Erin.

I have a new role model.

Her name is Erin Thompson.

She's 22, a student at George Mason University and she's eloquent. Far more eloquent than I am.

She has Down Syndrome.

I've been searching for her contact info since Saturday, when she spoke at the 15th Annual NYC Buddy Walk. She was accepting the Piper Award for her amazing work as an advocate for those with Down Syndrome. She testified in front of the Virginia General Assembly and was instrumental in getting the term "mental retardation" replaced with "intellectual disability" in the Virginia State Code. She's fighting the stigma, and by the looks of it, she's winning.

She demands respect for herself, and for those with intellectual disabilities. She looks you in the eye and tells you that respect is a basic human right. That to use the r word in a derogatory manner is unacceptable. It's undeniably powerful. She is part of a generation of people with intellectual disabilities who are fighting back.


This is just the beginning, but this is the way it should be. I'm done with certain groups of people being treated like second class citizens. Maybe I live in a land of pink fluffy clouds and unicorns, but I hope to see a day when we treat people like PEOPLE regardless of disability, sexual orientation, race, religious background, or anything else that makes me different from you. Maybe optimism is what this world needs. Either way I want to be more like Erin.