Crazy Crip Girl

Picture of me in my wheelchair on an ice rink with the words “still not a fucking vegetable” above my head.

I originally made a more complicated one but then I saved it incorrectly and then when I started over again I realized I could boil it down to ‘I’m not a fucking vegetable’. Before anyone flips out on me about how it’s “just a joke” let me say, I know you think it’s just a joke.

But this joke? It’s rooted in the idea that disabled people are incapable of absolutely anything. The idea is that we aren’t anything more than a squash or a zucchini. That we can’t think for ourselves, that we can’t have opinions or we can’t go places or enjoy life.

It’s disgusting and wrong. It creates controversy where there should be none. For an instance, this picture was taken at an ice rink where I was told I should leave because people didn’t think I was capable of moving and stopping my wheelchair on my own. Sure, I can’t walk on my own. But I can move with help from my beloved Tara. (Yes, I named my wheelchair)

This “joke” sets forth the idea that disabled people are better off dead. We’re not worth saving. We’re not worth alive. We’re just a burden on society. And that’s a bunch of bullshit.

It’s not just a joke. It’s offensive, derogatory, discriminatory, ableist shit. And as human beings, we deserve better.