Cathy Smith speaks about Disability Pride Month | Tenant news

Habinteg tenant and Chair of the Joint Strategic Impact Group, Cathy Smith, shares what Disability Pride means to her. She reflects on her journey as a disabled activist, the importance of role models, and progress made in the disabled community. 

July is Disability Pride Month. This year’s pride theme for the UK is “We belong here, and we are here to stay”. Disabled people as a group are so diverse and rich in altruism. We want to have influence on our society, and despite a difficult few months, where our contribution to the life of this country has been polarised, we have a lot to be proud of.

The month is a chance for disabled people like me to celebrate who we are and what we have achieved. This is not a place that I felt naturally comfortable in, especially if like me you spent half your life believing you were second class.

Role models & allies

Disability Pride means I can recognise the role models and allies in my life. Some of them are those of most people; my parents who moved from Ireland to Lancashire who did not have family to support them, but who made me the woman I am today.

Other allies include my first primary school headmaster, Mr Fredrick Vandome. He took the unusual step in the early sixties to open his school to disabled pupils, giving them a solid educational start in life.

As a little girl I wanted to be an actor. As I got older, I wanted to go to university. Although I didn't get to be an actor through my disability activism, I still became a performer. I get on a stage as myself and tell my own story.

I also went to university as a mature student. I remember walking into university that first day and realising for the first time in my life as a disabled person, I didn't have to play the two-minute game.

As a disabled person I knew that when meeting someone new I had just two minutes to prove that I was intelligent. Suddenly, I was in a situation that I didn’t have to do that anymore; the fact I was an undergraduate made that game moot.

Disabled activist

In the past, disabled role models were few and far between. However, for me, my role models came from my peers. But, rather than standing on the shoulders of my peers, I walked shoulder to shoulder with them. In 1986, I saw Baroness Jane Campbell and Micheline Mason speak at a conference in London. I knew then that that is what I wanted to do with my life.

As a disabled activist of five decades, I reflect on my achievements and those of my generation who changed the face of disability politics and activism.

Celebrating the changes my generation made means disabled children now have a rich collection. of role models, from Rosie Jones to Lost Voice Guy, Paralympians to TV presenters.

Disability Pride most of all celebrates the achievements of all disabled people, including me, and allows us to enjoy the wins in life and let go of the losses.

As I also like to express my experience through poems, below, I've shared one such powerful poem with you.