Key Takeaways

Committing to Real Change

While the goal is admirable, many disabled people do not expect the campaign to bring about meaningful change. Branded badges and social media hashtags make it easy for people and companies to make a show of supporting disabled people, but some experts predict that their support will be empty.

“Companies ought to commit to real change,” Dr. Amy Simmons, a doctor of sociology in disability studies and currently a research assistant at the University of Kent, tells Verywell. “If a company edits their logo to include a patch of purple [from the campaign], but their actions do not indicate any commitment to change, their involvement in WeThe15 only serves to boost their moral capital and sales.”

WeThe15 Objectives

The Power of Disabled Sport

Parson added that sports events, in particular, “add great value to the campaign and underline the hugely positive impact sport can have on society,” and that they “strongly believe WeThe15 could be a real game-changer for persons with disabilities.”

Organizations Working Together

A host oforganizationsfrom across the globe will be supporting WeThe15 alongside the aforementioned athletic groups, including the Internal Disability Alliance, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), UN Human Rights, The European Commission, The Valuable 500, Global Citizen, and Global Disability Innovation Hub, among others.

These organizations say they will work with governments, businesses, and the public over the next decade to initiate lasting change for disabled people. This includes taking steps to put disabled people at the heart of diversity and inclusion agendas.

Disabled TikTok Creators Find Community on the App

In theIPC statement, Audrey Azoulay, the Director-General of UNESCO, said that “more than one billion people live with a disability today, and yet the world is still far from truly recognizing and honoring this 15% of society” and that “it is time to change our perception of people with disabilities and make their voices heard everywhere.”

To that end, Azoulay added that the sporting achievements of Paralympic athletes are “formidable sources of inspiration and examples for all of us. UNESCO is proud to join the WeThe15 movement and its unique coalition to build a world that puts inclusion front and center.”

Response From the Disabled Community

While many members of the disabled community celebrated the high ambitions of the movement and looked forward to what is to come, others were cynical. Countless awareness campaigns over the years have failed to lead to any real change.

Elizabeth Wright[We need to] shift the view of disability from that as inspiration porn or a tragedy trope.

Elizabeth Wright

[We need to] shift the view of disability from that as inspiration porn or a tragedy trope.

“With the rising profile of the Paralympics, I can say that it is about time and so important that we use this movement to tackle the wider disability injustices and inequalities,” Wright tells Verywell."[We need to] shift the view of disability from that as inspiration porn or a tragedy trope.”

Deaf journalistLiam O’Dellsays that the campaign is misguided in its approach. “I can’t take a campaign seriously when it pledges to educate people, yet uses person-first language in its launch; lights up buildings in purple as a meaningless gesture; has organizations posting promotional images without alt text and focusses more on awareness.”

What Is Person-First Language?

It’s important to ask how people would like to be identified. The fact that WeThe15 uses the person-first language—“people with disabilities”—as opposed to identity-first language—“disabled people”—is a contentious subject. Many disabled people believe that this shows that the campaign is not serious about affecting change for them.

However, the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Paralympic team took to Twitter to clarify that they say “disabled” and “non-disabled.”

Who Is WeThe15’s Intended Audience?

For Connor Scott-Gardner, a blind student, WeThe15 misses the mark. “I’m uncomfortable with the whole idea that we must humanize ourselves and go around saying, ‘Look, I am a human being, just like you,'” Scott-Gardner tells Verywell. “It feels like this is a campaign for other people, and like we’re trying to make ourselves more acceptable for them.”

According to sight loss and disability advocate Jon Attenborough, it might a good thing that WeThe15 is not aimed squarely at the disabled community.

“Sometimes I feel like things are shared within our own community too much and can be a bit of wasted effort, as you’re essentially sharing it among people who are already converted to the cause,” Attenborough tells Verywell. “So targeting people outside of the disability community is really important.”

What This Means For YouWith COVID-19 disproportionately impacting disabled people, now is the time to draw attention to the disabled community’s needs. Despite criticisms of the campaign, WeThe15 and the organizations are trying to ensure that over 1 billion disabled people are not left behind in COVID vaccination efforts and —eventually and more broadly—in a post-pandemic world.

What This Means For You

With COVID-19 disproportionately impacting disabled people, now is the time to draw attention to the disabled community’s needs. Despite criticisms of the campaign, WeThe15 and the organizations are trying to ensure that over 1 billion disabled people are not left behind in COVID vaccination efforts and —eventually and more broadly—in a post-pandemic world.

1 SourceVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.World Health Organization.World Report on Disability.

1 Source

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.World Health Organization.World Report on Disability.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

World Health Organization.World Report on Disability.

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