Over 20 disabled young people shared their stories and experiences as part of our project to increase the voices of disabled young people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meet the content creators and check out their amazing art, videos, stories, music, blog posts and more! All of the content below is created by and for disabled young people.
Gallery
Artwork
Ash (they/them)
Ash created this incredible artwork to reflect how they experience the world.
"I'm a neurodivergent, queer, Asian person, and I mostly make art that reflects how I experience the world. I experience the world as very loud! It's super intuitive, and is both an awesome way for me to process the world as well as express how I feel within it."
Ben (he/him)
Ben loves being creative and drawing, which has helped him during the uncertainty of COVID-19 and the lockdowns in Victoria. He also enjoys listening to music, playing Xbox and restoring cars.
Jacob (he/him)
Jacob is 17-years-old and lives with his family and dog, Holly.
Jacob has drawn a house with 'Keep Away' and 'Beware' signs out front. The drawing shows what it feels like to stay home in Victoria's lockdowns.
Josh (he/him)
Josh is an 18-year-old artist who loves drawing and creating sculptures. He created these colourful clay figures at school. Amazing, right?!
Madison (she/her)
Madison is 20-years-old and lives with her family and 16-year-old poodle, Hugo. She is passionate about art and drawing.
Art has been very important to Madison during Melbourne's lockdowns. During lockdown, she only left home for specialist appointments, so she loved being able to continue art classes via Zoom and get art supplies delivered to her house.
This painting represents Madison's feelings of freedom and hope when Victoria's lockdowns end. We're sure that many of you can relate!
Maya (she/her)
Maya is a 24-years-old and loves Old Hollywood, 1940s fashion, Art Deco style, and cinema.
Maya has painted her icon, Frida Kahlo, who she relates to a lot. Like Frida, Maya is a disabled artist. She is autistic and has borderline personality disorder.
Her artwork is about self-reflection and how it can have a positive effect on mental health.
Videos
Safe (they/them)
Safe is an incredible storyteller who has made this video to share their disability and Deaf pride journey.
"My name is Safe and I'm a 19-year-old Hard of Hearing, non-binary person of colour! I'm a long time activist and content creator. I am passionate about sparking dialogue around disability and social justice."
Liv (she/her)
Liv has created a video to share her experience as a young person with autism and Borderline Personality Disorder.
“I am a non-judgmental person and understand what it's like to be misunderstood. I have struggled with mental health issues for most of my life and I like being kind and helping others.”
Content warning: Mentions of suicide and self-harm.
Comics
Isabella (she/her)
Isabella has created an incredible comic about self-care for autistic adults. The comic represents her own understanding of the importance of self-care as an autistic person.
An audio description is also available.
Music and Audio
Lauren (she/her)
Lauren loves art galleries. However, galleries are not accessible places.
They often lack seating and other features that would make them accessible for everyone. In her audio piece, Lauren reflects on this and invites her audience to do the same.
Mia (she/her)
Mia is a uni student, theatre maker, educator, and writer based on Boonwurrung Country. She is passionate about representation, access-led artistic processes and finding joy within every community endeavour.
Mia has written and recorded this incredible song, Parts of Me a CAT Scan Can't Pick Up, about her experience as a disabled woman.
Short Stories
Max (he/him)
Max is a 22-year-old neurodivergent writer and talented storyteller.
Max has written an A made up story that is partly true.autofictional account of his experiences during lockdown.
"The night is beautiful. Starlight beckons me as she dances, calls her siren song. I should be out there."
Molly
Molly has written a short story about living with a disability and the beauty of finding happiness in nature.
"The sensations of the flower and the grass beneath my feet was overwhelming, but so comforting at the same time."
Blog Posts
Cindy (she/her)
Cindy is a youth advocate and university student. She also loves romance novels!
However, not seeing herself represented in these novels can be challenging, so she went on an adventure to find good disability representation in romance novels.
Emma (she/they)
How accessible is TikTok?
Emma is a 21-year-old queer and disabled youth advocate. In their blog post, Emma explores TikTok's accessibility features and how the platform can be more accessible for disabled young people.
Lee (she/her)
Lee is a high school student, Girl Guide, and proud member of the our COVID-19 Working Group.
Disabled young people have found it hard to get the COVID-19 vaccine, so Lee interviewed 3 disabled young people who have been vaccinated to find out more about their experiences.
Mac (he/him)
Mac is a 17-year-old queer and disabled youth advocate, currently in year 12. Outside of school he works alongside organisations to improve accessibility, inclusivity, and outcomes for LGBTQIA+ and disabled young people.
Mac explores disability pride and shares his advice for other disabled young people in his blog post.
Rose (she/her)
Rose is 12-years-old and enjoys reading, playing with her pet, drama, and singing.
Rose has written a great blog post about her experiences growing up as an autistic young person.
Podcast
Our podcast is proudly produced by disabled young people, for disabled young people.
Join hosts Emma, Cindy, Mac, Mia, and Lee, as they chat about the issues that matter to disabled young people.
Over 4 episodes, they interview guests from the disability community and explore disability pride, education, healthcare, and sharing your story.
4 content creators and some of the artwork made as part of the project.