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From: Andrew Harding
Date: 10/11/01
Time: 12:19:31 PM
Remote Name: 62.188.213.47
Hello Bobby,
Good on you for persevering in the face of prejudice. Do I understand you correctly when you said that you have had six interviews cancelled because you happened to tell the person with whom you were speaking that you stuttered? It sounds like they cancelled the interview because they didn't even want to inteview you. That's appalling, and hopefully illegal under the ADA - Americans with Disabilities Act. It would very likely be illegal here, and if we were to hear of that situation happening in Britain, the company would be asked to explain its reasons.
That said, in your earlier post you wondered that if the US had an organisation like the BSA, people who stammered would face less discrimination. While I can't answer that directly, an important role of the BSA is to educate individual people who stammer about their rights to fair treatment and to encourage people to expect fair treatment, and make a noise when they don't get it. The task of stimulating people's sensibilities towards people with disabilities is certainly a wider task than the BSA could ever achieve alone, and I think the value of our work, especially in raising awareness among employers, is to add our voice to others who are saying the same thing. Of course, this is long-term work that cannot necessarily show every Joe six-pack in the workshop the error of his ways. However, getting stammering onto the agenda of disability awareness in larger organisations is an effective way of widening the ripples of awareness that begin with an organisation like BSA.
I wish you the best in your job-hunt.
Regards,
Andrew Harding