who would you demonise?

I am desperately trying to think of another real life example to prove how ludicrous the idea of attacking tenants for the cost of their rents that landlords have set. I think it would be akin to having a go at the passengers of an airplane for the cost of the plane tickets.

You wouldn't have a go at the passengers. After all they didn't chose the price of their ticket and its set by the airline. Equally you wouldn't have a go at the air stewardess for the price, but perhaps the government for the ammount of taxes and charges but mainly the airline itself.

In the same way, a tenant very often has little choice over their  acomondation, the ammount they pay for it etc etc. it is set by local rates and landlords out to make a profit. It should always be the fault of the landlord and perhaps the government for allowing this to continue.

not in my name.

Since seeing that disabled people are planning an act of civil disobedience on Saturday I have been thinking a lot about this.

Disabled people have been fighting very hard recently to be recognised as having a legitimate and valued voice, and I dare say we have been successful in this. As Sue Marsh said in her blog, we are no longer considered scroungers and dole scum. Thanks to the Spartacusreport we have raised disabled peoples profile in the national media, wider society and more importantly within the houses of power at westminister.

As I said on twitter the other day, the spartacusreport managed to get inside the HoL in an amendment and not just standing outside with a placard. Its success was in my opinion soley down to one thing. Accessibility. It meant that, for the first time the majority of disabled people could all unite together with one voice, one message using the same means. The internet has become one of the best tools for disabled people to communicate. There weren't any practical issues of traditional protesting and people were able to contribute in their own small way to make a big difference.

My fear for saturday is that all this good work will get undone. disabled people have been fighting for the front pages of newspapers with a legitimate, factual and reasoned argument with the spartacusreport, but unfortunately this might hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

It might shove spartacus report into the sidelines and change the public's new perception of disabled people once again into a negative and scrounging stereotype.

I know I would prefer disabled people to be known for the calm, reasoned, thoughtful, intellectual and factual arguements within the spartacus report than for some stunt in central london.

my bus journey

It took me til 2 to pysch myself up enough to go out. After checking the buses were actually coming I went to the bus stop and managed to make it into town. The bus doesn't exactly go where I want it to, so I have to catch another one 2 stops up the hill, but this bus is at the next stop so its fine.
After getting my 130 pounds refund (I think worth making the effort toget out !!!) I went home.
I had to weigh up the risks of staying in town another 20 minutes or getting a bus now and being over run with school kids. I looked at my phone and seen there were 2 buses running together and so managed to get the one behind. (so the school kids would be on the one in front.
Yes, at this point it is 250pm. Its a 20 minute journey to town, and another 5 once im in town. So by my reckoning i spent all of 20 minutes in town. And yes, I did catch the same bus out as in. After its left town it takes 20 minutes to get to the end of the route and flip around.

When Im on the bus I zone out. I can only sit on the single seats, and this particular bus was a bit of a nightmare as it only has one and its used by pushchairs and their mums, so I was just hoping I didn't get any conflict. I have done before.

so there i am, sitting with my phone and twitter in my own little world when I hear people startingto get more angry, and then i notice the bus has gone the wrong way. without warning. and the bus driver further panics by not stopping and explaining but just shrugging his shoulders and keeping on going.

no one knows where the bus is going, not even the bus driver it would seem. As is apparant from my twitter i had a meltdown. i was only 5 minutes from home at the point of diversion, my bus stop and my house are 2 minutes away. the problem of course with sheffield is the hills, and becuase the bus didnt go the right way it will now involve a longer walk.

but my brains not thinking about that, its not thinking in any sort of logic. Although this area is familar to me, its as though I have just landed on another planet. this is wrong, its not making sense. If the bus driver had said before that he was going on diversion it would have made me panic yes, but at least it wouldnt have completly freaked me out.

Another passenger is saying to me to get off at this stop, so I do, stil lnot quite sure where I am, even though as I say its familar to me. I sit at the bus stop a minute and just calm down enough to work out where i am and how to get home.

but yes, i can mobilze and plan a journey.. i guess thepeople who wrote those descriptors have never walked in my shoes, or even been on public transport. As much as i hate it, i can't drive because I collapse from stress, so I have no choice. its not to bad as i say, the bus stops outside my house and i can track the buses so i know when their coming...

#getwellsuen

I think most people know that Sue is now not well and in hospital. I reckcon she might need cheering up so I thought Id set up a blog as a giant internet get well card. and as a giant twitter get well card can we use #getwellsuen to tweet our good wishes to her. (did you see what I did there?)

I know for me personally Sue has done so much and this is just a little something i wanted to try organise to give a little bit back..

please join me?

writings...

