Last month I took a pretty big step in my ADHD-Autism journey…
I ordered a sunflower lanyard. *squeals with joy*
After sharing this exciting (to me) and joyful titbit online, it became evident that a few people hadn’t known what the sunflower lanyard was! They had spied the lanyard on people, sensed it meant something but didn’t know its importance.
It’s simple, really… The sunflower lanyard is a visible indicator that the person wearing it has hidden disabilities. It’s a way of showing that the wearer might need support or adjustments.
The sunflower lanyard’s recognition is still growing, so absolutely no judgment AT ALL if anyone didn’t know what it was. However, now that you know, please share this email or make your own social media post so that word gets around! Sharing this information is a really quick and simple way to aid the disabled community and be an alley, so TYVM in advance :D
PS. If you’re a manager or business owner, you can go a step further by ensuring your staff are trained to recognise the sunflower lanyard. You can even register with the lanyard scheme for training and be listed as a registered sunflower-friendly location - I recently started searching their map whenever I go somewhere new, so it does make a difference!
Honestly, I've yet to wear my lanyard outside the house. It took me MONTHS to order the thing, and now that I have it, I'm anxious about stepping out of the house and openly communicating my disabilities to the world. Maybe that's weird, considering I share a more-than-appropriate-amount online, but when I share online, I am safe in my house. I'm not opening myself up to too-long-stares as people try to guess what's wrong with me or being infantilised or asked invasive questions - not that any of this has happened to me. Still, I know from listening to other (usually visibly) disabled people that this does happen to disabled people frequently.Without the lanyard, I pass for non-disabled, which is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because I haven't experienced overt ableism. A curse because I am forced to mask so frequently and endure discomfort without having my needs met. I guess there's something scary about lifting that mask and removing that perceived privilege.
All this being said, the sunflower lanyard has helped many disabled people navigate spaces they would usually struggle in. It has helped people gain the accessibility, adjustments, empathy, and understanding they need to have positive experiences in spaces that would normally be inaccessible to them; supermarkets, clothing stores, airports, train stations, restaurants, and so on. I'm sure, once I've worked up the nerve to wear it out, I'll wonder why I was ever so anxious.
When I do finally wear it out for the first time, I'll be sharing my experience online, so give me a follow on Instagram or TikTok.
As it's the end of Disability Awareness Month, and I don't want to make this all about me (even though this is my newsletter ;P), I'd like to ask you to diversify the disabled voices you follow, learn from and listen to. This includes diversity from gender, class, and racial perspective, but also variety in disabilities too; visible to invisible, physical to mental, chronic to developmental.
It's essential that we (yes even me!) understand how ableism works its tendrils through society from different perspectives.
The list of people we can follow and learn from is HUGE, so I'm listing just 4 people below that I've learned from. If there are other disabled writers, creators, bloggers, podcasters, etc., you want to share, feel free to leave a comment with the handles or website, and we can all diversify our feeds together!
Nina Tame - A kooky mum who loves a pop of colour. She's got a house interior to die for, wears the cutest kitch-y clothes and earrings, and sometimes dyes her hair colours that I am envious of. She has such a warm presence that I just wanna be her friend, but she also has that mumsy vibes of don't shit talk me because I will call out your ableism so everyone can learn from it. Iconic. Also, she just got a puppy, and the dog spam is enough to make you wanna follow.
Fran Haddock - Someone who is my actual friend. I met Fran online a few years ago because of our shared climate activism, but I moved to the city she lived in by coincidence, so now we meet IRL. She is an absolute powerhouse, and I have learned from her endlessly. Whether it's discovering new eco books (she has a book club), understanding the impacts of ME and CFS, the impacts of covid, learning about local and global environmental justice campaigns, or simply finding new ways to appreciate nature - her lessons are endless.
Cathy Reay - She describes herself as a 'chaotic person on the internet', and tbh… this is accurate. BUT, her content is so fun while exposing ableism. She's like that friend who always has good gossip, but the goss is always about themselves and it’s always hilarious. What a qween.
Imani Barbarin - Admittedly, I haven't followed Imani for very long, so I can't give you a blow-by-blow synopsis of their content (soz), but what I've seen swings between funny, joyful, and informative videos communicating the intersection between race and disability.
Your turn! Amplify disabled creators and writers in the comments.