January 20th is International Day of Acceptance!

Every January 20th we celebrate International Day of Acceptance! The annual celebration is a chance to tell the world how important it is to embrace who you are. Everyone has social rights, opinions, interests, and goals. Everyone is empowered to make a difference in the world and will not be without a voice in society. It’s a chance to celebrate abilities rather than disabilities.

International Day of Acceptance was created by Annie Hopkins, a young woman with a disability who believed in acceptance. Annie lived in a society where people with disabilities were not portrayed in the media as beautiful, able, or equal members of a community. She entered her teens knowing that she wasn’t expected to pursue a higher education or to live independently. She lived life knowing that strangers thought more about her disability and presumed life expectancy than they thought to say hello as she rolled by.

Annie never gave up. She went to college and began to advocate for the disability community. She moved out on her own and created humorous yet educational YouTube videos to show people how she faced her challenges. She never hesitated to test her limits, especially when it came to giving to others.

In 2007, she recruited her brother Stevie to help her start a company to spread her message. She created 3E Love with the idea that her “Wheelchair Heart” symbol unified people of all abilities and it ignited conversations every day that would help change attitudes for the better.

Annie passed away in 2009, but her message still lives on through International Day of Acceptance and beyond. Her family and friends hosted the first International Day of Acceptance in 2010 and since then 3E Love and the Wheelchair Heart have become an international brand and symbol of love, strength, and hope. 3E Love’s Wheelchair Heart is in every state and 33 countries!

The day encourages people to tell the world that you are accepting of people with disabilities. You can start change by demonstrating acceptance and showing the world that you embrace people of all abilities.

Learn more: https://www.dayofacceptance.com/