A mirror of the past and our wall of shame

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Postage stamps are a mirror of our past. Often, less than a square inch of space, sums up prevalent societal, political, and behavioural norms. Our past perceptions, as well as discrimination meted out on individuals with disability, will remain as our wall of shame. Postage stamps, issued prior to 1980s, are its glaring testimony. Various countries, across the world blatantly used hurtful and insensitive terminologies for the disabled. Today let’s face our wall of shame, with postage stamps as a mirror of the past.

A “perfect” society

It is convenient as well as prideful for any society to pretend perfection. This quest made the “perfect” push all not to their liking, away from the public view. So children either born with or who developed a disability, had to be indoors. Others were either killed, shunned or got sent to asylums. However, towards the end of the First World War, as urban populations grew, families became dysfunctional, the poor, destitute, orphans, and also some with disability made streets their home.

In 1919, a US businessman Edgar Allen formed “National Society for Crippled Children” to help improve their rehabilitation and support. In 1934, the organisation brought out first “easter-seals“. These were small stamps, sold with an aim to raise funds. Purchasers would also stick these to postage envelopes to increase awareness. Postage cancellations also exhorted its patrons to use “crippled children easter seals.” This game changer society later renamed itself as the “Eastersociety”.

The quest for a perfect society led to “eugenics” movement. In 1920s, this erroneous, and racially motivated belief of having perfectly healthy societies, was well supported by scientific community and the governments. The same belief led to a cleansing of the “imperfects” in Nazi Germany, including orphaned and disabled children.

Cripple – derogatory and offensive

“Cripple” means lame, impaired or weak. It is demeaning, and dehumanising. Other previously used words such as “handicapped” “paralysed” ,”deaf”, “dumb”, or “invalid” are also offensive and distressing for a person with disability. Today, these and other such terms are stricken off from usage.

Franklin D Roosevelt, became wheelchair bound at an early age of 39. While he became president of US at an age of 51, and remained in office for twelve long years, he was never photographed with a wheelchair. Such an image of a US President was a taboo. After his death in 1945, world became more attentive towards abilities of persons with a disability. Many countries issued postage stamps as well as advocated for jobs for those with a disability.

However, use of offensive and derogatory terminology continued. Many such derogatory words, found their place in the postage stamps as well as cancellations. While, stated purpose of these stamps was to increase awareness, and raise funds, many of these were depressing.

Imagery in the postage stamps in this period also indicates pity, rather than empowerment. In most postage stamps, either a person with disability has no face, or the facial expressions are sad. Wheelchairs and crutches have their prominence. Further, stark comparison with a perceived “normal” is cruel.

Portrayal of mental disability

Individuals with a mental disability were on a lower pedestal as compared to the physically disabled. In 1927, US Supreme Court upheld a law allowing forced sterilisation for mentally disabled. This was also reflected in postage stamps. While many postage stamps portrayed physical disability, stamps on mental disability prior to the year 2000 are sparse. By todays standards such stamps also used derogatory tag-lines.

India post issued a postage stamp on mentally disabled children in 1974. The postage stamp and literature used the word “retarded”. Similar to the terminology change for those with a physical disability, use of many descriptors for a person with mental disability is now discarded. These are now our special children, and thirty years later in 2003, we had our first Indian postage stamp on special children.

We modified our attitudes, as well as brought our first change in terminologies only in the 1980s. None-the-less, these efforts cannot erase our historic wall of shame. Our disability history has many wrongs. We do need to acknowledge them, so that we can effectively correct these.

In 1976, UN General assembly proclaimed 1981 to be the “International Year of Disabled Persons”. Watch out the next blog, as we move from “crippled to disabled.”