Dsa 2012-14 Victim of Disability

 
Disability
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, in its Preamble 
a
cknowledges and recognizes disability as an ‘evolving concept’ and that ‘disability results 
from the interaction between persons with impairments and attitudinal and environmental 
barriers that hinders their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with 
others.’ (United Nations, 2006). 
Over the years, perceptions towards disability have varied significantly from one community 
to another. As Roeher (1969) observes, an examination of attitudes towards people with 
disabilities across culture suggests that societal perceptions and treatment of persons with 
disabilities are neither homogeneous nor static. Among the Greeks, the sick were considered 
inferior, and Plato in his Republic, recommends that the deformed offspring of both the 
superior and inferior be put away in some "mysterious unknown places" (Goldberg & 
Lippman 1974; cited by Munyi 2012). During the 16th century, it was believed that persons 
with Intellectual Disabilities were possessed by evil spirits. Thus, persons with Intellectual 
Disabilities were often subjected to mental and/or physical pain as a means of exorcising the 
spirits (Thomas 1957; cited by Munyi 2012). In the 19th century, in Britain state aid to the 

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poor and otherwise handicapped was opposed. It was reasoned that the preservation of the 
"unfit" would impede the process of natural selection and tamper the selection of the "best" or 
"fittest" elements necessary for progeny (Hobbs 1973; cited by Munyi 2012). It was also 
during this period that the practice of Eugenics came about -a social philosophy is advocating 
the improvement of human genetic traits through the promotion of higher reproduction of 
people with desired traits and reduced reproduction of people with less-desired or undesired 
traits.
Persons with disabilities were completely rejected by some cultures, in others they were 
outcasts, while in some they were treated as economic liabilities and grudgingly kept alive by 
their families. In other settings, persons with disabilities were tolerated and treated in 
incidental ways, while in other cultures they were given respected status and allowed to