This month is Disability Pride Month, so the Department of Monster Affairs would like to highlight some of the ways monsters and those living in the magical realm support individuals with disabilities. Their magic and culture have helped inform how the Federation of American States and other countries improve their treatment and accessibility for those disabled in the mortal realm.
Importantly, we must make clear that magic does not “cure” disability. To think that a world of magic would have no one who is disabled is ableist and entirely inaccurate. Disability is a socially constructed concept and exists in all cultures, regardless of their level of technological development or magical ability. Disability is something that can happen to anyone due to an accident, age, or birth. Those with disabilities can be contributing members of society if given the accommodations to help them succeed, and are valuable members of society regardless of any contribution, because they are part of our society. This exploration of disability in the magical realm will go over each colored stripe found on the Disability Pride flag (see above).
Starting with red for physical disabilities. The magical realm is very adept at accommodating a variety of body types and needs. While most monsters found living in community with others have a bipedal body type, not all do. Merfolk that cannot transform their tails into legs (about 65% of the population) use wheelchairs to get around on the surface. Just like in the human realm, wheelchairs are a common form of mobility aid, as are canes, walkers, and walking chairs. However, these aids are often enchanted to be self-propelling or have other enhancements. Now, very popular among those using canes in the human realm are canes enchanted to transform the end into a grabbing hand, helping with tasks such as reaching items, putting on shoes, and other similar purposes. Other magical aids have been developed that are similar to those found in our world, but arcane rather than tech; there has been an upsurge in magi-tech combining the two to great results.
Some monsters have developed their own solutions to accommodate the needs of their physically disabled members. For example, the Orcs, who are skilled biomancers, have used that magic to develop splicing spells that will attach limbs from fallen foes to replace those that may be missing. However, not all Orcs do this as the process is relatively new, and Orc culture does not stigmatize physical differences, merely seeing them as an additional challenge that their brethren are all the stronger for needing to deal with.
Moving on to the gold stripe for neurodiversity. In the magical realm, little is known about neurodiversity as a medical framework. While those who are autistic, have ADHD, or other neurodiverse labeling do exist, these individuals are mostly just seen as different, if not a bit strange, yet are mostly unstigmatized. This is a confirmation of what was suspected by many neurodiverse people and neurologists in the human realm - neurodiverse conditions have always existed, but it was the urbanization, industrialization, and technological changes of modern human society that truly made these individuals stand out as
abnormal with “disabilities” that needed to be “treated.”
As researchers have examined monster species, it has also become apparent that some may be neurodiverse from a human perspective, but neurotypical within their society. For example, many elves would be considered on the autism spectrum by human standards, and most minotaurs would qualify as having ADHD. Of course, these labels would be an imposition of human-made social constructs, and it would be very rude and inaccurate to label these species such as a whole.
Jumping to the blue stripe for emotional and psychiatric disabilities. Just like the human realm, those in the magical realm can experience depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder, and other mental disorders. Because battles and war are more common in the magical realm than in the human realm, PTSD is fairly common to find - they call PTSD “memory scars.” Explorers, or adventurers, commonly develop PTSD, as do monsters whose lives and culture involve a lot of battle or harsh conditions, such as Orcs, bull minotaurs, and merfolk.
Determining the cause of a mental disorder can be tricky in the magical realm, as curses, demons, and other magical sources can impact mortals in similar ways to mental illness. Is that person truly hearing the voice of a deity, or do they have schizophrenia? Are they cursed not to trust the world around them, or do they have generalized anxiety disorder? This is a similar issue faced by the human realm before the advent of psychology. However, this trouble in determining the cause of mental disorders does not mean that there are no treatments that the magical realm has developed. Soothing magical spells, giving people time to rest, herbs and potions, and accommodations in expectations or labor are all ways in which the magical realm adjusts to aid or make room for those with mental illnesses.
Just like with neurodivergence, there are some monster species who, by a human standard, would qualify as having a psychiatric disability. For example, many centaurs would match the criteria for generalized anxiety disorder in the DSM-VII, and this may be due to their horse halves. Angels are prone to behavior similar to what would fit obsessive-compulsive disorder. Once again, these are human ideas of mental disorder, and an entire species should not be labeled as having a certain disorder; however, this information can be useful in navigating interactions with those species.
