Mom of 10-year-old with dwarfism has a spot-on response to people who 'stare, point and laugh' at her daughter
There are things one needs to hear or experience to become aware and conscious of other people's feelings. The mom of a 10-year-old with dwarfism has a similar message for people who "point and laugh" at her daughter in public. The woman, Angela Thurber, shared that her daughter, Rilee, might be "small, but her size is insignificant to what she is capable of in life." Dwarfism is more of a "social disability," even according to the Considering Disability Journal. A previous study found that 90% of people with dwarfism had been shamed in public, and 77% had experienced some form of "verbal abuse." So, the mom put out a clear message for anyone who made her daughter feel bad about herself on Facebook, where she runs a page named Smiles with Rilee.
"This girl right here is absolutely amazing!" the mom wrote in the post's caption, along with the pictures of her daughter. Thurber shared that she was blessed to be Rilee's mom, and she didn't let her "size hold her back from anything." "She is strong, kind-hearted, talented, smart, beautiful and so much more! To know her is to love her. She is perfect!" Thurber hoped that the world would see Rilee's ability in life and respect her regardless of her size. She pointed out that her size had nothing to do with her abilities, but there were certain things she wanted people to know.
"Midget is an awful word. It's degrading," the mom explained. The correct term would be "little person or a person with dwarfism." However, she added, "But honestly, she is the same as a person of average height, so do we even need labels?" Rilee, a 10-year-old girl, was a "little smaller" compared to the rest of the people, her mom further added in her post shared in 2019.
"Sadly, too many times, we've already encountered situations in public of staring, pointing, and laughing and she's only 10 years old," Thurber expressed. Most of the time, the people were other children who hadn't been "educated." She added, "These types of encounters could have been prevented if parents had talked to their children regularly about the differences in our world. Educate your children!" The mom even talked about the feeling that she felt one too many times and would never want to feel it again.
"Watching the tears fall from her face because she feels ashamed of her appearance is the worst feeling," Thurber admitted. "I'd rather be hit by a car to see her hurt like that. I can't even begin to describe it from her perspective." She remarked that Rilee had become more aware of it as she had gotten older. It also "affects her self-esteem." The mom pointed out that Rilee had always been very confident, and she didn't want her to lose that, but she could see it "fading" with such encounters.
Thurber wanted to share one more thing with adults who wanted to talk to her daughter. "If you talk to her, please talk to her as you would any other 10-year-old. She hates it when adults talk to her like she's a 3-year-old! You'd be surprised how often it happens." She continued, "She hates when people assume she can't do something because of her size. She is just like any other 10-year-old out there. 10 going on 14 and full of personality!" Thurber concluded that the mother and daughter duo would be happy to answer any questions people had, as they loved educating others about dwarfism.
People in the comments shared their thoughts. Tippi DeWeese Lampa wrote, "I love Rilee. I own a daycare, and I educate them on the differences in our world. I want the children who attend my daycare to learn to love everyone despite their differences." Beth Raiford Allen commented, "Rilee is growing up so beautifully. I've been following her for several years. What a smart, sweet, beautiful and fierce girl she is!"