Maria Scharnke
@mscharnke.bsky.social
Disabled, Autistic, advocate, AAC user. Dehumanisation, education, justice, rights, access. Nothing about us without us. Founder @AACIL. Best compliment I ever received was that I was a "dangerous radical eroding the foundations of society."
Pinned
Maria Scharnke
@mscharnke.bsky.social
· Nov 24
Introductory thread:
Hello there! I’m Maria, a multiply Disabled intersex person living on Turrbal and Yugambeh land. My profile picture is a drawing of myself, a pale fat person wearing headphones, glasses, and an N95, holding up an AAC tablet.
Hello there! I’m Maria, a multiply Disabled intersex person living on Turrbal and Yugambeh land. My profile picture is a drawing of myself, a pale fat person wearing headphones, glasses, and an N95, holding up an AAC tablet.
Oh, I forgot to say here! I'm speaking at www.acu.edu.au/about-acu/ev... #DisabilityTheology conference in May! In person and online sign-ups close on 14 May, and financial assistance is available.
Idol Talk? In the Image of the Disabled God Disability, the Imago Dei and Practical Consequences
Join us for a discussion taking up the Synod on Synodality’s recent invitation to deeper theological reflection on disability, human dignity and the Incarnation.
www.acu.edu.au
April 23, 2025 at 7:34 AM
Oh, I forgot to say here! I'm speaking at www.acu.edu.au/about-acu/ev... #DisabilityTheology conference in May! In person and online sign-ups close on 14 May, and financial assistance is available.
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
"I am a 15-year-old non-speaking Autistic with ADHD, Apraxia, Developmental Coordination Disorder, Scoliosis & Pectus Carinatum. My life is hard, but it could be easier if my policy idea was adopted for me & other Autistics." -Patrick Saunders, to Parliament:
www.thestoryspeller.com/post/teen-pa...
www.thestoryspeller.com/post/teen-pa...
Teen Parliament Speech: SA Parliament House
On Friday I presented a speech at Parliament House. My speech was about creating an Autism and Neurodiversity Academy of Excellence to train teachers. I felt nervous and excited. I am so proud of myse...
www.thestoryspeller.com
February 25, 2025 at 3:59 AM
"I am a 15-year-old non-speaking Autistic with ADHD, Apraxia, Developmental Coordination Disorder, Scoliosis & Pectus Carinatum. My life is hard, but it could be easier if my policy idea was adopted for me & other Autistics." -Patrick Saunders, to Parliament:
www.thestoryspeller.com/post/teen-pa...
www.thestoryspeller.com/post/teen-pa...
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
"[...] our lives are so easily forgotten, ignored and excluded. When we are alive, we have to fight for recognition and in death our lives are cast in stereotypes and clichés that robs us of our innate humanity."
#DisabilityDayOfMourning
#DisabilityDayOfMourning
“When we are alive, we have to fight for recognition and in death our lives are cast in stereotypes.” owl.li/GaHe309l8fC <a href="/hashtag/DDoM2025" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link">#DDoM2025
Bay Area Disability Day of Mourning: Alice Wong
On Sunday, March 1, 2015, the Bay Area disability community gathered at the Ed Roberts Campus to remember and mourn the deaths of disabled people at the hands of their parents, caregivers or care p…
owl.li
March 1, 2025 at 6:05 PM
"[...] our lives are so easily forgotten, ignored and excluded. When we are alive, we have to fight for recognition and in death our lives are cast in stereotypes and clichés that robs us of our innate humanity."
#DisabilityDayOfMourning
#DisabilityDayOfMourning
Every year I forget about #DisabilityDayofMourning. I remember it the next day, today, when it's over in this part of the world and I see the memorials.
I remember our people every day but I never remember to do it with community on the one day about that.
I remember our people every day but I never remember to do it with community on the one day about that.
March 2, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Every year I forget about #DisabilityDayofMourning. I remember it the next day, today, when it's over in this part of the world and I see the memorials.
