Wheelchair basketball at the 2008 Summer Paralympics (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The paralympics have, as always, shown us some fantastic triumphs over adversity. It is important to view these people as athletes not as disabled people and on the whole I think the coverage has portrayed them in this way.
There have been reports that the games have given the public an improved view of disabled people in general.
However, and pardon my skepticism, it remains to be seen whether this is true and whether this improved attitude will continue.
I am newly disabled myself, since my stroke in November 2010. Thankfully, I have not personally received any serious abuse but have had people barge past me, walk straight at me and mutter as they pass me in public places.
However there is a lot of well documented cases of disabled abuse, including some particularly disturbing ones in this report Hidden in plain sight.
I think it is time that disabled abuse gets the same protection in law as racist abuse.
Dr A Hill
