Blog > Thoughts > Sean's Thoughts > Sick and tired of amputee elitism

Sick and tired of amputee elitism

Written by Sean on Wednesday, February 21, 2007

For years, amputee wannabes have pretty much held that they were they only “true” wannabes. Yes, this is a generalisation and there have been a few amputee wannabes over the years that agreed all “flavours” of BIID were as valid as theirs, but by and large, that’s not the case.

I’m sick and tired to read about BIID and see no mention of other impairments than amputation. I go to wikipedia, and it’s all about amputees. I make edits to reflect other impairments, these edits are immediately changed and reverted. Someone is intent on making sure that only amputee wannabes are in the picture. Frankly, that pisses me off.

Can’t you see, we all have the same bloody condition!

It’s one thing to have doctors think that a spinal cord transection is not acceptable, because the long term impact on the body is more considerable and risky than the long term impact of a leg amputation. It’s quite another to have people who have the same feeling you do ostracise you, because your condition happens to focus on something different than theirs.

BIID.org has long refused to include non-amputee wannabes. The new “administration” of the site is no different than the old.

Many people on this very list also seem intent on making a distinction. I’ve been told I couldn’t *possibly* have BIID, since I didn’t want to be an amputee. I’ve also been told (in so many words) that I was sick and perverted for needing to be a paraplegic (this coming from a self-professed DAK wannabe!).

As a result of this elitism, any research is biased towards amputee wannabes, which continues to promote the concept that the only impairment people with BIID need is amputation!

Yeah, I’m tired of it.

When I advocate and educate people who don’t know about BIID, I always make a point of explaining that many conditions are sought, from amputation to paraplegia (see this very site), including deafness (see http://makemedeaf.blogspot.org ), blindness, or even MS (see http://demyelinate.org ).

Is it *really* too much to ask of y’all that you return the favour?

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[tags]BIID, Amputee, Paraplegic, Blind, Deaf, Elitism, Wannabe[/tags]