Inclusion: a thread. (And picture)

I recently worked w/ a company who offers a custom avatar in their software. They said everyone could make a replica of their own likeness.

I liked their product. I smiled through the many fun options I saw that day; tall, slim, (1/3)

wacky hats, funny glasses.

But I also felt a heaviness inside me, knowing my physical shape doesn’t quite fit the norm, & most certainly wouldn’t be in the catalog of features.

I have a limb difference. Statistically, I’m an outlier. I’ll never fit in to algorithms or (2/3)

catalogs of bodies.

I had a heartfelt discussion with the software team about inclusion. About what a moment of feeling really “seen” might be worth to a human. It was a philosophical discussion in my mind, clearly knowing the business case is hard to make to add (3/4)

customization for situations that are outliers.

Yet, today I got my custom avatar. It’s the *first* thing I’ve seen in 41 years, aside from a real photo, that has my likeness.

It’s pretty remarkable M2 Media Group.

Thanks for “seeing” me.

#inclusion #Disability