David Garcia needs recognition
To the Editor of CM-Life,
People with disabilities are among the most marginalized groups in the world today. The conversation is usually gender or race based, but I think it’s important to think about people with disabilities as well. They face their own day to day struggles and these people need to be embraced. According to the World Health Organization, 15% of the world’s population is affected by a disability. Through working with the David Garcia Project, a program that advocates and educates on disability awareness, it came to my attention that disability awareness is lacking in the in conversation. People often disregard this topic and they even make the person with disabilities feel like they aren’t normal within our society. I think it is time to make a change in the attitudes about disability awareness.
The David Garcia Project (DGP) needs to be recognized for being an inclusive program. They take a variety of students and give them different tasks to challenge them, whether it be wheeling around in a wheelchair or even being led by a guide as you wear goggles that make it harder to see. The program adheres to four disabilities which includes: physical, auditory, visual and learning. Often, they have learning sessions for you to experience the lifestyle of a person with disabilities. The most important part to the session is the reflection because that’s where you gain that deep rooted meaning.
This program creates an awareness and open- mindedness to people with disabilities. I think more students need to follow this example and learn to appreciate the conversation. People with disabilities are normal people too, but just a little different. The David Garcia Project needs more light shined on its program.
Sincerely,
Cia Elder
