raped and abused at a rate at least twice that of the general population of women.
Among adults who are developmentally disabled, as many as 83% of the females and 32% of the males are victims of sexual assault.
Source: www.MECASA.org
We must stop the senseless violence against women and people with disabilities.
I was intrigued by Emma Watson’s speech on this topic at the United Nations. Emma Watson is a household name for most. Her portrayal of Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movies is where I was first introduced to this talented actor. She has gone on to do over fifteen films during her acting career.
More importantly though, are her efforts to help the human race. She has done a lot to help women’s rights over the years. Promoting the education of women is a huge issue. Watson has traveled the world to places like Zambia and Bangladesh to promote her views and aid the women’s rights movement. She believes in equality regardless of gender, I wholeheartedly agree with this and also believe it is a critical issue.
Watson was appointed the UN Women Goodwill Ambassador in July this year. In September she delivered an address that launched a new UN Women campaign called “HeForShe”. It is a program that asks for men to advocate for gender equality. Watson notes that it is impossible to see a change in the violence if only one side is advocating equality.
Emma Watson
She is right – often this is a conversation being held by mostly women. It is time for men to join the conversation. We need to teach boys of all ages that a “Real Man” does not hurt anyone. Emma Watson’s efforts are being applauded globally.
Many Hollywood stars are self-proclaimed “feminists” and are often scrutinized for not practicing what they preach. Emma Watson is the image of a feminist who says equality is for all.Find out more about the “HeForShe” campaign here: www.HeForShe.org
I hope my brothers join me in my efforts to support women. Many of us are evolved and we need to stand with women and stop the violence. I challenge other men and parents raising sons to stand with me. It is Time to STOP the ABUSE.
