We Are Better Than This

A clap back at Conservatism in Crisis – A statement on behalf of C-Change Scotland.

This is not a C-Change Scotland party-political statement, though it speaks to an issue raised in the campaign literature of a party leadership candidate. This is a statement about who we are and why it matters. When we say we, we mean all of us. 

A recent political campaign essay, Conservatism in Crisis claimed to outline factors holding back economic growth. The 36-page essay identified among other factors that ‘conditions such as anxiety, as well as an autism diagnosis, had gone from something “people should work on themselves as individuals” to “something that society, schools, and employers have to adapt around.”¹ 

Conflating mental health conditions and neurodivergence is inaccurate.  
Blaming those who experience anxiety and other mental health conditions and those who are neurodivergent for the lack of economic growth is not only factually incorrect, but also ignorant, mean and unfair.  

This kind of language diminishes us all, if we do not push back against it.  

C-Change supports disable people to live their good lives and make their contribution to society. That includes people we support and colleagues. We are very fortunate to count among us, people with mental health issues, physical disabilities, learning disabilities, autistic and neurodivergent people, single people, people with family obligations, people from different cultures and with different background experiences.  

Our aim is to be an organisation where everyone can flourish. It is not so hard. We welcome people, we value people, we listen intently, and try to work out what space and time people need to be of their best and try to accommodate that. We are fallible and we get things wrong and when we do, we work out how to do better. 

And we are not alone in this endeavour. There are many, many organisations and individual people who believe that we are better when we look after each other. That our diversity is also our strength. 
 
So, we work hard to ensure our hopeful future is based upon a shared sense of optimism and community. Where young and old, neurodivergent and neurotypical, mentally well and those with mental health issues feel valued and that there is space for us all to share our unique gifts and talents. That to us, and many others, is a strong foundation on which to build a healthy economy.