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Things that get in the way of accessible worship (this was some of my material offered to the Neurodivergence Skill Up)

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Things that get in the way of accessible worship (this was some of my material offered to the Neurodivergence Skill Up)

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I share in this video about why church isn't the words that are said (I mentioned this video in the worship breakout group, but I have to review it to see if this is the one where I talk about my own learning of that fact, as someone who uses a hearing aid and often can't hear).

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Dreaming Big: Having a DEI or Accessibility Team, where this is the concentration, and allows people a place to go to communicate needs and noticings.

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Dreaming Big: Having a DEI or Accessibility Team, where this is the concentration, and allows people a place to go to communicate needs and noticings.

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We added this family lounge when we completed our building expansion that provides a space for families to access worship in a comfortable informal space. We also have been finding that other common spaces are being used as alternative spaces for people to access worship because we have speakers that are broadcasting the service into other areas. This allows people to be in a space that is less crowded and where they feel less closed in and surrounded.

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Staff meetings have DEI check-ins every week. Those discussions are brought to the board for action. And then a plan or an update is reported back to the staff so we know the progress of things. It is a priority for the staff and the board.

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By Katy Fattaleh
Edited by Katie Carr and Jordyn Zimmerman

A common approach to disability education is the use of simulation activities. Presumably, the idea behind this practice is that by allowing nondisabled students to "try on" various disabilities, it will help them develop empathy for disabled people. These activities are often a part of a disability awareness day or week, and tend to be the only time that students learn about disability in a given year.

Putting aside the fact that, just like any other marginalized group, we shouldn't reserve discussions about disability to take place during special days, weeks or months, the practice of using simulations to learn about disability is flawed and harmful. We invite you to consider the following reasons:

Disability is Diversity
At The Nora Project, we frame disability as a natural, neutral, and expected part of human diversity. Disabled people are a part of a marginalized community, despite making up 25% of the world's population. Using this context, it's easy to understand why simulation activities are problematic. So how do we justify using simulation as a means to better understand part of or the entire disabled community?

Disability is Diverse and Complex
Simulation activities oversimplify disability to a single symptom, ignoring the complexity of the disabled experience and providing students with an inaccurate picture of what it means to be disabled. Students are invited to use wheelchairs, wear blindfolds, wear noise-canceling headphones, and the like to "experience" what it's like to have a disability. Yet, many disabled folx experience a variety of symptoms or conditions that cannot be accurately replicated in a simulation. Additionally, the disability community includes folx with a much broader range of disabilities, both apparent and non apparent.

Identity Pride
Despite the fact that some schools do not appropriately service or support disabled students and staff members, there are students and teachers with disabilities in every school. If we limit the discussion of disability to certain conditions or ways of being when we talk about it in schools, it can damage a student's understanding of their own disabled identity. Students and staff members are sure to have family members and know community members that experience disability in a range of ways. Implying that the only certain disabilities are worth discussing or recognizing, contributes to a hierarchy of disability and can skew students' perception of what disability is and can be.

Empathy ≠ Sympathy
The idea behind simulation activities is that they offer students a chance to experience what disabled people experience. However, empathy is much more complex than simple perspective taking. Empathy is made up of three components: Cognitive, affective, and prosocial. Cognitive empathy is the perspective taking - imagining how it feels to be someone else. Affective empathy is feeling what another person is feeling - demonstrating what would be considered an empathic response to someone else's emotions. However, prosocial behaviors are the intentional actions that benefit others - the reactions that demonstrate an understanding of what someone needs. In order to truly develop empathy, we have to get to know each other. For example, using things such as AAC or a mobility aid for a short period of time to communicate or move around - and then having the option to yell or run on the playground, doesn't go far enough to help students understand how to be supportive of people with speech-related or physical disabilities - nor does it help students understand how people who use assistive tools and supports feel about their disability.

Pity, Inspiration, and Charity
A big risk of engaging students in simulation activities is how it could create a harmful perception of disability. If a student engages in an activity that simulates blindness, for example, there could be a few outcomes. They might think the activity is fun, leaving with the perception that it's fun to be blind. The opposite could also occur - they may leave the activity thinking, "thank goodness I'm not blind." This perpetuates the narrative that disability is tragic. Or, nondisabled students may come away from the activity with a desire to be charitable to disabled people. They may believe that disabled people need help and pity to make their lives easier or better.

At TNP, we strive to provide high-quality curriculum that centers disabled perspectives and teaches students that disability can be a part of a person's identity in which they take great pride. Through our programs, students learn about the disability rights movement, discuss the diversity of the disabled community, and understand that to be an aspiring ally, we should uplift disabled voices and advocate for equity and access. You can learn more about our classroom programs here.

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The Problem with Simulation-Based Disability Education - The Nora Project

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By Katy Fattaleh Edited by Katie Carr and Jordyn Zimmerman A common approach to disability education is the use of simulation activities. Presumably, the idea behind this practice is that by allowing nondisabled students to "try on" various disabilities, it will help them develop empathy for disabl

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Having a place near the sanctuary where folx can hear and see the service without being in the louder space or the space with more people.

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Sitting with thoughts about this song. The metaphor of being "not heavy" as a precondition or reason for being to be "lifted up" landed some kinda way for me. I was also aware during the song that we've been trying to avoid binary language ("brother/sister") in our congregation when possible.

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The Intention Table - an experiment in Hands-On Worship

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The Intention Table - an experiment in Hands-On Worship

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Prayground Brochure from the Michigan United Methodist Church

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Prayground Brochure from the Michigan United Methodist Church

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For about the last 10-15 years the UU church in Sharon, MA, has held a 25-minute family worship before the main service for anyone to attend. They introduce a theme, have turn and talk times. Children then attend RE during the main worship service.

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Accessibility Guidelines for UU Congregations: Creating Welcoming Congregations for People of all Abilities

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Accessibility Guidelines for UU Congregations: Creating Welcoming Congregations for People of all Abilities