An Interview with Natasha Álvarez of Audacity Magazine

by Zen Garcia, Winder, GA

Natasha Álvarez is the Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Audacity Magazine, as well as being a frequent contributor to it as a writer.

Zen García: Can you tell us a little bit about your disability and how it has affected you in your life?

Natasha Álvarez: My physical disability is osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), also known as brittle bone disease. There are several levels of severity for this disability: mine seems to be considered a severe case due to the fact that I have probably fractured over 100 bones during the course of my lifetime. Disability has affected every aspect of my life and though I would love to be one of those people who can say truly that their disability has had no detrimental affect, I would not be honest with myself. Those that ignore their disabilities or try to hide them so as to be perceived as “normal” are not being honest with themselves and seem to want to ignore who they really are.

For example, when I go out to the movies with friends, I know that I must make sure that the car has enough room for the wheelchair and that I am able to transfer in and out by myself. When we get to the movie theater, we park close to the main entrance but ensure that there is enough space for the car door to open when we return. If I ignore my disability needs and don't do the things I need to, a simple trip to the movies can become a hassle for everyone. I try not to make my disability the biggest issue on everyone's mind while at the same time making sure things are done the way I need to ensure my access and independence.

ZG: As a person with a disability, what kinds of obstacles do you face in your everyday life?

NA: The minute I wake up, I am faced with obstacles that have to do with my own abilities. I have written about this in www.audacitymagazine.com. There are times when I might drop an item and then have to get my reacher to pick it up. There are days when I encounter a cumbersome door or narrow passages. There are health issues as well. Every day brings new challenges for all people, regardless of disability, and we all have to learn about ourselves.

ZG: What gave you the inspiration to start Audacity Magazine? How long did it take you to establish it and how long have you been circulating?

NA: About 10 years ago, while in bed reading magazines, I became frustrated and resentful of the fact that most of the articles I was reading had nothing relevant to my life circumstance. There were all those articles geared to make me more organized, prettier, healthier, more hip and cool, but they required activities that I could not do due to my disability. Their advice to the world is to take up hiking, yoga, weightlifting, and a bunch of other things impossible for not just me, but for an entire community of physically disabled people. Perhaps I was in a bad mood since I had been bedridden due to an injury, but I became very upset! My sister, who gave me the magazines to read in the first place, said that if I did not like the articles in the magazines, I should make my own. So I resigned myself to do just that and began networking with other people who might be interested in doing the same thing, but I never really got the idea off the ground until 2002, when I put together a Yahoo disability group. This group really desired to see this dream come alive and became the catalyst for this venture. It was crazy awesome! We brainstormed everything and finally in July 2003, Audacity Magazine was born.

ZG: What are your hopes and dreams for your magazine, and where do you hope to be in five or ten years?

NA: In five years, I hope the magazine will cover every topic that is read in the mainstream media, but with a personal connection to the physically disabled community. International society needs to recognize that people with physical disabilities are consumers of the same products that the non-physically disabled people are. The magazine is a nonprofit organization. Our hope is that it will be supported and embraced by the public and corporations. We will have a marketing, public relations, information technology, and full-time writing staff made up entirely of physically disabled people. As a community, we must stick together to empower each other.

As for the next ten years, more of the same. We hope to attract people to AudacityMagazine.com for all of their disability issues and how they relate to politics, transportation, travel, sex, fashion, beauty, sports, health care, and on and on. I would love to organize an Audacity international conference where all of our international writers and readers can gather to meet and learn from one another.

ZG: Can you tell us a little bit about your hopes and dreams for your own life?

NA: I want to do so much, and there is not ever enough time in the world. No matter how organized I become, I will always want more. That is my personality and driving force. I am having to learn that you can't do everything all the time, but you can use the time you have wisely.

I dream of writing novels. I have stories coming out of my head on a daily basis, but working full time as a middle school teacher along with the magazine and other projects and obligations leave me with very little time. Eventually, I would like to own my own home, drive a Lexus, and travel the world speaking to as many people as I can, helping as many people as I can, and reading as many books as I can get my hands on.

