Yeah, this is a weird one.

On the one hand, the mother showed amazing dedication to her daughter, and was honored for that, which is very heartwarming.

On the other hand, this is absolutely a failure of the Turkish university to provide proper accommodations and access to technology. In a developed country (ideally, in any country), the mother should never have needed to do what she did.

Praise the mother for her supportiveness, but also condemn the university for so utterly failing one (and probably more of) their students.

Yo yo.. not a reddit accessibility volunteer but I'll make a quick alt text:

Two pictures of a mom and blind daughter using a cane in line to recieve degree . The text above the pictures says "Mother of Blind univeristy student gets honorary degree for reading aloud her daughters lecture notes for 4 years". Mom is sort-of crying can't see daughters face.

Definitely patronizing, op. But its like the adage "don't be happy becuase someone is happier than you". Even though we know this is a failing of the school people want to feel good and don't like when we point out reality.

You see these kinds of weird stories all the time. Check out boringdystopia for more. Yes, the Mom did a wonderful thing for her child. Terrible that she had to do it when the University could have stepped up in many other ways.

I don't see it as negativity to point out there are alternatives that don't place a burden on the individual who is the least able to bear them.

Buy one get one free law degree

I am very sorry for posting an inaccessible content, I didn’t realise it was a screenshot.
The news is: “Mother of blind university student received an honorary law degree for reading aloud her daughter’s lecture notes for 4 years”.

Dear mods, can I repost it with modified (accessible) title?

I agree with you. Kudos to the mother for her dedication but I have a feeling the daughter may be incredibly dependent on mom because of this. What is she going to do now, bring mom to work too?

I agree. As a mom of a blind toddler my goals and expectations for her are to be able to self advocate and receive any modifications needed to be independent. That means at college lectures she will advocate for whatever technology she needs to jot and read her own lecture notes, not having to rely on someone else to be her scribe or interpreter.

r/mademesmile has all kind of inspo porn. It’s very irritating.

I mean it’s a little of both I think, it’s nice that the mother got recognition for the work she put in but it sucks that she had to make up for the failings of the school.

To offer a different perspective-

It may be that the daughter and mother wanted this setup. I have muscular dystrophy and when I went to college I needed a personal care attendant to help me the first year while I figured things out. The university had a system in place for hiring PCA's, but my mom had already been doing it for so many years that we had a routine down that I preferred over trying to teach someone new how I like things. She was working remotely at the time, so the university gave us a 2BR apartment which was the standard for students with overnight PCAs but helped me fill out the paperwork so that my mom could be my PCA instead of someone from their service. It was wonderful- I didn't have to get used to someone new, and she was really great at giving me my own space to explore university and make friends.

Maybe this girl can't read braille, or doesn't like screen readers, or for whatever reason just has a setup she prefers with her mom over anything else. Now, I agree she should try to learn how to be more independent if that's the case, but I don't think we can just assume it's the university that didn't provide her with access.

I agree with you. Good for the mom, but the circumstances that put her in that position are gross, and the university doesn't get to pat themselves on the back now like they did this beautiful magnanimous thing.

In Turkey, the mom probably also was protecting her daughter. And I wouldn't expect an assistant reader to be provided in Turkey. In a lot of countries, tbh.

To provide an alternative perspective yes you were negative but more then that you come from a pretty privilleged place and kind of speaking out of ignorance here and most of this thread.

As a person who has heritage from a nonwestern country I am very aware what the alternatives could have been for me.


My very pragmatic father moved us here to the US when I was young so I could get better opportunities and education. Dad recognised that me pragmatist wouldn’t get a good life over in china and sacrificed nearly everything. Why? What happened in your article. Is why.


The good acomodations is only good and true and available in western countries or richer more developed countries. And countries that are more developed, and forward thinking and caer more to disabled people and understand us more.


Most of the world, doesn’t give a crap I am sorry.


Actually there are a few exception but a very few and it’s still subpar. You may get a slightly different perspective from people in like Hong Kong which I am originally from but still the thinking is more backwards still, south korea, and maybe just maybe taiwan. Otherwise meh. And those can be debated. The acomodations and the bending backwards the US is willing to do is good. People complain but people take it for granted how far we’ve gone as a society.


I have much more opportunities here in the west. We have ada in america and something like it in canada, and the uk. Just understanding and cultural acceptance for us.


In somewhere even like Hong Kong where is this acceptance? Nah, nonexistent sorry. People have to work for blind places or people who accept disabled people or something. The mindset is very different.

If you live in a society like a western nation please count your blessings. And don’t take it for granted.


School accessibility and we should acomodate is a western ideal. People elsewhere work harder twice three or four times as hard because sorry there’s nothing for you. And as a society we don’t believe in you. My extended family won’t even accept me or talk to me because they think I am dumb and can’t do anything. They think I am a cursed person or shows the shame of the family. They are not willing to see me for who I am.

People have to find their ways. What acomodations are there in some of these places, none. They don’t care. Would it be nice if the schools do what schools normally and willingly do in the west. Sure. But they don’t and in that culture they ain’t going to so don’t hold your breath for too long. :D until we can change their perceptions.

The mother had to do it or the kid would have to have found her own way. Because the university sure wasn’t going to do it. That’s just the truth. Like it or not!


It doesn’t show the failing of the university yes, in a way but a global systemic problem with the country and it’s perception. Of the blind or even most of the world.


If you live in the west and don’t struggle with feeling powerless and helpless and not as successful and not having any rights or understanding thank your lucky stars/thank God for having you live in such a fortunate country. Sometimes in these other countries your professions and jobs are also very limited.

Similar point made much higher up than your comment: $1

Put some comments suporting ya on the thread bc people were being so mean to you. I agree with you and am sorry for the response you had. Sending you lots of love this morning

happy

happy