Even though positive strides have been made toward an all-inclusive society for disabled people, one physically-challenged man believes TT has more to accomplish.
Joseph O’Brien, also known as DJ Joe O’Brien, spoke with Sunday Newsday about his difficulties and those the community faces daily.
The 26-year-old is the eldest of five siblings but currently lives with his grandmother and aunt and currently lives in Maracas Valley, Joseph.
He was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency (pffd), which affects the upper part of the femur bone that causes one leg to be shorter than the other and could include other bone and muscle disorders such as malrotation, limb-length discrepancies, fibular hemimelia, joint instability and muscle weakness.
O’Brien is 105 centimetres tall, with no left arm and has a cleft lip and palate. At the age of ten, he underwent surgery for scoliosis.
Some of his most disturbing memories would have been in primary school because of ostracisation by some of the school’s administrative staff.
He did not name the school but explained it was difficult and used the negative experiences over the years as motivation and positive reinforcement to get through each day.
“There was an incident where I got injured in the courtyard. I was later prevented from going out to play, they also encouraged my classmates to discriminate against me.”
O’Brien said his days at his high school, Fatima College, were much different and where he was welcomed by everyone. There he found purpose and understood that despite his physical differences, he was a functioning person and citizen in society.
As the years passed, he said, he encountered people during his commutes who expressed an interest in his condition but being a shy person, he never engaged in much conversation.
[caption id="attachment_924259" align="alignnone" width="703"] Joe O'Brien may be 105 centimetres, with no left arm, but he stands tall as a popular DJ.- PHOTO BY ROGER JACOB[/caption]
It was a conversation with a woman, a stranger, O’Brien said, that showed him that listening to others and sharing his story would be that flicker of hope that someone needed.
“I came across a woman who seemed to be severely depressed and she told me her life was not good because of problems with her family and finances. Then she asked, 'Joseph wouldn’t you like to live in a world where you could be happy all the time?' I was shocked. I was never asked that question before.
“I responded, no. The bad times help you appreciate the good times. That was when I realised a lot of people were not able to learn as fast as I did because of my condition. So, I looked at it as a chance to share what I’ve learnt to help someone.”
O’Brien recalled his daily struggle to get to his job every day at radio station, Boom Champions 94.1fm in Port of Spain, using public transportation. Because it was uncomfortable, inconvenient and complicated to move around the city he had to fork out additional money to arrange for personalised transport.
He explained a rece
