Office of Administration
Governor's Council on Disability
Missouri Poster & Journalism Contest

First Place – Middle School Division

Valerie Kimball
Rolla Middle School
Rolla, Missouri

Inclusion: Today and Tomorrow

People, people, everywhere,
They say hi, they smile, they stare.
We're all so different, but yet the same,
Things about us we want to change, pointing fingers, who's to blame?
Why me? Why not you?
We all deserve to be included too.
Treating people fairly is the right thing to do,
WE all have much to offer, even you.
Teasing hurts, but praise spurs us on,
Encouraging us to look forward to the next new dawn.
Opportunities abound, don't dwell on your sorrow,
Let's provide inclusion, today and tomorrow

We all have disabilities. Some are not as obvious as others, but they exist nonetheless. Like the song Don't Laugh at Me by Seskin and Shamblin, 2002, says: "I'm fat, I'm thin, I'm short, I'm tall, I'm deaf, I'm blind. Hey, aren't we all?" It just depends on how we perceive our situation. We have all heard the expression, "Don't judge a book by its cover." It is what's inside that matters most of all.

We all do not appreciate the same things, but we can all be a contributing member of society. People get an education, work at jobs, and enter professions that run this country. Some jobs and professions are ones that anyone can do, a few of them only some can do, but all of then require support and training. Just because a person isn't a doctor doesn't mean he/she can't work for one.

If we do not include people with disabilities, we are not tapping into qualified, responsible, trustworthy, and dependable students and workers. School districts have inclusion into the regular classroom for students with disabilities. These students participate in all classroom activities and play games on the playground at recess. They are just as kind and smart as all the other kids. Our buildings must allow people with disabilities to access all rooms on all floors and get into and out of the building easily.

Schools must have rules that do not allow bullying but build character and acceptance instead. Schools should also have consequences when these rules are broken. We must all work together to build acceptance. I have a personal experience with being friends with kids with disabilities and it is because of these kids that I learned sign language. I'm not very good at it, but I wanted to be able to communicate with my friends, and this allowed us to communicate and become even better friends.

I have heard adults say that life is hard. I am beginning to understand what they mean, and I imagine it must be that much more difficult for people with disabilities to have to deal with life as hard as it can be sometimes, plus a disability. I really respect and look up to people with disabilities because all the ones I have met are truly nice and friendly, and they don't let their disability affect their personality.

Misunderstanding and stereotyping can be changed one person at a time. Only a strong and dependable role model is willing to go against the crowd and stand up for what is important. Stereotyping, misunderstanding, and excluding people with disabilities just show narrow-mindedness and a lack of patience to include and get to know people who have disabilities. Inclusion benefits both people with and without disabilities because it teaches acceptance of people for who they are on the inside, and when we all include others our lives are better for it and enriched with the knowledge we are all special in our own way.

We will never really know what people with disabilities have to go through and excluding them from our day to day activities is not going to help in any way, shape, or form. The feeling of being excluded is definitely no walk in the park. Exclusion only lowers one's self esteem and confidence to succeed in anything one puts his/her mind into doing. Support, encouragement, and praise make life enjoyable and better for everyone. Those are things everyone can provide free of charge, and they go a long way towards enriching someone's life.

It is my belief that inclusion should simply be our way of life and should not even be a topic of conversation. What really surprises me is that some people are more comfortable around animals with disabilities than they are with people who have disabilities. People I admire don't treat others unfairly and that is the kind of person I aspire to be. This issue can be resolved so easily because it is just misunderstanding, and stereotyping before actually knowing. Inclusion needs to start today. We are all unique, different and special. That is a reason to celebrate together.