 Im running for disabled students rep, and im filling in my nomination form. these are the questions and these are my answers. any thoughts or help?

 

WHAT EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS WILL I BRING TO THE ROLE: (This could be through your course, part time or voluntary work and/or involvement in the Union, e.g. clubs, societies, volunteering, student rep, etc)200 WORD LIMIT

I am currently studying education and disability studies. This course has quite simply been a revelation to me. It has transformed my thinking around disability. I want to share what I have learnt with other disabled students.

I have been in higher education and trying to get a degree for nearly ten years. I have experienced both good and bad practice and I understand and appreciate what a struggle it is to be a disabled student.

The reason I am doing my degree is because I want to be the change I wish to see in the world. This year I have gone on a protest against disability cuts and I am sitting on union council as a faculty rep. I am also setting up an online student community to help disabled students feel less isolated.

I love to listen and advocate for disabled students. I have been involved in peer mentoring disabled students.

IN THIS ROLE I WILL ACHIEVE FOR STUDENTS (This is explaining what positive change you plan to bring for students)200 WORD LIMIT

Disabed students rep

I want to activate and empower disabled students.

The way i intend to do this is:

-       Initiate a disabled students rep system for each faculty to ensure that students have a voice on campus with any disability related academic concerns.

-       Publicity and awareness campaigns to ensure that disabled students know who they are and what their rights to DSA, benefits, and disabled students support are.

-       Hold workshops for everyone in the above group so that disabled students can become informed and empowered

-       To have/ continue to build on the disabled students intranet forum so that we can communicate with each other.

-       To build communication links between disabled students and the disability team through a similar style as the student rep system of semester meetings.

-       To empower and activate Hallam to recognise that disability and disabled people don’t solely exist in a wheelchair and to educate them with some different perspectives on disability.

-       To have a disability awareness day/ disability history day.

I am solution focused. I don’t like to think of things as problems, but as something to find a solution for.

weakness and anger

If you had known me 7 or 8 years ago I doubt you'd want to be my friend. I had a lot of anger back then and I would lash out at anyone and anything. And then something changed.

When I was diagnosed, the specialist said to me that it wasn't anger, it was energy. And that I had the choice to use that energy in a negative way through anger, or in a positive way through action. I immediately changed, and became solution focused and action and positivity became my mantra. I am still depressed and I still am angry, but instead of seeing a problem, I see a solution.

These last few months since the hardest hit march in october has meant I have been able to channel my anger into something really positive and amazing. The spartacusreport has also meant that I had the opportunity to channel all my energies into helping others and being angry at the right people for the right reasons.

But, as i think is typical, I have one weakness.

I have, since that point also developed my creativity. Especially at the moment when I'm not well, and can't concentrate on things for more than 10 minutes this outlet is essential to get rid of some of that anger. It de stresses me to work in photoshop, and its the only thing I can sit and do for hours. I enjoy it, its as though I lock away that anger inside the image im creating.

which is where my weakness comes from. I love to add visual stuff to mainly written and text based things. and I hate to see my artwork misused or misunderstood. it is a part of me, and a very emotional part, so when that happens, it also releases that emotion and that anger inside.

I did some creative stuff for church and well, i no longer go there. They misunderstood and were not using my creative skills appropiately. I had the same problem with a group at uni. They copied my work and sold it on. All this stuff makes me very sensitive and i get very angry and upset when it happens.

I do things on trust. I never do things to make money, its not who I am, I make my artwork for other peoples enjoyment, and as a strong visual message to aid written messages. Its my expressive art.

which is why it angers me and upsets me to see it being abused in that way. I shouldn't have to watermark these designs. I watermark most of my work, but the stuff I do to spread a message or an idea visually, is something I want people to share. To enjoy and to use in helping them to explain the message.

It upsets me and embarrasses me when I get angry because I really hate that side of who I am, and it winds me up that I let people get to me like that. so I am sorry for my weakness and I hope i have explained it all well.

thanks

first they came for

My brains not thinking so well, so its not as good as I hoped it would be...

Pastor Martin Niemöller said this:

First they came for the communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak out because I was Protestant.

Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.

I think we are listening

Over the last few months I have found this:

First they came for the people on housing benefit

But even though it doesn’t affect me, because my rents cheap I still spoke out for them

Then they came for people who have cancer

And we questioned how terminally do you have to be to get benefits?

Then they came for the disabled children

And we refused to give up on them

Then they came for the workers, the people who’ve paid in all their lives

And we stood shoulder to shoulder in solidarity

So, when they come for us

We have the support of all.