MEMORIES from Leonie McLean’s childhood include taunts from school kids for her intellectual disability and being forcibly locked in her bedroom.
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It was almost a daily ritual for Ms McLean – a blight on her childhood she would rather forget.
“When my family from Wagga came out, they asked where I was and the kids said ‘in the bedroom’. My parents had to bring me out,” she said.
“They rubbished me at school, said things like ‘you’re slow, you’re dumb’.
“I was shunned … it made me feel awful.”
Ms McLean was among hundreds at a packed-out Kyeamba Smith Hall on Friday, as disabled and abled gathered to celebrate International Day of People with Disability on December 3.
The day is important for people like Ms McLean, who has for years strived to break down barriers between abled and disabled.
“I know people might be worse off than me, but I don’t look at them any different,” she said.
“People should be treated the same – no matter what. I don’t look at people with a barrier, and they shouldn’t look at me that way.”
Ms McLean lives independently in Wagga after growing up in The Rock. She now works at Kurrajong Recyclers.
“Sometimes I still feel a bit out of place, but not very often because I haven’t got a dull moment,” she said. “I’m always busy.”
The celebration, marked with a dinner organised by the Disability Advocacy Network (DAN) and volunteers, was a success.
DAN Wagga manager Swie Madden said the annual event was designed to bring people together.
“This is important because it is the only time we celebrate abilities and disabilites and the message of inclusion,” she said.
“International Day of People with Disability is celebrated all around the world and it’s important we do the same.”
One volunteer, Nathan McGrath, said the event attracted people from all corners of the Riverina.
“It’s amazing,” he said.
“Temora, West Wyalong, Coota, Young … it’s literally Riverina-wide. It’s bringing people together and that’s what Day of People with Disability is all about. Most people out there don’t know, or don’t think about, people with disabilities.”
DAN speaks up on behalf of more than 150 people each year.