Most of my employment interviewers lately have told me that they were related to people or had friends who had disabilities when they found out earlier that I was disabled (or took a very good guess that I was by reading in between the lines of my application beforehand). They also told me that these people were all inspirational. I have heard that line so often that I sometimes wonder why we have not all been made into living saints. All kidding aside, I just had to smile back at them when I heard this. However, let us be fair, I know that these employers were nervous when interviewing me. Dealing with disability and the employment issue firsthand is something relatively new to most of them. There is a learning curve here as there would be for anyone else who is entering an unfamiliar culture or environment. I saw by their words and actions that their experience with people with disabilities had been positive and that they were seriously considering me as an applicant. They were not just paying lip service. At least they were open enough to interview me when others were not. They may have said the wrong thing, but they had the right heart. However, I do not like having to pay the price of being poor and unemployed for long periods while waiting for more employers to warm up to hiring people with disabilities.
