Actor and advocate Hannah Diviney told the National Press Club to “get out of my way” in a powerful speech in honour of the International Day of People with Disability.
In her first National Press Club address, Diviney, who has cerebral palsy impacting her speech and fine motor skills, said, “I’m one of the first disabled people to do this, but I’m far from the last”.
“For someone who struggles with imposter syndrome, this is a watershed moment,” Diviney said.
Diviney, who has spoken openly about her experience with generalised anxiety disorder and clinical depression, told the audience that in her case, this reality held even more potency when, at the age of 17, she wrote a suicide note.
“Even though cerebral palsy is the most common disability outside of cancer, the world forgets we don’t live in Neverland, and one day, all those children grow up,” Diviney said.
Diviney’s speech highlighted that those who have “graced the stage” of the national press club have rarely had disabilities.
“If this forum is reflective of those who have power in this nation, the lack of disabled voices makes a sad sort of sense,” Diviney said.
“While you were building this, we were hidden from view and institutionalised.”
Although the Disability Discrimination Act didn’t come into effect until 1992, the lack of progress made since then has disheartened disability advocates such as Diviney, who lamented, “We have a long way to go.”
Reflecting on the government’s recent cut of 14.4 billion dollars in the NDIS, Hannah said, “For us, it’s our quality of life.”
“There are people guilty of using my community as a political football,” Diviney said. “You don’t get to make my life more or its possibilities to balance a budget; I’m a person, not a surplus tool.”
Hannah said that as Greens Senator Jordon Steele-John is the only person with a visible disability in parliament, the NDIS portfolio should go to him.
“With Minister Shorten’s retirement, it’s my hope that someone with lived experience fills that experience,” Diviney said.
However, she also pointed out that whilst Steele-John has lived experience of disability, the government must draw on the vast experiences of people with disabilities.
“If you know one disabled person, you know one disabled person”..
Diviney spoke about the need for investment from the media to “believe in disabled stories” to actively support the success of people with disabilities.
“It’s not just me or Dylan Alcott; there’s a range of stories that deserve to be heard,” Diviney said.
The timing of Diviney’s statement couldn’t be more poignant, with the theme of International Day of People with Disability on 3rd December being: “Amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable”.
Reflecting on her success, Diviney said during her life she was lucky to have the support of people who cared about her, and that the potential for people with disabilities should not be overlooked.
“I had an army behind me [that] every person with a disability should have access to.
“These last couple of years have been wild dreams for someone who thought the page was blank”, she said.
Diviney took that page and wrote on it instead, yearning for a media landscape that reflected her own and made it better, placing her firmly on the map as an advocate, actress and writer, a face and voice.
It was clear throughout the speech however that despite Diviney’s love for comedy, some members in the audience were unsure about how to approach her. Were they to applaud or commiserate on their failure to incorporate the issues Diviney addressed over their long careers?
Diviney said, “Things could be moving faster if you helped us”.
However, the movement to create a more inclusive media landscape has led to generalisations and miscommunications in recent years.
For many people with disabilities, there is a binary that suggests we are either pitiful or inspirational.
“How much more do I have to prove myself?” Diviney said.
It isn’t enough for people with disabilities to be included only on International Day of People with Disabilities or during the Paralympics.
“Disabled people deserve a place in every room.”