I remember our people every day but I never remember to do it with community on the one day about that.
I remember our people every day but I never remember to do it with community on the one day about that.
"We are calling for the Government to honour its commitment to genuinely co-design reforms with the disability community and for a more careful, well-paced process which will lead to better, fairer and more effective reforms."
February 6, 2025 at 12:16 AM
"We are calling for the Government to honour its commitment to genuinely co-design reforms with the disability community and for a more careful, well-paced process which will lead to better, fairer and more effective reforms."
Due to recent event in life, realize evidently world need more "AAC 101" information.
Have some here. (This is a thread.)
Some AAC users (like me) can use big words.
Some AAC users (like me) are literate and use symbol-based AAC anyway.
Have some here. (This is a thread.)
Some AAC users (like me) can use big words.
Some AAC users (like me) are literate and use symbol-based AAC anyway.
February 4, 2025 at 6:39 AM
Due to recent event in life, realize evidently world need more "AAC 101" information.
Have some here. (This is a thread.)
Some AAC users (like me) can use big words.
Some AAC users (like me) are literate and use symbol-based AAC anyway.
Have some here. (This is a thread.)
Some AAC users (like me) can use big words.
Some AAC users (like me) are literate and use symbol-based AAC anyway.
Excellent news - Autism Speaks Canada will be ceasing operations on January 31, 2025!
www.autismspeaks.ca/autism-speak...
www.autismspeaks.ca/autism-speak...
Autism Speaks Canada operational update
After nearly two decades, Autism Speaks Canada will cease operations on January 31, 2025.
www.autismspeaks.ca
December 18, 2024 at 1:37 AM
Excellent news - Autism Speaks Canada will be ceasing operations on January 31, 2025!
www.autismspeaks.ca/autism-speak...
www.autismspeaks.ca/autism-speak...
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
If you're seeing encouragement/demands to do alt text and you're overwhelmed or confused about how to do it and you're worried you're going to do it wrong...
this thread is for you.
First: prompt questions to get you started.
this thread is for you.
First: prompt questions to get you started.
Alt text prompt Qs:
What would someone who can't see the image need to know about it in order to take part in the conversation? What is it about this image that made you choose it? What are the important details someone who could see the image would take away from it?
(Not for images of text.)
What would someone who can't see the image need to know about it in order to take part in the conversation? What is it about this image that made you choose it? What are the important details someone who could see the image would take away from it?
(Not for images of text.)
November 14, 2024 at 11:43 PM
If you're seeing encouragement/demands to do alt text and you're overwhelmed or confused about how to do it and you're worried you're going to do it wrong...
this thread is for you.
First: prompt questions to get you started.
this thread is for you.
First: prompt questions to get you started.
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
And this is why I learned to make it clear that talking about ableist language isn't about lists of no-no words. It's about pointing out how and why ableist language is part of ableism.
It's not about "this word hurts my feelings". It's "this language conveys ableist ideas and is harmful".
It's not about "this word hurts my feelings". It's "this language conveys ableist ideas and is harmful".
November 14, 2023 at 4:05 AM
And this is why I learned to make it clear that talking about ableist language isn't about lists of no-no words. It's about pointing out how and why ableist language is part of ableism.
It's not about "this word hurts my feelings". It's "this language conveys ableist ideas and is harmful".
It's not about "this word hurts my feelings". It's "this language conveys ableist ideas and is harmful".
Maybe this is wishful thinking, but it would be nice if the Disability Support Pension would align with the national minimum wage, rather than, y'know, 55% of it.
December 6, 2024 at 7:01 AM
Maybe this is wishful thinking, but it would be nice if the Disability Support Pension would align with the national minimum wage, rather than, y'know, 55% of it.
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
Here's a pretty easy way to know if you're doing brain-based ableism (e.g. sanism, intellectual ableism) with your words:
Do your words imply that someone's bad behavior or opinion is because of a brain-based illness or deficiency (as opposed to being a choice or value)?
