Strength in Diversity: Embracing Disability Pride

July 8, 2024 | by sau1admin

July is Disability Pride Month. The Columbia Climate School says that the reason that disability pride is celebrated in July is because The Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, was passed on July 26th 1990. The ADA gives people with disabilities equal rights under the law. Since it was passed, we celebrate disability pride every July. The hope and celebration of those with disabilities is to create a world in which everyone is accepted for who they are and what they have to offer the world.

Did you know that disability pride month has its own flag? Each colored stripe on the flag is for a different type of disability. Even the light black background means something. The Columbia Climate School article linked above tells us what the each color means:

• Red - physical disabilities
• Gold - neurodiversity
• White - invisible disabilities and disabilities that haven't yet been diagnosed
• Blue - emotional and psychiatric disabilities, including mental illness, anxiety, and depression
• Green - for sensory disabilities, including deafness, blindness, lack of smell, lack of taste, audio processing disorder, and all other sensory disabilities

The faded black background means mourning and rage for victims of ableist violence and abuse. The diagonal band of all the stripes together means cutting across the things that separate the disabled community from the non-disabled community, also showing light and creativity cutting through the darkness.

The article also offers ways that you can celebrate Disability Pride Month. Some ideas include:

• Educating yourself
• Respectfully asking questions about disability
• Recognize someone for who they are and the gifts they have to offer
• Speaking up about disability and disability rights
• Attending disability pride events

These are all things that we do here at SAU1. You can do them too! Attend one of our virtual or in person disability self advocacy events to learn how to use your power and speak up!