Now, for the green stripe, which stands for sensory disorders. Similar to physical disabilities, there are many arcane means that the magical realm uses to help or accommodate those with sensory disorders. Blind individuals may use service summons - similiar to service animals - to help guide them; many of these summons can speak to their summoner telepathically, which allows them to translate writing or describe the world as well. Some monsters have additional abilities that support certain impairments. For instance, Naga that are deaf in their human ears typically find that their sensitivity to vibrations is enhanced, giving them somatic hearing similar to that of snakes. Some monsters are categorically sensory disabled by human standards. For example, Werewolves are all red-green color-blind, even in their human forms, just like real wolves. And the monocular vision of cyclops means they have difficulty with depth perception and are notoriously near-sighted.
Back to the white stripe, for individuals with undiagnosed or invisible disabilities. As implied by the discussions on neurodivergence and emotional and psychiatric disabilities, many individuals in the magical realm are undiagnosed. This can have a negative impact on their lives and lead to misunderstandings with those around them. But knowledge about these disabilities from the human realm is helping to address the needs of these individuals. Invisible disabilities, like chronic pain, in the magical realm were often treated by the symptom, but not the source. Pain medication in the medical realm is far better and less addictive than opioids in the human realm, but without treating the source of the pain, conditions can worsen. This illustrates the significance of knowledge and resource exchange between the magical realm and the human realm.
Finally, the Department of Monster Affairs would like to address the black field of the disability pride flag. The black field is for those who have died of abuse or neglect due to their disabilities. While this article has focused on the positives found in the magical realm around disability, it is ignorant to assume there is not a dark side as well. Misunderstandings about disabilities, inability, or lack of desire to care for those with disabilities have led to abuse and death among the disabled population of the magical realm, just like it still does in the human realm. This is why Disability Pride Month remains important: to highlight the failures of the past and present, and discuss how we, as a society, can do better in the future; while still celebrating those who face additional struggles every day and their valuable place in society as neighbors, coworkers, friends, family, and individuals.
I'll be honest, I'm a bit nervous about publishing this. While I (probably) have undiagnosed ADHD and struggle with my own mental health issues, I am not the most involved with or that informed about disability rights or the correct language to use - something I work to correct, but you know it takes time. I have really tried to be inclusive and non-stigmatizing with my language and ideas here, but if I've made a mistake, please let me know so I can correct it.
Scott, I’m here. I’m here Scott. I’m not going anywhere, I’m not dying, none of that—I’m staying right here with you. C’mere.
You’ve given me a reason to keep on living, you hear me? I was at rock bottom—no, below rock bottom, but then I stumbled on Tumblr and you and—
…look, I still struggle sometimes, and I’m sorry for that. I still feel like I don’t deserve…any of this. Especially not your affection. I’m an ass through and through, and I have so much blood on my hands…but yet you still look at me like I’m worthy of being loved.
I…I can’t lose that. This. I won’t. I promise.
God, I thought you came down here to make me stop crying-
I, I just
Everything going on right now is insane, I just got a message saying Victor was turned into a cat, and the world feels like it's falling apart every time I turn around
It's riots and Sinister and juggernaut and internet freaks and Logan's 7 months pregnant in two weeks-
And I'm scared that I'm the weak link here, I'm scared that 1 more thing is going to be the straw that breaks the camel's back... that I'm going to make a mistake and it'll be everyone else who pays for it.
I don't want to lose more people, and I don't want you to go through anymore hell than you already have...
I just want things to be okay, and I hate that it's not always something I can control...
I'm glad she's finally born, if I had to wait another fucking month in this disgusting human filth, letting them put their hands on me, pretending I fucking cared about any of their stupid lives I'd have probably started murdering all of these dirty insects
But, now I have what I've been waiting for and this bundle of blood and mucus doesn't know it, but she's about to win my people a war
Now that I'm done pretending to be this pathetic boot scum we can get rid of those lose ends as well
