By Salam Fatayer Radio Milwaukee Published May 10, 2023 at 5:16 PM

They lift your spirits, prompt you to think, make you feel grateful, and inspire you to do more. They connect you to our community – in a positive way -- shining a spotlight on what is good about Milwaukee. These are "Uniquely Milwaukee" stories from Radio Milwaukee.

We wrap up our body-image series featuring voices from all corners of our community speaking about their personal experiences with their bodies.

Setting up this project, we knew the flow was essential; each episode needed to stand alone while still fitting within the overarching theme. When it came to wrapping up the series, in the back of my mind I knew I wanted to play on the concept of "leaving no one behind" and amplifying voices who often get drowned out when we discuss body image: people living with disabilities.

There are a lot of negative stereotypes and attitudes around this topic. Some of them portray disabled people as being tragic but brave, laughable, aggressive, burdens, outcasts or incapable of fully participating in everyday life. We know those stereotypes are not valid and profoundly affect self-esteem.

For this conversation, I spoke with Sergio Muniz-Munoz and Emily Cadman, both wheelchair users. Then, to close off the series, former Radio Milwaukee program director Jordan Spencer Lee joins us to talk about how his body has changed since being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

Listen to "Leaving no one behind: How the disabled community challenges inclusion and ableism" on Spreaker.

This past month's episodes

  • April 4 – Real Women, real bodies: Getting candid about body-image journeys
  • April 11 – Breaking the silence: Men and women navigate beauty standards from hair to height 
  • April 14 – All about that hair (minisode)
  • April 18 – Beyond the binary: Transgender voices in the body positivity movement and embracing body diversity
  • April 25 – Leaving no one behind: How the disabled community challenges ableism