cardboard scissor sisters

they called us the cardboard scissors sisters...we are twins actually , well that means sisters too.  We were supposed to be in London but we delayed our journey to go on this march.  Do people in wheelchairs 'march' or do we 'roll'?  Well,  we rocked and rolled along with 5,000 others.  It was great to be there, gives you a definite sense that you are not alone.  That disabled people, families, friends and supporters were outraged 'enough is enough' they all said, "we can't take more cuts", "easy targets" "enable us, don't disable us" "no more cuts" and the banners went on and on.  Red cards signified the red card as in football, get off the pitch you have fouled us.  One banner said "seeing red" anger....yes anger.  But for Inclusion Ireland and the Disability Rights Coalition Ann and I might not have been able to be there.  Thanks Lorraine, thats her little daughter between us.  She too is a twin.  Twin power eh?  will this government, this country, though it seems to be in a crises, no-one doubts that, see OUR CRISIS?  That we disabled people only survive, can only have 'a life worth living' when we have good, proper support based on equality not pity, not charity.  Yuck to charity, yuck to the mentality that "aren't you lucky you get a free bus pass?" The last time someone told me I was 'lucky' was when I declared I had (only) 3 hours personal assistance (PA) help a week.  I was 'lucky' because others had none.  Can you see that logic said by a parkinson's disease nurse?  If some have no PA and I have 3 hours ergo I'm lucky...NO...I'm not, none of us are 'lucky' to get such a shoddy non-existant support package. There is a mentality, and I can't prove it, because it's unproveable because it's deeply ingrained in the psyche.  The mentality is that we are 'expensive' and that we are a 'drain' on the economy, and that we are 'useless' citizens.  Yes, it's deeply, deeply embedded in many people's minds and hearts. such that I'm 'lucky' to get out of my house for three hours a week.  One neurologist told us we were 'unlucky'...not because we had a degenerative condition...progressive...no...we were unlucky to be ALIVE!  well, she may not be far from the truth here.  because 'being alive' in present day Ireland is actually like being dead already. Well thank God 5,000 people thought we had rights, thought that we are suffering an injustice, a total breach of all human rights.  My sisters scissors read 'Human Rights...Human Life'  , dead right, without human rights we can't have human life.  Mine read 'Equality is not for cutting'...every single cut cuts our equality, our sense we are EQUAL citizens.  But this Government doesn't think we are EQUAL, we are expensive. NO, Enda, Mr Reilly, Howlin, we create jobs for Home Helps, OT's, Physios, Doctors, nurses, etc etc., without us these 'career's' would be non-existant.  We pay our taxes..or did when we could work...we give to our community, we are lecturer's, artists, photographers, we are everywhere.  And BOY we werent 'everywhere' today...we were in Dublin, at Leinster House and we 'rocked and rolled, we did we 'rocked and rolled'....