Some people believe that small things can’t change world. Do you think so? Let’s find small things in our everyday lives. For example, the picture on the outside of a snack pack can change our mind in wanting to buy this snack. It is a believable fact. However, a small ant lifts an elephant easily. Most people don’t believe this sentence. You may not believe the small things in this article which tells you how to change recognition about disability.

We often see disabled signs during our life. When you see these signs, what do you think about it? If you discover some prejudices, you can change a big thing by first changing a small thing. People who don’t discover any prejudices might wonder why it is a problem. Look at the disabled signs carefully. The disabled person pictured in the sign looks like they cannot move without someone’s help. Honestly speaking, almost everyone passes by these signs without thought, and they see them normally as simply just a sign.

However, there is a designer who noticed the prejudice of this kind of sign in America. That designer is Sara Hendren. She has a son who has Down syndrome, so she has more interest than others about disabilities. She wanted to make a world where disabled and abled-bodied people live in harmony. Meanwhile, she created a project about disability. That project is called ‘The Accessible Icon Project’, and deals with the fact that many original disabled signs have some prejudices. This idea was not welcomed by people in the beginning. The project received some criticism when they described disabled people as athletes. Even though there was criticism, Sara persuaded people by giving explanations about the new disabled signs. People who understand her real meaning about disabled signs cheer on her project, so Sara continues to change disabled signs in New York. When the project was first started the government prohibited it, but has now accepted this project after the meaning was spread far and wide. As a result, the old disabled signs are being changed to signs designed by Sara in NY.

In this way, small things that we cannot find easily exist in our everyday lives. However, when we start to changes small things, we can change our recognition about prejudices. It is a good way to covert our thoughts. Someone may realize that something is discriminating against disabled people, and we don’t realize it because we have narrow minds. In this example, we should consider their situations and practice better actions. Apart from disabled signs, other things are spread which can change our recognition of the periphery. We shouldn’t just concentrate on big things, but modify small parts as well.

L.L.F reporter Ha-Young Yang

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