Representation Matters
My 4 year old daughter and I had a little mom & me date today for the first time since her brother was born in December. Naturally, she wanted to go to her favorite store, and I was more than happy to oblige! We were meandering through the Easter section when I spotted this lone bunny on a shelf. I snatched him up and stood there, shocked and amazed, with him clutched in my hands. "Mommy that bunny's chair looks like my chair! He's just like me!", my daughter Eleanor exclaimed, her little voice full of excitement, her sweet face beaming. You see, Eleanor is a part time wheelchair user. She can walk, run, and even jump; but her mild Cerebral Palsy makes it so that she fatigues very quickly, falls frequently, and cannot tolerate long distances or long days. She wears hinged AFOs daily, but sometimes they just don't provide her enough support. My daughter is a part time wheelchair user, and this was the first time that she had seen herself represented among the typical decor. Representation matters. It's important, it matters, and Target SEES my child in a way that many people and businesses do not. I carefully placed the bunny in our cart, and with hot tears stinging my eyes, replied "Yes baby, he's just like you."
