Most importantly, just like everyone else, persons with disabilities need to be in charge of their own lives, need to think and speak for themselves without interference from others. To this end persons with disabilities need to learn from and support each other, organize themselves and work for political changes that lead to legal protection of their human and civil rights. Traditionally, disabled persons have been seen as medical cases and objects of charity and care, pity and protection. Without these two necessities persons with extensive disabilities can choose only between being a burden on their families or living in an institution. These extremely limited and limiting options are incompatible with the concept of Independent Living.
Assistants help the user at work, about town and on travel.
They assist in communicating or in structuring the day, as the case might be. In brief, assistants help with those activities which the user would have done by himself or herself, had it not been for a physical, sensory, mental or intellectual disability. People who are dependent on others for the most basic needs of life face prejudices. Given their physical dependency the conclusion is close at hand to consider them as dependent on others also emotionally and intellectually. Somebody who cannot pull up his or her pants like a small child, may be treated as a small child in other respects as well.