An Old Veiw

In the past, the disabled have been viewed in a variety of ways. Not always have they been so accepted and integrated into society. In the recent past it was said:

'The invalid is a parasite on society. In a certain state it is indecent to go on living.
To vegetate on in cowardly dependence on physicians and medicaments after the
meaning of life, the right to life, has been lost…' - Friedrich Nietzsche, 1844-1900

The first recorded organization formed to support the disabled was created in 1970 and was called "Disabled in Action". To put this in perspective, the Civil Rights movement, when the Constitution was ratified to involved African Americans and their right to vote in the 1870's.

When survival was the focus of life, Disabled people would have been thought of as a burden and had an extremely short life expectancy, if any. Later, they would have been thought a burden and most likely killed. Certain disabilities would have looked like a Devils possession to religious fanatics, creating fear and hate towards the disabled. Now, we re starting to reverse this, helping and welcoming disabled children into our society.