Self-advocacy is about finding your voice and understanding what's important for people with disabilities, often by engaging in meaningful discussions with friends and the community. For me, this journey has led to organising a yearly conference and concert, but it's not just about the events themselves—it's about the process of learning how to advocate. This year marks my fourth year as a self-advocate with Loud and Clear Qld, and here's my story. What is Self Advocacy?
Being a self advocate is having your voice, and discussing with friends how and what is important for people with disabilities. For me, this all leads to holding a conference and concert each year. But it’s not just about getting all that. It’s about learning how. This will be my fourth year being a self-advocate for Loud and Clear Qld.
Here’s my story
If you asked me what is Loud and Clear Qld or what a self advocate was years ago I wouldn’t have a clue. Now I know that it’s all about having connections – the right connections between who knows someone and that person knowing someone or something.
That is how I found out about Loud and Clear Qld and how I learnt to be a self advocate for myself. Loud and Clear Qld are a self advocacy group made up of people with intellectual disabilities. We meet every 3 weeks and talk about what is important for people with disabilities, how we want to get out into the community and find more people with similar interests and just make friends. What Loud and Clear Qld is about is just learning how to be a self advocate.
How do I benefit from being a member of Loud and Clear Qld? Well, that’s easy. I love meeting my friends and having afternoon snacks. I get to show my experiences to everyone, learn to speak in public and learn new things, for example how to book hotels and run meetings so I get an understanding of what is expected from being a member. I meet new people while organising our conference and have a fun night with friends. I love having been a member of Loud and Clear Qld since I get to learn and teach others but they also teach me new things and share their experiences with me.