His Response to Those Who Made Him Feel Like a Victim to His Condition
In a Facebook post from photographer Brandon Stanton’s wildly popular “Humans of New York” photo series, a man opened up about his Agenesis of the corpus callosum, a condition in which the structure that connects the two hemispheres of the brain is, in his case, absent.
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“I have Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum. Most people have nerve bundles that connect the two hemispheres of the brain. …
Posted by Humans of New York on Thursday, July 2, 2015
The post reads:
I have Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum. Most people have nerve bundles that connect the two hemispheres of the brain. I don’t have those. But I don’t like to talk about it. Because when people know there is something wrong with your brain, they think you’re retarded. I had a hard time growing up. I’ve been labeled all my life. I’ve always been told that I’m learning disabled and I can’t do this and I’m not good enough to do that. And it’s hard to hear that stuff all the time without viewing yourself as a permanent victim and learning to be helpless. I’m not a victim. I have a part-time job, nice friends, and my own apartment. All I need now is a full time job and a PlayStation 4.
His answer in itself is great, as were commenters’ reactions — in an internet world that tends to be full of negativity and trolls, the responses to this post (and the number of PlayStation offers) truly blew us away. Here are just a few of our favorites:
“Bro, both of my hemispheres are connected and I’m half the man you are.“
“My 12-year-old brother has this. I have never heard of anyone else having it. I am so excited to show him this so he knows he too can have a comfortable life.“
“It’s so lovely to hear stories from adults with ACC; my youngest son has the condition and the future feels uncertain at times. Thank you for sharing this man’s story. I hope he sees how much it means to me to read it.“
“With that attitude he should have no problem finding a full-time job. I wish I had that positive spirit all the time.“
“I have Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum as well as several other disorders. I’m rocking life as a single mom despite my disability… I may be missing part of my brain, but I have a FULL life.“
It’s nice to be reminded that 1) hardworking people like this man exist and 2) the Internet is capable of kindness.
Spread the Word to End the Word! You can head here to pledge to stop using the R-word. It’s a step toward creating more accepting attitudes and communities for all people.