That's probably ableism.
Do your words imply that someone's bad behavior or opinion is because of a brain-based illness or deficiency (as opposed to being a choice or value)?
That's probably ableism.
March 2, 2024 at 6:13 PM
Here's a pretty easy way to know if you're doing brain-based ableism (e.g. sanism, intellectual ableism) with your words:
Do your words imply that someone's bad behavior or opinion is because of a brain-based illness or deficiency (as opposed to being a choice or value)?
That's probably ableism.
Do your words imply that someone's bad behavior or opinion is because of a brain-based illness or deficiency (as opposed to being a choice or value)?
That's probably ableism.
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
OFFICIAL RELEASE: Star Trek and Disability; Volume 1 - The Trouble With Cripples. A short zine made by disabled academics critiquing the utopian vision of Star Trek—FREE to read here:
files.libcom.org/files/2024-1...
OR linktr.ee/disabilityark
files.libcom.org/files/2024-1...
OR linktr.ee/disabilityark
November 7, 2024 at 2:12 PM
OFFICIAL RELEASE: Star Trek and Disability; Volume 1 - The Trouble With Cripples. A short zine made by disabled academics critiquing the utopian vision of Star Trek—FREE to read here:
files.libcom.org/files/2024-1...
OR linktr.ee/disabilityark
files.libcom.org/files/2024-1...
OR linktr.ee/disabilityark
Oh, good! Self was working on that but you have it.
November 27, 2024 at 10:20 AM
Oh, good! Self was working on that but you have it.
" ABA has never been shown to be even slightly efficacious "
Today in Hell Yes, Research! Despite decades of use on non-speaking autistics, research shows that ABA therapy has never been even SLIGHTLY useful to them.
A damning article by Gary Shkedy, Dalia Shkedy & Aileen H. Sandoval-Norton.
link.springer.com/article/10.1... #BetterWaysThanABA #autism
A damning article by Gary Shkedy, Dalia Shkedy & Aileen H. Sandoval-Norton.
link.springer.com/article/10.1... #BetterWaysThanABA #autism
November 26, 2024 at 6:17 AM
" ABA has never been shown to be even slightly efficacious "
It's that time of year again (the season for applying to attend next year's CRPD Conference of State Parties as part of the civil society delegation).
November 26, 2024 at 3:32 AM
It's that time of year again (the season for applying to attend next year's CRPD Conference of State Parties as part of the civil society delegation).
An excellent article. thinkingautismguide.com/2016/08/when...
" Sometimes people try to get your attention by doing things that can appear to be aggressive, but they’re really saying, “I have a problem, and I need help.” "
" Sometimes people try to get your attention by doing things that can appear to be aggressive, but they’re really saying, “I have a problem, and I need help.” "
Autism, Aggression, Self-Injury: Medical Insights & Best Practices
Sometimes people try to get attention by doing things that look like aggression, but they are really saying, “I have a problem, I need help.”
thinkingautismguide.com
November 25, 2024 at 11:59 PM
An excellent article. thinkingautismguide.com/2016/08/when...
" Sometimes people try to get your attention by doing things that can appear to be aggressive, but they’re really saying, “I have a problem, and I need help.” "
" Sometimes people try to get your attention by doing things that can appear to be aggressive, but they’re really saying, “I have a problem, and I need help.” "
I was also unsurprised and appalled to find that what little public-facing documentation was available was so inaccessible that a significant portion of the segment on 7:30 last night (the TV version of the story) [1/2]
Here's the text story about how vast amounts of public funding, meant for disabled kids, has been managed by private childcare services
www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11...
www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11...
