Success stories to break ‘burden’ taboo around disabled women in Goa

PANAJI: After surviving an accident that left her a quadriplegic, Chennai-based Preethi Srinivasan co-founded Soulfree, a foundation that helps restore, rehabilitate, and reintegrate persons with disabilities into society. She will share her journey at the Sanjay School, Porvorim, on March 11.
“Women with disabilities are often forced into a place of utter helplessness and vulnerability, leaving us dependent on people who sometimes subject us to violence and abuse. We want to give such women their dignity, and improve their quality of life,” she said.
Srinivasan said that there is a need to pay more attention to women with disabilities because they are often pushed into a condition of “roleless-ness.” “From being prioritised at home to the non-accessibility of spaces and toilets in schools, we are faced with humiliating situations, especially while menstruating, forcing us to drop out. Following which, we find ourselves equally discarded in terms of employability. We are not even wanted in the marriage market, and that limits us from becoming mothers,” she said.
Stating that often women with disabilities are considered “a shame or burden to society”, she said that she will share success stories of women with disabilities to break this taboo and encourage them to look beyond their physical limitations.
Srinivasan has been invited to Goa as part of the Women’s Day celebrations organised by the office of the state commission for persons with disabilities.
“Such interactive sessions with persons with disabilities give us insights into the various issues related to disability and help us create policies for the future,” said commissioner, state commission for persons with disabilities, Gurudas Pawaskar.