Following my earlier post, I realised that I hadn’t fully made my point and wanted to finish it. Sight, with its ability to see faces, might provide ways in to a more connected experience of neighbourhood and community than blindness. As people walk about the streets, nodding or smiling in acknowledgement of each other as they pass. Without being able to see people’s faces, to see them making such non-verbal acknowledgement of my existence, I find walking around the streets of my neighbourhood an isolating experience, passing countless people in complete silence and at most moving out of each other’s way (other than those who know me). This is far more so for me in the city where there are people who won’t speak to each other, than in the countryside where I might encounter nobody. I noticed people actually speaking to each other on the streets during lockdown – just saying ‘HI/Alright’ and hoped that the pr...
I’ve noticed how common it is that, when talking critically about poor behaviour towards disabled people and other groups that face discrimination - from rudeness, patronising attitudes to overt discrimination - the criticism is often brushed off with the explanation that the person hadn’t meant anything by it. “they didn’t mean anything by it”. It’s a funny thing to assert, how does anyone know that someone else who has, to all intents and purposes behaved badly to me or someone else, didn’t mean anything by their words or behaviour. Were they perhaps merely an innocent conduit of unthinking channelling of society’s negativity towards disabled people? Is it that the negative attitudes are so ingrained, that people should not be blamed for innocently adopting them? I find it particularly strange that this excuse is used to cover such a wide range of utterances or behaviours – they can’t all mean nothing, can they? ...
I live in a neighbourhood that prides itself for being sociable and inclusive. Despite this, my experience is that most of us go about our business without greeting each other when passing on the streets. I don’t know this to be wholly true of course as it may be that sighted people will typically acknowledge each other with a nod or smile, but the only way that I can do it is through spoken greetings. Perhaps because I feel less self-conscious about speaking to strangers in the mornings when there are fewer people about, or because there’s something particular about the start of the day that connects with my desire for expansiveness, I tend to use morning walks for saying good morning when I come upon another pedestrian. I’ve sometimes tried it later in the day, (not saying ‘good morning’) but it never feels as easy. I am clear not to break my step or suggest that I want any prolonged contact, It is merely a fleeting acknowledgement that we ar...
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