Our society is obsessed with categorizing things. It seems like everything has to go in neat little boxes for us to examine and understand. Within that realm, there’s a category for “normalcy,” and for things considered “abnormal.” The latter carries a negative connotation, one that made it difficult for me even to use that word.
It’s no secret that “abnormal” is a word commonly used by our society to refer to people with disabilities. I hear the kids yell the word at each other in the hallways, and I listen to adults using the word to insult others.
The word “abnormal” is almost synonymous with “other.” It’s a way to isolate people who don’t fit the social standards of ability or beauty.
As a teen, I remember being diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. It mean that for me (not all women have the same symptoms), I had facial hair on my face. It also meant that I was a target for crude and rude comments from other students and even adults.
A teenager asked me, “go shave.”
An adult felt the need to point it out with huge surprise, “you have hair on your face!”
As a result, the hair on my face became a reason for low self-esteem and social isolation. Emotionally, as a teenager and an immigrant, I felt embarrassed by my socially assigned “abnormality.”
The hair on my face was not a disability, but it certainly shaped how I feel about the word itself.
After all, is there such thing as normal?
I think not.
Defining Equity 