Facts of Life

Evidently a British children's show has come under fire for having a disabled host.

Cerrie Burnett was born with only one hand, which has caused trouble among some viewers:

In one chat room, a father lamented that Burnell being on the show forced him to have conversations with his child about disabilities.

To put this bluntly: it is your responsibility as a father to have that conversation!  Perhaps it is an annoyance to be "forced" to have the conversation at a certain point, but you need to have it.  And keep in mind, some people suffer from more troublesome annoyances, such as having only one hand.

Another commenter, DoYouHaveKids?, said:

Do any of you who think this is so "unbelievable" actually have kids? It's very hard, as a parent, to have every social issue jammed down the throat of your kids before they even hit first grade.

I am aware that kids these days do get every social issue thrown at them early on, especially when those issues often have a moral element that parents may disagree with, and have a right to do so.  And those supporting throwing moral issues at them may justify it terms of my title for this post; that is, such behaviors are parts of the facts of life, and any disagreement is willful ignorance.  Perhaps viewing moral discussions with such blithe resignation is easier if one waters down his ideals (see my previous post)¹.  But: is this some sticky social issue? I don't think so.

Alternatively, commenter Rich said:

As a person with a disability, I am absolutely disgusted reading about the parent who complains about having to talk to his child about disabilities. As a child, I was subjected to humiliation and cruelty by my peers who obviously had learned such behaviors from their parents. A little enlightenment and sensitivity training would not have been amiss for those little brats.  

While the "sensitivity training" always raises this blogger's hackles, Rich is on the right track here.  We live in a fallen, broken world, and facing it with both courage and love requires having difficult conversations and not shirking or blaming.  There's no reason to avoid the reality of disability with our children, especially if we are to teach them to treat those with disabilities with love rather than disgust or fear.  

Loe and courage are even more in order when issues with an explicit moral element do arise; chances are, they will arise before you are ready, and you must be willing to face them.  Perhaps not on your terms, but face them you must.

1.  Question: for some, is it really resignation? Or active pursuit?