What I would like to introduce now is my philosophy of work with people with disabilities．
They are little nervous because I’m going to show a video called “Disability is Natural．”
For you the audience the video is in English. All it is seven minutes．
The words are English but there is classical music with it．

“Disability is natural part of the human experience that doses not diminish the right of individuals with developmental disabilities to enjoy the opportunity to live independently，enjoy self-determination，make choices，contribute to society，and experience full integration and inclusion，in the economic，political，social，cultural，and educational mainstream of Amercan society．”　（The United States Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights）

Like gender and ethnicity，disability is simply one characteristic of being human．There have always been people with disabilities in the world and there always will be．One out of five Americans is a person with a disability，making people with disabilities the largest minority group in the United States．So how can disability not be natural? A person with a disability is more like people without disabilities than differrent．A green apple is more like red apples than different．

Disability is natural．When we belirve disability is natural，we will question the philosophy that people with disabilities are special services．For if we want them included in society，why do we put them in programs that isolated and segregate them? Why do we do things to people with disabilities that we would never do to ourselves? Why do we focus on what they can't do instread of what they can? Why do we talk about their body parts more than who they are as individuals? Why do we presume they are not OK just the way they are? Why do we try to change them into someone's definition of “normal”? Why dowe let a label define a perosn's potential，value，or character? Why are their labels more important than their names? Have they ever givens us permission to talk about them in ways we would never talk about ourselves? When we believe disability is natural，we will know a disability simply means a body part works differently．

And we'll know people with disabilities are fine，just the way they are．So we will no longer try to change them;we will change ourselves and how we view disability．We will question the need for interventions and therapies that may help the body or brain，but which scar the heart and injure the soul．And we will reject the services and assistance that destoroy a person's self-reliance and corrupt her self-determination．

We will realize the quality of life is not about functional abilities，but about being master of your own destiny．Because the ability to communicate is more important than the ability to talk．Independent mobility is more important than the ability to walk．Learning in your own way is more important than meeting a counterfeit definition of intelligence．Being supported and understood are more important than achieving an arbitrary standard of ‘appropriate behaviour’．So we will ensure people with disability labels are not indicators of potential，but are only socio-political passports for services．

And labels will have no place in our conversations，expect within the service system．For within families，amang friends，and in the community，disability is irrelevant ．We will know there is nothing ‘wrong’with a person who has disability，but there is something‘wrong’with us，when we cannot accept the humanity of others．We will know people with disabilities don't have ‘special needs’;their needs are perfectly normal for them．We will use people first language and put the persons first．And we will no longer say ‘handicapped’or‘disabled’for individuals with disabilities are not ‘disadvantaged’or‘non-functioning’．

And we will know the ‘problem’of disability is not within the person with a disability，but in how we have perceived people with disabilities．We will define them the way we ourselves: by their abilities，talents，and dreams．And they will move from being clients in the artificial world of the service system，to citizens who live real lives with the natural support of their communities．

We will realize a person's hopes and dreams-not the acquisition of functional skills -must be the guiding force in his life．And we will celebrate and embrace‘unrealistic’goals，for nothing great has ever been achieved without high expectations．And when we adopt the belief that disability is natural，we will be able to look into the face of a person with a disability，and we will PRESUME COMPETENCE．

(C)2001 KATHIE SNOW