Why aren’t women with disabilities included when we talk about safety and violence?

The tragedy of Sarah Everard’s death means talk of women’s safety is again front and centre, but on Cerebral Palsy (CP) Awareness Day, Jennifer McShane says those with disabilities are being left out of vital conversations

Disabled people often can’t take a different route home due to accessibility

I feel sick to my stomach when I think of Sarah Everard walking home, so close to where I live when in London. I’ve passed through Clapham Common so many times without thinking. Well, all I thought while zipping around on my walking frame – the mild CP means it’s a must when I’m outdoors – is that I hoped it would fit on the narrow paths. I hoped I wouldn’t bash into anyone or anything, or that a stone wouldn’t catch in the wheels that are already too loose. Now all that runs through my mind is the refrain, ‘She did everything right, so what chance would I have had?’ 

Sarah wore bright coloured clothing. Took a different route, phoned her boyfriend on the way. Presumably, she had her keys in hand. The tragedy is that she could have done nothing more to protect herself and yet her life was still taken. When we look at women, there’s a whole conversation being had around that fear, much of which is gender-constructed with the idea that women shouldn’t be out in public spaces at night or, that they are – or should be – inherently fearful of such situations – and that this is normal, when in fact, it’s not normal at all. Layer being a woman or a person with a disability on top of that and you get an entirely different conversation of what it means to feel safe or fearful – in any situation.