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Freedom of movement and freedom of expression are basic human rights that many people with learning difficulties are missing out on
Why is it important to campaign?
It is important to raise public awareness about what it means to have a learning difficulty. When people get used to seeing people with learning difficulties, they stop seeing us as different. Some self advocacy groups do work in schools teaching school children about people with learning difficulties and why it is wrong to pick on us. Some groups also do work with the police training them how to work with people with learning difficulties.
Much of society is not accessible to people with learning difficulties. Information is not accessible if it is long and complicated with big words and no pictures.
Physical access like ramps and lifts instead of stairs is also important for people with learning difficulties with mobility impairments, which means they have trouble getting about.
There is a lot of ignorance about what it means to make information accessible to people with learning difficulties. Often you get information in different formats like Braille or on tape or in large print or in another language, but you cannot get information in easy read.
Easy read means no long words and jargon and only one idea at a time. Many people with learning difficulties do not read so they need the information on tape but it needs to be put into easy read first so they can understand what they are listening to.
Putting information into easy read makes it easier for everyone to understand, for example train companies could make announcements saying ‘get off the train here’ instead of ‘alight here’. Some people are frightened about putting information into easy read in case they look less intelligent or in case it becomes more obvious what it is that they really mean (you can gloss over things and hide things behind long words.)
