Blogger > Axiom News

At Axiom News we seek new points of reference outside where most people reside in the sectors we serve; a place we can highlight, zero-in on and urge others to consider going.

Stories we’ve seen through our work in developmental services, long-term care, education and city-wide transformative change may at first glance seem quite separate from each other.

When we look at them through the lens of inclusion, however, we see there are indeed similarities.

In terms of inclusion, that new point of reference may very well be found in the realization that the quest to fill that most basic of human needs and be part of the collective group with equal opportunity for our gifts and contributions to be valued, is a universal one.

For some of our clients, we highlight stories connected to people who have a disability and in them we find great inspiration. There are obstacles imposed by stereotypes and societal attitudes people who have a disability overcome, and the strength, determination and perseverance we discover in these tales are revelations.

These barriers may at first be perceived as the mental or physical challenges of the person, but most often when we dig deeper we understand they are barriers created in the psyche of those who are unable to see past perceived limitations to the gifts we all have to offer.

This situation, however, is not reserved only for those who have a disability, for minds are too often closed to the contributions of many marginalized segments of society.

The outdated medicalization of aging in society still dominates notions of elder care, and there are too few organizations out there striving to change this reality.

Too many of our elders are excluded because aging is deemed an incurable disease by conventional thought, and we’re poorer as a people for not realizing the gifts our elders can offer.

In our schools, young people with no visible intellectual or physical disability face their own barriers to healthy growth and the pain of exclusion.

These youth have as much to offer as anyone, though for countless possible reasons — from the crushing grip of poverty to unstable home lives — they float on the periphery of their classrooms and schoolyards.

We hear their names in news stories about loneliness and hopelessness leading to suicidal thoughts and actions.

Without a sense of social and emotional literacy and teachings based on the basic principles of empathy for all, young and old alike struggle in a world they feel far from included in.

Inclusion is not the rallying cry of one marginalized group alone, but a concept to be embraced universally in all aspects of life from the time we’re born until we take our final breath.

What can we learn from each other in our quest for an inclusive society?

We’d love to hear questions or comments. Please contact kristian(at)axiomnews.ca to share your ideas on inclusion.