[Image description: Facebook group page of Self Advocates Being Empowered (SABE) with a cover photo of 13 self advocates waving, 9 Caucasian women, 2 African American men, 1 African American woman and 1 Caucasian man.]
Facebook can be fun and a way to self advocate, and it is the most used social media site by adults who are online (71%), and it is used by most American adults no matter their gender or where they live or how much education they have. Read more about who uses Facebook here.
Some good things about Facebook
- You can talk to people who may not live near you.
- You can look at pictures and videos that other people post.
- You can post your own pictures and videos.
- You can share the links, pictures and videos of others to your Facebook friends.
- You can everyone on Facebook about your life. (More than 1 billion people around the world are on Facebook.)
- You can tell people about disability topics that are important to you.
- You can learn about what other disability self advocates are doing.
- You can join a Facebook disability group and find people who are also self advocates.
- You can teach non-disabled people about disability.
- You can get the news — general news and disability related news.
- You can see what disability organizations around the world are doing.
- Many self advocate groups on Facebook use their pages to post disability news.
[Image description: A screen grab from the Facebook page of Self Advocacy Online: https://www.facebook.com/SelfAdvocacyOnline. It shows cars on an assembly line and has the headline “Real Wages, Real Work for People with Disabilities. It was posted in May 2015.]
Some problems with Facebook
- If you use a screen reader, it may not be able to read a Facebook page.
- If you don’t like to write, it may be difficult to say what you want in a post.
- You will have to learn the privacy settings if you don’t want others to post on your page.
- Some people will post on your page trying to sell you things.
- Some people may put mean or upsetting comments on your posts.
- When you go onto Facebook, you may see other people’s post that are upsetting.
Some disability organizations on Facebook
Able Disabled All People Together (India): https://www.facebook.com/ADAPT.SSI
All About Developmental Disabilities: https://www.facebook.com/AllAboutDevelopmentalDisabilities
American Association of People with Disabilities: https://www.facebook.com/DisabilityPowered
African Youth with Disabilities Network: https://www.facebook.com/pages/African-Youth-with-Disabilities-Network/195404070503436
Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN): https://www.facebook.com/AutisticAdvocacy
Barrier-Free Manitoba (Canada): https://www.facebook.com/barrierfreemb
BBC Ouch! (UK): https://www.facebook.com/Ouch.BBC
Center for Leadership in Disability (USA): https://www.facebook.com/pages/Center-for-Leadership-in-Disability/256231957394
Centre for Rights Education and Awareness (Kenya): https://www.facebook.com/CREAWKENYA
Deaf News Today (USA): https://www.facebook.com/pages/Deaf-News-Today/211140915575836?ref=ts
Disability Law in the News (International): https://www.facebook.com/disabilityLaw
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (USA): https://www.facebook.com/DREDF.org
Disability Scoop (USA): https://www.facebook.com/disabilityscoop
Down Syndrome in Arts & Media (USA): https://www.facebook.com/ActorswithDownSyndrome?fref=ts
International Paralympic Committee: https://www.facebook.com/ParalympicGames
Karo Disability Alliances (India): https://www.facebook.com/karo.alliances
National ADAPT (USA): https://www.facebook.com/NationalAdapt
People with Disability (Australia): https://www.facebook.com/PWD.Australia
Self Advocacy in Action: https://www.facebook.com/groups/203522146383835/
Self Advocacy Online: https://www.facebook.com/SelfAdvocacyOnline
Self Advocates Being Empowered (SABE) https://www.facebook.com/groups/36140889219/
Sruti Disability Rights Centre (India): https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sruti-Disability-Rights-Centre/311750672203155
World Institute on Disability: https://www.facebook.com/WorldInstituteonDisability
Autistic/DD Self Advocacy Through Media 