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To celebrate the United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a group of disabled people at leading disability charity, Papworth Trust are launching a recording of a song they have written entitled “Human is our name”.  The song which explores disabled people’s feelings about equality, choice and independence and their thoughts about how society treats them is both moving and thought provoking.

 

The chorus is:

If your world is fear and doubts, together we can work it out

A conversation doesn’t have one side, in one another we must confide

In our world equal all the same, we live together without blame

In our world ignorance has no say, we recognise human is our name

 

The members of the song writing group, which meets weekly at Papworth Trust Centre, Huntingdon (Saxongate) are Claire Durrant, Dan Cowlishaw, Stevie Collins, Michael Caitens, Paul Banes, Alex Demetriades, Andrew Whiffen, Gary Trusgnach, Rebekah Arnold, Brian Holley and Jane Evans.

 

Michael says “We wrote the song to break down ignorance because we didn’t think our message was getting across to people properly.”

 

“We hope the song will help to break down barriers.” says Paul, “If we ask for help, please don’t ignore us. And don’t talk to our carers, talk to us as equals!  If you do, your life will be better too.”

 

The group would really like the younger generation to enjoy the song but to take time to listen to them too.  A lot of people’s attitudes to disability are changing but there is still a long way to go. Alex says “We want people to take time to listen to us, to treat us as human and not to treat us unfairly. We are human – we are not monsters!”

   

Julia Clough, Papworth Trust’s head of empowerment says “The song came from a group of people full of determination to get their message to everyone.  It was born from discussions about involvement and empowerment. At Papworth Trust we believe that for people to be empowered they must have a bigger say in our services but also in their own lives. The group have used a medium they are passionate about and they hope will reach many people.”

 

The song writing group is just one example of the courses on offer at Papworth Trust Centre throughout the Eastern region which focus on increasing an individual's opportunity to learn, realise their potential and achieve their ambitions.  

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - we raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for Papworth Trust.

 

Enjoy the song, and thanks for your contributions.