Approaches to working with disabled people

	to take advantage of Disabled people	to work for Disabled people	to work on behalf of Disabled people	to work with Disabled people	to work one step behind Disabled people
Disabled people...	are a market.	are ill.	suffer illness and/or disorders.	are oppressed.	are good people. Their bodies work differently.
The problem is a result of...	Disabled people not participating in the global market.	fate.	illness.	stigma, unjust social, political and economic structures that disempower people with differences.	living in a situation of difference.
The feeling of the helper is one of...	delight.	superiority. They are less fortunate, less capable, less intelligent.	sympathy.	solidarity.	empathy and friendship, and being in a position to learn a lot.
The way to give help is to...	sell products.	raise and give money.	rehabilitate and cure.	tackle the causes of stigma and injustice.	respect their way of life and to learn from them.
The practical action of the helper is to...	set up a local company to market products.	provide funding. To diagnose and to cure.	teach people how to prevent and treat disorders.	campaign together. To share available resources so that, together, we achieve something better.	share the available material and human resources to help them do what they want to do.
Helpers look at people in need from...	behind the sales desk.	above.	in front.	their side, we stand together.	a little behind them, waiting for them to take the initiative.
As a result of what we do, we expect...	to obtain revenues.	gratitude.	gratitude, an enthusiastic response.	to give and receive mutual support.	nothing.
Our relationship is...	business.	benevolent.	teacher / pupil.	partner.	friend, learner, enabler.
Example from the world of disability:	Companies sell overpriced rehabilitation devices and assistive technologies. They protect their interests with patents.	We provide doctors, medicines and rehabilitation hospitals. We prescribe devices. We meet their basic health needs.	We teach people how to be good therapists and caregivers. We teach them how to use their devices effectively.	Together we challenge the concept of normal, we campaign against restrictive patents on assistive devices.	We work together to learn more about contextual barriers and to develop appropriate technology.

Adapted from Approaches to working with people in need, Anamed.