Government allowed private organisation to hand out more than $500m of public money
A childcare operator was given the power to allocate more than half a billion dollars in federal funding set aside for children with disabilities, without any public record of how the money was spent.
www.abc.net.au
November 25, 2024 at 11:47 PM
I was also unsurprised and appalled to find that what little public-facing documentation was available was so inaccessible that a significant portion of the segment on 7:30 last night (the TV version of the story) [1/2]
Introductory thread:
Hello there! I’m Maria, a multiply Disabled intersex person living on Turrbal and Yugambeh land. My profile picture is a drawing of myself, a pale fat person wearing headphones, glasses, and an N95, holding up an AAC tablet.
Hello there! I’m Maria, a multiply Disabled intersex person living on Turrbal and Yugambeh land. My profile picture is a drawing of myself, a pale fat person wearing headphones, glasses, and an N95, holding up an AAC tablet.
November 24, 2024 at 10:12 AM
Introductory thread:
Hello there! I’m Maria, a multiply Disabled intersex person living on Turrbal and Yugambeh land. My profile picture is a drawing of myself, a pale fat person wearing headphones, glasses, and an N95, holding up an AAC tablet.
Hello there! I’m Maria, a multiply Disabled intersex person living on Turrbal and Yugambeh land. My profile picture is a drawing of myself, a pale fat person wearing headphones, glasses, and an N95, holding up an AAC tablet.
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
Disabled people are cool as fuck
November 20, 2024 at 9:04 PM
Disabled people are cool as fuck
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
Today, we reached the milestone of 4,000 AAC symbols by us, for us, available for all AAC users to use!
November 24, 2024 at 4:33 AM
Today, we reached the milestone of 4,000 AAC symbols by us, for us, available for all AAC users to use!
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
We have the power to shape this platform into the refuge we want it to be—and it’s important to be cognizant of that moving forward.
Avoiding ableist language, using alt text, amplifying Disabled voices, and choosing GIFs mindfully are all small ways to make a big difference for Disabled users.
Avoiding ableist language, using alt text, amplifying Disabled voices, and choosing GIFs mindfully are all small ways to make a big difference for Disabled users.
November 20, 2024 at 12:14 AM
We have the power to shape this platform into the refuge we want it to be—and it’s important to be cognizant of that moving forward.
Avoiding ableist language, using alt text, amplifying Disabled voices, and choosing GIFs mindfully are all small ways to make a big difference for Disabled users.
Avoiding ableist language, using alt text, amplifying Disabled voices, and choosing GIFs mindfully are all small ways to make a big difference for Disabled users.
Keywords for what I'll likely be talking about here:
- disability theory, inc. critical disability theory
- dehumanisation
- AAC
- societal ableism
- disability rights & disability justice (as interdependent, not oppositional, concepts)
- inclusion & accessibility
- policy
- NDIS
- UN CRPD
- disability theory, inc. critical disability theory
- dehumanisation
- AAC
- societal ableism
- disability rights & disability justice (as interdependent, not oppositional, concepts)
- inclusion & accessibility
- policy
- NDIS
- UN CRPD
November 24, 2024 at 4:38 AM
Keywords for what I'll likely be talking about here:
- disability theory, inc. critical disability theory
- dehumanisation
- AAC
- societal ableism
- disability rights & disability justice (as interdependent, not oppositional, concepts)
- inclusion & accessibility
- policy
- NDIS
- UN CRPD
- disability theory, inc. critical disability theory
- dehumanisation
- AAC
- societal ableism
- disability rights & disability justice (as interdependent, not oppositional, concepts)
- inclusion & accessibility
- policy
- NDIS
- UN CRPD
Reposted by Maria Scharnke
We've had enough of nonDisabled people deciding what we get to talk about and how we get to talk! At AACIL, every single image is coded into the website by a symbol #AAC user. Every single image is drawn by a Disabled person. Most images are drawn by AAC users.
November 22, 2024 at 9:43 PM
We've had enough of nonDisabled people deciding what we get to talk about and how we get to talk! At AACIL, every single image is coded into the website by a symbol #AAC user. Every single image is drawn by a Disabled person. Most images are drawn by AAC users.