Lydia

Lydia is a disability rights campaigner from the Netherlands. She works for Ieder(in), the Dutch umbrella organisation of persons with disabilities and chronic diseases, and is a member of the International Disability Alliance Youth Committee.

“Being a young person with a disability in the Netherlands is a bureaucratic, financial, practical and emotional struggle. Being young means having to navigate big transitions: becoming an adult, going from school to work or day-care, or changing your living situation. These transitions are already difficult, but because of the highly fragmented and decentralised support structures, it becomes even more difficult.

“A key factor in improving accessibility in health care, education, work and politics is representation of young people with disabilities. People with disabilities are underrepresented in politics, meaning that their experiences are not central to the discussion on what problems our politicians should prioritise, and their ideas on improving accessibility are not part of the debate around political solutions for these problems.

“Young people with disabilities are left out of decision-making because they are left out of society. Many people – including those within decision-making positions – don’t realise that young people with disabilities exist. They don’t realise that their policies and decisions might be exclusionary, and the processes through which they come to policies and decisions are often inaccessible. Additionally, young people with disabilities, but also people with disabilities in general, are often considered as ‘only a small group’, meaning that their interests and voices can be set aside without too much electoral damage. Being disabled and having limited energy can also make it more difficult to protest this and advocate collectively.

“Young people with disabilities should be included in decision-making for the same reason that young people without disabilities should be meaningfully included: because global decision-making affects their lives and reality. It is a fundamental democratic value to be able to take part in decision-making processes that affect you.

“Organising an inclusive process of decision-making, in which a diverse range of perspectives are represented and heard, will lead to a more inclusive society. A key question to ask yourself during decision-making is: whose perspectives are currently NOT represented? Which voices are excluded? And what can I do to proactively reach out so that they can take part in the process?

“My hopes, plans and aspirations for now are mainly within the Netherlands. Our government is working on a national strategy to improve the position of persons with disabilities in the Netherlands. Together with my colleagues, we advocate for a strategy that makes fundamental changes and thereby impacts and improves the daily lives of persons with disabilities.”