Point of view: parent Stereotypes, time-machines and Frida Kahlo

When able-bodied people think about wheelchairs, what associations do they make? My guess is that words like adventure, exploration and excitement won't be near the top of the list, if they're there at all.

As the proud father to a bold, exciting, adventurous wheelchair user—a daughter who has always pushed the boundaries, and, by 14 was hailed a 'comic book hero' in the National Diversity Awards—I've been frustrated again and again by the lack of positive wheelchair-using role models in books, TV and films. I know I'm not the only one.

Emily didn't get the memo that she was meant to be shy or isolated. She didn't know she ought to be looking longingly at people who don't use wheelchairs. Yet if mainstream books and media had been her only teacher, that's the kind of messaging that could have taken hold. Instead, Emily was out and about making mischief, being creative, following her dreams, just like any little human does. When people encounter a stereotype, repeatedly, it has an effect—whether it's someone 'like them' being stereotyped, or somebody in their class, street or community who, at face value, looks like they ought to fit the mould. We start to see people as labels, not as the powerful human beings they are.

About the author

Dan White is the author of the new children's book cluster "Look, Brook", which is part of Pearson's Bug Club collection for primary readers.

@PearsonSchools @dan-white-92a7a3114

Wheelchairs still define how people are viewed

The truth is that almost every time Emily chose something to read, and on the rare occasions she came across a character in a wheelchair, that character would be nothing like her at all. These books were giving my daughter and her peers a certain message—a message that is all still so often communicated: that people who use wheelchairs are frustrated and helpless. They are relegated to being a bit player in the background, or someone to rescue.

We know how important it is to see ourselves, and experiences, reflected in what we read, watch, hear and absorb. The world view on wheelchair-users seems to be that they are infantile, one-dimensional, or victims of their situation. My family's own experience is radically different, and we clearly aren't alone.

Yet it's amazing to think that, in 2023, almost 400 years since the first self-propelled wheelchair was invented, that wheelchairs are still defining how people are viewed, rather than being seen as a method of movement.

Frida Kahlo, a celebrated icon of the art world, used a wheelchair.

Aaron Fotheringham, at thirty, has broken several extreme motocross records with his wheelchair.