At a medal ceremony at the main Olympic stadium in London during the Paralympics, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, was roundly booed by many of the 80,000 crowd.
A British social commentator later said that maybe this was a “black power” moment for disability?
He was alluding to a similarly significant and visible medal ceremony at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. There, the gold and silver medalists raised their clenched fists aloft during the playing of the Star Spangled Banner.
Many friends in London are saying that something may have changed in the national psyche in attitudes towards disabled people.
Such is the global nature of much of our culture that maybe this is a real move towards inclusion of disabled people across the globe?
I like to hope that we are witnessing a change in the Western world’s psyche. However, in truth only time will tell.
A utopian world, in enhanced Technicolor, was wrapped around London for a few weeks to create an alternative reality in which disabled people enjoyed the best of experiences.
Some of London’s worst access problems were overcome by the contribution of an army of Olympic volunteers who did helpful things like lay out temporary ramps for wheelchair users or ask disabled visitors what other assistance they might need.
As someone who lived in London for 12 years as a wheelchair user, I know for sure that this help must have been a total breath of fresh air.
But leaving aside the veneer of temporarily better access, what I’m looking forward to seeing is whether a positive and inclusive attitude endures beyond the Games and whether the “black power” moment really is that, and whether it brings about a global change.
