[Harp-L] My Experience with Ableism in the Harmonica Community

[George Miklas]

Hello Amy,

Let's talk about harmonicas and your own harmonica playing.  Let's avoid
getting stuck on our personal preferences. We all have our favorite
artists, and none of our favorite artists are a bad influence. The longer
you play, the sound of your favorite artist will come out in your own
personal playing style. Does that make sense?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Dr. George Wallace Miklas <http://www.georgemiklas.com/>, **Harmonica
Specialist - **Scholar, **Educator, **Performer*
*Harmonica Gallery Sales Repair & Studio <http://www.harmonicagallery.com/>*
Doctoral Thesis: Harmonica Pedagogy for the Full Inclusion Instrumental
Music Classroom, Expanding Opportunities for Students with Disabilities
<https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/3671/>
*Adjunct Music Professor - Applied Tuba and Applied Harmonica, University
of Lynchburg*

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On Sun, Feb 18, 2024 at 5:58 PM Amy Rister <amyrister02 at xxxxx> wrote:

> I'm very nervous right now as I haven't posted in a while and wondering how
> are people going to react to me now because I was bullied off the forum the
> first time I was in here. People haven't been the most kind to me,
> especially the certain type of harmonica player whom thinks that I'm
> mentally unwell, I should learn to "control" my disabilities or everybody
> should ignore me just because I have an experience that this type of player
> never had to deal with. Ableism is in every community, including the
> harmonica sphere. I feel like I'm the only one who experiences this type of
> hate. I'm not baiting or manipulating anything or anyone, but I have to be
> strong and not to refer anybody who bullied me by name.
> From the many players on this forum that I've met prior on Facebook have
> told me that I should go to dangerous therapies that will cause me trauma,
> to quit thinking about my special interest, to give up the instrument
> because I'd hyperfixate on my favorite player or I found his stuff too be
> very difficult months before I met my teacher, that I should play like a
> certain artist because he's "more successful" than my favorite or more
> "bluesy" than him, that I should work a "normal job" and not be a musician
> or file for disability because I appear to be "high functioning", and I
> even got called the R slur because I don't like a popular song that the
> general public liked. I wish to be treated as an equal and even though some
> people out there are nice, I've met more mean people more than the nice
> ones.
> To the people that my mom sent emails because you were complaining about me
> and my disability, either be nice to me or don't interact with my posts. I
> shouldn't have to mask myself for your pleasure nor be talked to as if I'm
> a baby. To everybody else, I hope you have a nice day.
>
> Sincerely,
> Amy Rister
>