Ah, this is a stigma that is commonly known to occur on an everyday basis. Every person who is able-bodied seems to have the wrong impression of people with disabilities. This is basically due to how people with disabilities use mobility assistance or equipment (wheelchairs, scooters, canes, walkers, etc.). The largest issue in using any mobility assistance, and having a disability, is the fact that able-bodied people do not understand how touching either the person or the assistance can cross a line. There is a reason why we have mobility assistance, and that is to give us the independence that we desire. If it was any scenario where a landscape is steep or uneven, when the weather is bad (rain, snow, ice), or when we ask for help, then it would be OK to touch. If there was any reason, or you feel nice enough to help out, please don’t touch if we don’t need the help, or give our consent.
Giving any assistance to people with disabilities can happen too often. Able-bodied people seem to be ignorant of how, despite how we appear or manage to get on with our lives, disabled people can actually be pretty independent in what they do. It is extremely bothersome whenever we are asked if we need the help. We are likely asked if we need the help, too often, because chances are that the disability/mobility equipment is noted first. Whenever someone looks at the equipment first, the persons with the disability are ignored too often. Everyone needs to keep in mind that we should always look at the person first and not all of the flaws they have in identifying who they are.
When it comes to being at my college, the questions of whether I need help happens far too often. My college is really accessible when considering how they have automatic buttons; the issue comes often when people go out to hold the door open before I even have a chance to touch the automatic door button to open the door myself. Even if I am nowhere close to open the door with the button, like going in and out of the cafeteria, library or technology building, people always feel that they have to help.
Whether we have a disability, or no, does not mean that we do not have a voice. If we say that we are fine, we are OK, or we got this, then this is a blunt comment that we are not giving anyone our consent. Whatever a person's reason may be for helping, they need to ask for consent first. If we tend to yell, or talk loudly, that we don't need help, do not take any offense -- doing that is our way of standing up for ourselves.
