The World of The Amazing Developmentally-Challenged Population

America has pushed aside the “mentally challenged” and considered them as useless according to most people’s inner beliefs.

This is the farthest from the truth that any average person can possible understand. I work as a health care worker in a group home and i will tell you that i am astonished at what they are able to complete. There is no reason to put this group as anything less then equal and they should receive a larger effort for the American people to help enhance they’re ability.

Examples of these amazing individuals:

1. An elderly woman who has been diagnosed as mentally retarded has been able to efficiently been able to take care of her fellow housemates. She cooks, cleans, has a job, communicates at a high level, and is learning now after 58 years of being on this earth to read while still dealing with her disability.
2. A younger man with Cerebral Palsy has completed high school, college, and a masters degree in the same time it takes the top 20% of Americans to do so. He can’t walk, eat, shower, drink, go to the bathroom, take meds, turn on a computer, and put on his glasses without assistance. With so many things so hard for him to do he still runs his own business full time, works for a Charity full time, and reads 3 books a week. He is astonishing and has more abilities then i can even dream of. Yet he is considered as too big of a risk to be hired at many companies.
3. A middle aged man who was born with fetal alcohol syndrome whom works at Walmart for over 10 years now. If you did not know his condition you would never guess he was disabled, but yet over the phone after hearing of his disability many people change their attitude towards him and treat him as a charity case. He has more drive and more personal pride then anyone i know but doesn’t even get the respect of a normal human being.

These were just a few of many examples in this country that could be listed.

I believe that in many cases people don’t realize that these people are real people and whether or not they need help with something should be treated exactly the same. By treating them as “lesser” or a “charity case” it leaves them feeling useless and unable. These people deserve everything they are earning and the government, communities, and families need to take another approach to create the country this was built to be. A country where every American is treated as an equal.

Thank you.