International wheelchair day is celebrated annually on 1st March to appreciate the positive impact a wheelchair has on the lives of most Persons with physical disabilities.
The day was first launched in 2008 by Steve Wilkinson who is a wheelchair user.
The day is also marked in recognition of people who make the World a better and more accessible place for people with mobility disabilities.
It gives a platform for people to acknowledge and react constructively to people who need a wheelchair but are unable to acquire one.
Wheelchairs provide their users with a way to overcome their disabilities, and accessibility issues keeping them from seeing much of the world.
According to the Wheelchair Foundation, it is estimated that 1% of the population in developed countries require a wheelchair, and 95% of them have access to one.
The scenario is quite different in developing countries, where 2% of the population requires a wheelchair, but only 10% can access one.
This simply means a wheelchair is a very crucial assistive device for persons with disabilities and other users with short illnesses.
To honor and mark this day, Wheelchair users across the world have flocked social media with their experiences.
Lisa Cox, a Speaker, Media Professional, and Reimagining Disability Engagement Council Member at Griffith University shared her story as a wheelchair user.
“We need to rephrase the way wheelchairs are spoken about so that the general public can reimagine what is possible for the life of a wheelchair user.
I acquired my disabilities nearly two decades ago, and when the wheelchair was presented to me, it was done so in a way that made it clear that they (the staff) thought my life would be ‘less than’ as a wheelchair user, than if I was walking.
Around me, pop culture indirectly referenced a wheelchair as burdensome and a limitation on my freedom.
However, in my personal experience, I am safer, more independent and more free in a wheelchair than I ever was when I tried to walk.
Those wheels have taken me around the globe, around the gym, and down the aisle,” she wrote.
She further called upon media to stop using words like ‘confined to a wheelchair’ and ‘wheelchair-bound’ which she says stigmatizes persons who use wheelchairs.