An accessible heart

Disrespect is nothing new for Michael Mifflin, who was born with spina bifida. In high school in Winnipeg, he was shoved into lockers and had his canes stolen and hidden by other students.

Now, as an adult, he navigates public transit with canes and a wheelchair, an effort sometimes greeted with impatient eye-rolling and complaints from comfortably seated transit users.

Mifflin’s birth defect left several spinal vertebrae deformed, consequently exposing and damaging parts of his spinal cord. This resulted in limited brain signals to muscles and body organs below the damaged area. Mifflin is paralyzed below the waist, a condition that does not improve with age.

“With age, it gets you,” he says. “It’s catching up to me. Most doctors are surprised to hear that I’m 27 and I’m still around. Doctors said that I shouldn’t have made the age of two because of my disability.”

Frequent bullying in high school prompted Mifflin to drop out before graduation. He is currently taking the remaining classes required to obtain his high school diploma that he was denied by a misinformed student body.

Mifflin says that even those who intend to help are ignorant to what physically disabled people truly need. He says those who wish to assist him when his wheelchair is stuck, or when he is trying to fit his wheelchair into the locks on a bus, do not understand that people with disabilities require a degree of independence.

“Many people just assume that I need the help when I don’t,” he says. “All I want is a little respect. If you see I’m having trouble, it’s okay to help, but ask first.”

Cory Funk, former respite worker and summer program director for Mennonite Church Manitoba’s Camps With Meaning, affirms Mifflin’s desire for independence. Funk describes working with a man with cerebral palsy, and quickly learned that his cognitive abilities were fully functional. It was important to let him do what he could for himself, allow him to speak without interruption, and lead by example to inspire others to treat him with respect.

“Respecting their autonomy is huge,” Funk says. “A lot of people with disabilities, their goal is to be as independent as possible. When interacting with someone with a physical disability, whether in a working environment or on the streets, it’s important to understand that they’re pursuing that independence.”

The pursuit of independence is evident with Mifflin, who asks little of others—besides respect—and is highly active in the local power wheelchair hockey scene. Mifflin plays power forward for the Red Bulls in the Manitoba Power Wheelchair Hockey Association, and has been a significant part of the team’s success over the last eight seasons. He has also taken part in wheelchair basketball and sledge hockey. These modified sports provide a sense of independence for participants, and illustrate that physically disabled people are capable of doing things for themselves.

Mifflin claims that attitude changes are the main force in achieving respect for disabled people. “Attitudes are truly the biggest disability of all,” he says. “People need to change attitudes towards people like myself if disabled people stand a chance to be properly integrated into society.”

Although there is legislation and other structures in place to help the physically disabled in Winnipeg, Mifflin’s girlfriend, Emily Wiebe*, says the most important aspect of accommodation is the acceptance of others. “You can modify a building to be accessible all you want, but if you have a negative attitude toward the disabled, then it isn’t really all that helpful,” she says. “The biggest barrier is not an inaccessible building, it is an inaccessible attitude.” l

The Voice of the Voiceless articles were written for Canadian Mennonite University’s Journalism: Practices and Principles course during the Winter 2013 semester. Teacher Carl DeGurse is vice-chair of Canadian Mennonite’s board of directors and assistant city editor of the Winnipeg Free Press.

* Emily Wiebe is the sister of author Michael Wiebe.