Disability Roundup

A series of articles that might be of interest to readers who are interested in topics related to disability:

An article in Canadian Family, “The Downside of Special,” written about the difficulties of parenting a child with special needs. The tone of this article is honest without dipping into self-pity. My favorite line:

This is another hard truth about having a child with special needs: The things that are most endearing and lovable about the child may be invisible to outsiders, while the things that are mortifying are all too visible.

An article in the LA Times about treatment for individuals with Fragile X that has enabled many of them to attend to tasks and learn more efficiently. In contrast to some of the articles I’ve mentioned in the past about “curing” Down syndrome, I was struck by the tone of this article. Although it proposed drug treatments to improve cognition, it didn’t treat the individuals in question as defective people who needed to be fixed but rather as human beings in need of help: Hope Builds for Treating Intellectual Disabilities.

An article about a homeless mother who is fighting to regain custody of her daughter with Down syndrome. Supporters say they belong together. Opponents say the mom is using the daughter. What do you think? Homeless Mom Fights Courts to Regain Custody of Disabled Daughter