ABLEISM

Ableism can be conscious or unconscious and is often embedded in institutions, policies, and the broader culture of a society. It can be expressed through exclusion, inaccessible environments, harmful stereotypes, or paternalistic attitudes. It also affects people with invisible or episodic disabilities, such as chronic pain, depression, anxiety, or neurodivergence. 

Ableism shows up in many ways—from campus architecture and classroom design to institutional policies, teaching practices, and how Disability/Accessibility Resource Centres determine and implement accommodations. These barriers can limit participation, restrict learning, and make it harder for students with disabilities to fully engage in campus life. Importantly, many practices that remove barriers for disabled students—such as flexible deadlines, captioned content, or accessible course materials—benefit all students by creating a more inclusive learning environment.

Ableist microaggressions dismiss, minimise, mock, or question disabled experiences. Over time, they create stress, invalidate disabled identities, and reinforce systemic barriers that limit access, safety, and full participation on campus.

Macroaggressions are overt, obvious, or institutionalised forms of discrimination. These can be individual actions, like slurs, harassment, exclusion, or targeting someone because of their identity. They can also be systemic patterns, such as inaccessible buildings, biased policies, or a lack of support for marginalised students.  

Where microaggressions are often subtle and unintentional, macroaggressions are more direct, and their impact is immediate, harmful, and serious.