International Day of Persons with Disabilities: Theme, Quotes, History

Disability refers to any physical or mental condition that makes it challenging for a person to act in a manner that is considered usual or do things that other people do. World Health Organization has identified over a billion people in the world who are affected by one or the other forms of disability. This accounts to 15% of the total world population. Despite such a huge number, we do not meet proportionate number of persons with disabilities in our day to day life. This is largely due to inaccessibility, lack of disability awareness and indifference towards inclusion.

International Day of Persons with Disabilities

03 December is observed every year as International Day of Persons with Disabilities (also known as the World Disability Day or just as Disability Day) with an aim to promote disability awareness and encourage empowerment of persons with disabilities. The observance is officially recognized by the United Nations and many events are organized on this day globally around a specific theme each year.

Theme of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2020

The official United Nation’s theme for International Day for Person with Disabilities 2020 is “Building Back Better: towards a disability-inclusive, accessible and sustainable post COVID-19 World”. The official UN observance will commemorate this year from 30 November 2020 and it will continue till 4 December 2020.

Inclusivity, accessibility and provision of equal opportunities are integral aspects of sustainable development. However, persons with disabilities are often subjected to discrimination on all these fronts. The outbreak of COVID-19 has further widened the already existing gaps and inequalities in the society. The United Nations has accordingly chosen this year’s theme with the intent to highlight the prevailing issues of persons with disabilities that has arisen or deepened due to the COVID-19 outbreak. It seeks to establish an integrated approach to encourage a disability inclusive, accessible and sustainable global community post the pandemic.

History of the World Disability Day

United Nations General Assembly made the first global effort to empower the persons with disabilities by proclaiming year 1981 as the International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP). Prevention of disabilities, rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, equalization of opportunities for all were primary objectives behind observance of the year.

The annual observance on 03 December was originally incepted by the United Nations General Assembly in the year 1992 as the International Day of Disabled Persons. In the year 2007, the official name of this observance was changed to International Day of Persons with Disabilities. The official resolution passed by the UN General Assembly aims to encourage and promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and development.

United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

In the year 2006, United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) which is an international treaty for protection of rights of persons with disabilities. As of December 2020, 182 nations have ratified the CRPD and promised to obey the convention. The convention became a model document for many national legislation on disability all across the world.

Disability Inclusion in 2030 Agenda

CRPD has also played a vital role in advancement of the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities. The implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as well as other international development frameworks including the Charter on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development, and the New Urban Agenda.

United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy

In the year 2019, the United Nations launched UN Disability Inclusion Strategy which serves as a foundation for sustainable and transformative progress on disability inclusion through all pillars of the work of the United Nations. Subsequently, the United Nations released its first comprehensive report on disability inclusion strategy in October 2020.

Inspiring quotes on persons with disabilities

“Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.” – Helen Keller

“For me, disability is a way of getting some extremity, some kind of very difficult situation that throws an interesting light on people.” – Mark Haddon

“I do not have a disability, I have a gift! Others may see it as a disability, but I see it as a challenge. This challenge is a gift because I have to become stronger to get around it, and smarter to figure out how to use it; others should be so lucky.” – Shane E. Bryan

“I’m officially disabled, but I’m truly enabled because of my lack of limbs. My unique challenges have opened up unique opportunities to reach so many in need.” – Nick Vujicic

“….What I learned was that these athletes were not disabled, they were super–abled. The Olympics is where heroes are made. The Paralympics is where heroes come.” – Joey Reiman

“I was slightly brain damaged at birth, and I want people like me to see that they shouldn’t let a disability get in the way. I want to raise awareness – I want to turn my disability into ability.” – Susan Boyle

“Abled does not mean enabled. Disabled does not mean less abled.” – Khang Kijarro Nguyen

“When you focus on someone’s disability you’ll overlook their abilities, beauty and uniqueness. Once you learn to accept and love them for who they are, you subconsciously learn to love yourself unconditionally.” – Yvonne Pierre

“My advice to other disabled people would be, concentrate on things your disability doesn’t prevent you doing well, and don’t regret the things it interferes with. Don’t be disabled in spirit as well as physically.” – Stephen Hawking

“Disability is natural. We must stop believing that disabilities keep a person from doing something. Because that’s not true . . . Having a disability doesn’t stop me from doing anything.” – Benjamin Snow