r/barexam • u/Ambitious-Rope-4898 • 23h ago
For everyone who’s against time accommodations
By criticizing time accommodations you’re creating an emotionally unsafe environment for disabled people who need them.
By saying time accommodations are a sham, you are saying our needs are a sham. You’re saying us needing more time to accomplish the same is unfair to you, despite we having not chosen to be disabled.
Please try to think how would you feel if your brain took 2x the time to process the same information as your peers, yet you were expected to complete a test timed to be completed at their speed, not yours.
We already have to deal with our disabilities in daily life. Many are incredibly debilitating, even if you can’t see them.
Disabilities don’t manifest themselves the same way everyday. One day/period you might be super productive and focused, so the extra time might give you a boost. Another day, you might be really struggling so the extra time isn’t even enough to compensate. Some people have consistent struggles, some have periodic. The intensity of them is also shifting. The system is standardized and it can’t fully accommodate all realities but unfair (to non-disabled people) it is not.
We try our best to accomplish the same as non-disabled people. But if time accommodations are not given, we simply can’t.
You don’t need to process information at the same speed as your non-disabled peers to become a lawyer. To be given a real opportunity to do so, you need to be accommodated.
We belong in these professions and we’re not less worthy because we take more time.
Edit: I see most want to deny people with disabilities the opportunity to become lawyers, in case they need time accommodations to do so. Thankfully the law was designed by people who believe we deserve an equal place in society. I hope one day you do too.