ZG: What are some of your other interests?

NA: I love puzzles—logic puzzles, word puzzles, mysteries, and computer games! I love to watch all of the Law and Order series. I love to play the piano and, if I had time, I would love to start taking lessons again.

ZG: Who do you look up to in life and why?

NA: I look up to all people who, despite hardships, still choose to continue dreaming and reaching for their goals. It doesn't matter how old you are, what condition you’re in, or what cards you have been dealt; if you want or desire something then go for it. I personally look up to Oprah. She is a keen businesswoman who has utilized the power society has granted to her for the greater good—something that does not happen enough in this world. Some people abuse their power and authority and use it only for personal gain or underutilize it and do nothing at all.

I especially admire my mom for being the strong and determined woman she is. In the 1970s, she made sure that I received the best from the medical, educational, social, and cultural systems which often make life so difficult. I know it was not easy for her to fight the system to access what was best for a child with OI, but she did it. What a huge task it must have been.

As a teacher, I admire Anne Sullivan for not giving up on her pupil, Helen Keller, and for going beyond what was expected of her and her student to embrace what became friendship and learning. Teaching is difficult and, while we may not be able to reach every student, we at least must try. When we do reach our students and assist them in learning—what a great feeling!

ZG: How do the kids you teach react to you? How do the reactions of children differ from adults?

NA: I love my students. Every year I am guaranteed at least 100 new kids to help along in life. The children are innocently curious and untainted by societal expectations or biases. I love that! On the first day of school, I tell them what I think they need to know about me and my disability and answer any questions they may have so that they can feel at ease in the classroom. The kids are great! I have taught in every type of environment and the children who act up do it because they are like that with every teacher. So although it might be annoying, it is actually flattering that they act the same with me. They tell me that it doesn't matter that I am in a wheelchair, they are going treat me like any other teacher and isn't that what we all want—to be treated like everyone else?

The adults... well that's another story. It seems to me the older we become the more closed-minded we are. Who really is the wiser, adults or kids? I have had co-workers tell me that some were hesitant about my ability to keep the children under control. Some parents even acted like I wasn't good enough to teach their child, and yet it has been a win-win situation: I am determined to prove my abilities, and at the same time their children become exposed to the natural inclusion of people with disabilities into their communities.

ZG: What are some of the things you would like to cover in your magazine to help bring change for the disability community?

NA: I would like to know why governments don't have better methods for helping the physically disabled. There are certainly ways to give us better access to employment, life, and community that would allow people to gain the assistance they need to get off government assistance programs. It is to everyone's benefit that the physically disabled become as independent as possible and be allowed to make more choices about our living situations and how we choose to receive medical attention. I would like to explore how physically disabled people are educated in the public school systems... Many people with disabilities have missed significant amounts of school and as a result are passed on but without the skills needed to gain decent employment.

I want to know what our society, from the local barber to the President of the United States of America, is willing to do to help those soldiers who come back from war with missing limbs and other physical impairments. A man or woman goes to war and comes back with injuries—what happens to them?

ZG: In your opinion, what is the single most important issue affecting people with disabilities today?

NA: Plain and simple, accessibility to every possible nook and cranny in the world.

ZG: What is the accessibility like in Miami?

NA: Miami is one of the best places for accessibility for the physically disabled. While other people are dealing with extended winters, the climate here allows us to go out and be part of the lives we enjoy. And because it is a modern city, most areas are ADA compliant; the areas that aren't have some alternative way of accommodation.

ZG: How far do you think we have come in this country in regards to disability rights and how far do you think we have to go?

NA: We have come a long way, but we have still have a long road ahead. Part of this is our own community’s fault. Many people with disabilities are indoctrinated into value systems that see them as unworthy as humans and a burden to family, friends, and society. When you think like that, you consider yourself a charity case and often lean on the “poor pity me” attitude, and yet that is not the case at all.

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