Stella Young
Stella Young
Stella Jane Youngwas an Australian comedian, journalist and disability rights activist...
NationalityAustralian
ProfessionComedian
Date of Birth24 February 1982
CountryAustralia
accessible bar blocks buses days downtown four seeing single washington york
From my first days in Washington D.C., where I rolled a whole four downtown blocks without seeing a single shop, cafe, bar or restaurant I could not access, to the beautifully accessible buses in New York City, I was in heaven.
incredibly means
In many ways, I'm incredibly lucky to have been born with my impairment and that it's visible. It means my path has been predictable.
beauty conform imposed painful
I do sometimes painful things to my body in an effort to conform to culturally imposed beauty ideals.
adjusted bodies considered disabled whether
We all learn how to use the bodies we're born with, or learn to use them in an adjusted state, whether those bodies are considered disabled or not.
default face hear interact mean people unsure
We often hear that people mean well: that so many just don't how to interact with people with disabilities. They're unsure of the 'right' reaction, so they default to condescension that makes them feel better in the face of their discomfort.
disability living works
The thing about living with any disability is that you adapt; you do what works for you.
accessible alone cool disability employer employing feat job wheelchair workplace
The battle to find a workplace that's wheelchair accessible is a feat in itself, let alone an employer who's going to be cool about employing someone with a disability in a job you actually want to do.
enormous faced persistent throughout trying
Many of us, particularly those of us with disabilities who have faced persistent discrimination throughout our lives, not least when trying to find employment in the first place, take enormous pride in our hard-fought jobs and careers.
brave count lost number public strangers wanting work
I've lost count of the number of times that I've been approached by strangers wanting to tell me that they think I'm brave or inspirational, and this was long before my work had any kind of public profile.
brings hinges money notion people pitiful pity quick send
Most disability charity hinges on that notion - that you need to send your money in quick before all these poor, pitiful people die. Peddling pity brings in the bucks, yo.
disabled fiercely people status
For me, and for many other people with disabilities, our status as disabled people is one of which we are fiercely proud.
certain hours number people work
The problem for many people with disabilities is not that we are not able to work a certain number of hours a week. It's that no-one will let us.
disabled expect people
We think we know what it's all about; we think that disability is a really simple thing, and we don't expect to see disabled people in our daily lives.
agency attitudes consequences deny disabled full women
There are real-world, devastating consequences for disabled women marginalised by the kinds of attitudes that deny them full agency over what happens to their bodies.