Head to your timeline, because people with disabilities are flaunting their personal style on Twitter, and it is fabulous. #ThisIsMyDisabledStyle features everything from color-coordinated canes to itty-bitty babies to bright and bold made-up faces.
It began with a tweet from Mexican diversity, disability, and inclusion advocate and activist Maryangel García-Ramos.
So, I just saw an amazing photo of @Imani_Barbarin in such an amazing silver dress and that inspired me to want to see some cool AF disabled style for realz. #ThisisMyDisabledStyle. (Animal print, why not) Now show me yours!! pic.twitter.com/lmzp1Z5fSO
— Maryangel Garcia-Ramos (@maryangel_) April 8, 2019
“I was looking at pictures of friends who happen to have disabilities, and thought I wanted to see more,” García-Ramos told the Daily Dot over email. “I wanted to see how everyone expresses themselves. Originally, I am a fashion designer, and I believe your personal style is an extension of your identity and part of the precise moment in the life journey you are on. And it evolves. Everyone has a style and it was the perfect opportunity to use Twitter to share our own stories.”
Her tweet quickly went viral, with many sharing photos that are bold, beautiful, and heartwarming.
My daughter’s naming ceremony pic.twitter.com/a1qJ8fPd3W
— mostly void, partially more void ✡️♿🌆💜🌌 (@theyseeghosts) April 9, 2019
From my maternity photoshoot – I think it was a really flattering outfit, especially for a maternity shoot – and I so rarely see disabled parents represented tbh pic.twitter.com/NicnIVaYVf
— mostly void, partially more void ✡️♿🌆💜🌌 (@theyseeghosts) April 9, 2019
#ThisisMyDisabledStyle
— Charlotte ציפּורה Issyvoo (@CIssyvoo) April 9, 2019
If my body’s got to be in constant pain, wearing beautiful outfits helps me still like having a body. If I’ve got to be disabled, I’m going to turn it into a fashion statement.https://t.co/2qNadac2sJ#disabilitystyle #chronicpain #disability pic.twitter.com/w2xYtMkics
https://twitter.com/852BAM/status/1115427522622119936
Late to the party. It was important for me to find my second favorite pic of me standing with my cane.
— Tinu Abayomi-Paul (@Tinu) April 9, 2019
I like glam, color and that West African version of slay. #ThisisMyDisabledStyle pic.twitter.com/h273TQF3d0
#ThisisMyDisabledStyle today! Show me yours? pic.twitter.com/dMJXb1VaTo
— Amy-claire Lanman 🌻 (@Amy_Claire_x) April 9, 2019
https://twitter.com/ethanshawkes/status/1115434343898406912
❤️❤️❤️❤️ #ThisisMyDisabledStyle pic.twitter.com/n6xnY6wXCQ
— Sophia Chester (@SophiaTheAuthor) April 9, 2019
#thisismydisabledstyle and definitely dress better than ables pic.twitter.com/MYZE9OkvBa
— Emily Barker (@celestial_LLC) April 8, 2019
Some shared how their aids can also work as a matching accessory or a seamless, functioning part of their style.
https://twitter.com/MSorsomething/status/1115484209446117376
Thought I’d join in with #ThisisMyDisabledStyle although I don’t know why one of them is inexplicably horizontal pic.twitter.com/HYkB91JvSy
— daisy holder ♿ (@daisyholder) April 9, 2019
I don’t have many photos of me using my cane but in these ones I’m wearing jeans with an elasticised waist, a shirt made of soft fabric and runners that are good for my feet. All to help me feel as comfortable as possible while performing improv w/ friends #ThisisMyDisabledStyle pic.twitter.com/2FQXPbCg78
— AJ needs a nap (@_alex_mcfadden) April 9, 2019
García-Ramos, who also founded the Mexican Women With Disabilities Movement, says she’s excited by the responses.
“It is so powerful,” she says. “I believe there is nothing more intense than the power of the stories. It has been so natural because people do not have to identify as a certain adjective (which sometimes people do not feel ready or feel a bit of pressure). They are just organically presenting themselves and their own style, within their context in life now. And they are feeling good about it. Regaining their narratives and their power.”
Many used the hashtag to share that they rarely dress up and/or share their photos, highlighting the need for the visibility and representation of persons with disability in fashion.
https://twitter.com/HuberBowman/status/1115500068163989504
Inspiring me cuz I never think anything looks good on me because of how my cerebral palsy makes me stand but here’s my #ThisisMyDisabledStyle also a repost lol pic.twitter.com/LXUihYZfoR
— Jaqe (@Goddessofvibes_) April 8, 2019
Some say the conversation surrounding disability justice and fashion is finally happening but still needs to grow. A Twitter thread by a Guardian columnist last year brought some of these issues to light, such as difficulty in trying on clothing and not enough room to allow the caretaker in the dressing room, among other issues. García-Ramos agrees that fashion, like sex, is one of the more underrepresented elements in the disability justice discourse.
“The reason we do not do that it is because when it comes to fashion, we have little (although amazing) initiatives and representation of how a style could be or fashion should look like,” she says. “Most of the time, our bodies are different, our thinking is different, and we do not fit the square standards of what ‘fashion’ or ‘cool’ is.”
While she’s excited about being able to bring to the forefront so many narratives, she says the most positive surprise was “people having a journey looking for the pics to post.”
I gotta find something for #ThisisMyDisabledStyle before I head to bed
— 👸🏽💓Mother Strawberry Sativa Pharmaceutica🍓🏥 (@Mae_DayJ) April 9, 2019
My style in three words…
Nerdy… Comfy… Thotty. pic.twitter.com/xmqqOXo2JK
Late to the party. It was important for me to find my second favorite pic of me standing with my cane.
— Tinu Abayomi-Paul (@Tinu) April 9, 2019
I like glam, color and that West African version of slay. #ThisisMyDisabledStyle pic.twitter.com/h273TQF3d0
However, García-Ramos says there will always be work to be done in terms of dismantling misconceptions about people with disabilities.
“I think the biggest misconception of disability is the fact that there is just one disability story. That we all live the same thing. But we need to understand that there are tons of disability stories and constructions of oneself,” she says, adding that we can begin by listening to disabled people and letting them tell their own stories. “Empathy is key to actually achieving a change in the narratives of our mis- or under-representation. Some people might feel proud of their disability, others are in a different part of a journey. We can not assume or force everyone to self-love, as well as we can not assume everyone with a disability feels broken.”
Next up for García-Ramos: starting a similar thread in Spanish for her Mexican community.
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