It’s no shock to anyone that we live in a world full of hatred and discrimination. A lot of the time we focus on religion or race but the bottom line is that that’s not the only people who deal with discrimination. Sadly, disabled people constantly face discrimination and people don’t even realize it. One person who knows about this all too well is Natalie Weaver who is an advocate for disabled children. Her daughter Sophia also suffers from a rare neurological order called Rett disease. Rett disease occurs mostly in girls and affects her ability to walk, talk, breathe, and speak. Her mother describes her as a big time daddy’s girl who loves to laugh. She also suffers from type-1 diabetes and an unknown syndrome that causes facial disfigurement.
Get to know Sophia in this Thread: I realize that I have to share a lot of the bad things that go along with Sophia’s conditions and fighting for her life, but today I’d like to share who Sophia really is. She isn’t her disabilities and she isn’t her diseases. pic.twitter.com/cvxxz8gj38
— Natalie Weaver (@Nataliew1020) November 15, 2017
Her all-time favorite color is Green! Sometimes she can even say Green. She loves all types of music and will pat her hand to the beat, perfectly. She enjoys popping bubbles and having us read to her. She also rolls her eyes at mommy and is sassy, just like a typical 9-year-old. pic.twitter.com/AJIJWWZf6D
— Natalie Weaver (@Nataliew1020) November 15, 2017
Natalie is no stranger to the hateful things trolls do on the internet especially because she’s an outspoken advocate for disabled people. This particular instance was over the line and hit Natalie a bit harder than usual. She received a disgusting tweet that was using her daughter as an example to promote abortion. The absolutely despicable tweet came from @OBSIDIANSMOAK and it said:
“It is okay to think that every child matters however a lot of them do not hence the amnio test which should be a mandatory test and if it proves negative and the woman does not want to abort then all bills accrued after that is on her and the father.”
She is the reason I started advocating almost 2 years ago. She is the reason I was strong enough (with help from others) to save lifesaving services for thousands of kids in NC. pic.twitter.com/Sfn0o36F6Q
— Natalie Weaver (@Nataliew1020) November 15, 2017
At first, Natalie just decided to block the user and take the higher road but eventually, she realized the tweet was gaining attention and decided to act. So she used her platform and made sure her supporters began to flag the appalling message this account was circulating. Two days after the tweet was reported Twitter responded and shockingly said it wasn’t against any of their terms. Natalie didn’t accept their terms and now the person is suspended and Twitter even apologized.
She is a major daddy’s girl! She laughs all the time and has sweet dimples under her eyes when she smiles. pic.twitter.com/7KM1IRblFX
— Natalie Weaver (@Nataliew1020) November 15, 2017
Sophia has a younger brother and sister, named Alex and Lyla. They are growing up knowing compassion, unconditional love, and acceptance of people with differences. pic.twitter.com/17zDJDth8S
— Natalie Weaver (@Nataliew1020) November 15, 2017
After the incident, Natalie’s fellow advocates for people with disabilities named Julie Ross pointed something out. Twitter doesn’t include discrimination against people with disabilities under reasons to report a tweet. Natalie then took things into her own hands to address Twitter’s policy and make the necessary changes. She’s fighting for them to include people with disabilities under their violation guidelines.