When you look around and see persons with disabilities, you begin to wonder what kind of experiences they have had, but you cannot know it all until you hear it directly from them.
The question of how persons with disabilities live in a nation like ours where minority groups are looked down on is evergreen.
Asking five people living with disabilities what it is like in this country is a start.
These are what they had to say:
Blessing, (Teacher)
Clubfoot
Growing up with clubfoot was really an experience for me. I was born with it so it was automatically assumed that it was the work of witches – just so you know, I’m from Benin City, you get.
I don’t walk like every other person; there is always a limp when I walk. I was bullied by my siblings and even my parents. When I say bullied, I mean they use my condition to throw jabs at me. It happens till date, even with strangers. That’s why I mind my business most of the time because it’s my leg they will go for first if I find trouble.
I remember back in school, people usually made fun of me. I always felt bad, but I don’t blame them though. I couldn’t actively participate in sports or some other activities I loved. They never included me in school plays or dances. It was awful.
Living with clubfoot in Nigeria is all about being treated differently and getting stares from people. Some look at me like I’m a mystery or puzzle they want to solve, some look at me and think ‘she must be in pain’, I’m not in pain.
It would make me happy if the stares stopped but I guess it’s a package deal when you are different.
Sunday, (Student)
Lower limb discrepancy
The first thing people notice about me is not my fine face; it’s my shoe lift, and my shoe lift is quite high. I am used to it; I’ve been receiving such stares since I was a kid, but some people dey do pass themselves.
I guess living with such in Nigeria is about people looking at you like you stole their meat. I like playing football, but I am usually not put on the team. Maybe as a sub but I don’t think I have played in an official match with my mates. I’m not letting it stop me though.
You can’t be a person with a disability in Nigeria and not have a tough skin.
Ezinne, (Tailor)
Amputee
I wasn’t born with one hand; it was cut off. I don’t even want to go into how it happened, but as someone who has lived as an able-bodied person and a person with one hand, I can confidently say that people will treat you differently if you have some form of disability or difference, as you call it.
I am a tailor and I am skilled, but if you see the way new customers look at me when they enter my shop, me sef I begin to rethink my abilities. Normal normal, finding work is not easy when people think that you can’t work, so I learnt to sew, and people still find a way to make it look like I don’t know what I’m doing.
I went to school; I speak fair English, but I’m still treated somehow. Once the customers see my hand, they will use the price I gave them to leave the shop, and they think I won’t know. It’s not easy at all. The judgement is plenty.
Tobe, (Artiste)
Locomotor disability
I make music and I use a wheelchair. There were times I needed to go to the studio, but I couldn’t for obvious reasons. The studio is at Yaba and I stay at Berger; I’m trying to make you see that the distance is not small.
If my sister, who doesn’t use a wheelchair wants to get there, it’ll be easy and fast for her, but not for me. I have to use Bolt all the time, and that stuff is expensive. What I’m saying is that I can’t easily go to places I want to because nothing has been put in place to make my journey easier, and you may think I am sounding entitled; I actually am.
We all are. Every person with a disability has the right to access whatever public place they choose, but that right is just there, nobody is doing anything. Nigeria is hard enough, even for able-bodied people. Please make it easier.
Faruq, (Businessman)
Dwarfism
I have heard all the dwarf jokes Nigerians can come up with. It is not funny. “I will step on you, I will carry you,” especially when there is a fight and I have a sharp mouth. Aside from people being rude to me or mistaking me for a child, using some public amenities is hard.
It’s always too high. Even entering a bus is like crossing a hurdle. I have short limbs. People feel like they can talk to me or treat me like a child. I have stuff in my brain and I have experience. I am not a child; I don’t even look like a child. I can’t do things without people second-guessing me. It’s how it is.
Society can be hostile, especially to persons with disabilities. These shared experiences are just 5 out of 25 million people living with disabilities in the country.
We have to make changes to ensure better living for every person and the community at large. Then and only then shall we move forward as an integrated society with unstoppable force.
