Disability

A **disability** is a condition that a person has which limits them in some way. These conditions may be congenital (present at birth), cognitive (associated with the brain), developmental (appears as the person develops) and physical, which can be caused by an accident or infection.

## Introduction

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities defines disability in Article 1 as:

**Invisible disabilities**, or hidden disabilities, are disabilities that may not be immediately obvious, such as intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), mental disorders, asthma, epilepsy, allergies, migraines, arthritis and chronic fatigue syndrome.

## Assistive Technology

People with disabilities may use special equipment, often called assistive technology, that can help them. These can include:

- Mobility aids, such as canes (walking sticks), crutches, and walkers, that help someone walk
- Wheelchairs, another kind of mobility aid, for someone who can't walk. Some people who use wheelchairs cannot walk at all. Others are able to walk a bit; they use a wheelchair because they cannot walk for far or without pain.
    - Someone who uses a wheelchair cannot walk up or down stairs in a building. They need to use ramps and elevators going into and moving around in a building.
- Glasses or contact lenses to help someone see
- Screen readers that relay information on a computer to someone who cannot see.
    - These can include text-to-speech software that read contents of a screen out loud, or hardware that translates text on a screen into Braille.
- Hearing aids to help someone hear
- Teletypewriters (TTY), speech-generating devices, and communication boards, that help someone communicate in other ways if they cannot talk
- Special grips for holding writing utensils, silverware, tools, art supplies, and more; to help people who have poor dexterity (fine motor skills), weak muscles, or a tremor.
- Prosthetic limbs that replace a missing body part. Some people may have had the body part amputated (removed). Others may have just been born without it.

Wide doorways and accessible toilets also make it easier for people with physical disabilities to use.

## Discrimination

Hatred of the disabled is widespread, ranging from the far left to far right, which is called **ableism**. People biased against the disabled are called **ableists**.

## Categories

- A **Physical disability** limits the way a human body works
- A **visual impairment** impacts on the eyesight of a person, e.g. blindness
- A **hearing impairment** prevents a person from hearing normally, e.g. deafness
- A **developmental disability** limits how a person processes information, and as a result they may learn and grow at a slower rate than their peers
- An **intellectual disability** limits the brain functions of a person and prevents the person from functioning at the same "level" as their peers

## Related pages

- Equity
- Equality
- Civil rights
- Accessibility
- Human rights
- Neurodiversity
- Women's rights
- Children's rights
- Autism rights movement
- United Nations Human Rights Council
- United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights
- Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights