“Removing a step in my hallway led to an argument with two neighbours”. “When I sit on the bus, some older ladies tap me on the shoulder and scold me: 'Baby, you can't sit here!’”. “Once I was at a cash machine and as I can' t see well I was taking longer than usual. I heard someone behind me saying: 'Look at that fool, he's going so slow”.  

The experiences shared by Siscu, Monat and José are just three examples of the countless physical and social barriers that hamper the participation of people with disabilities in society. The Institut Guttmann is launching the campaign #queremosparticipar with the aim of highlighting this inequality of opportunities. 

The campaign includes a video and a website with the testimonies of Jana, Alina, José, Maria, Darío, Monat, Raúl, Maurizio, Siscu, Marc and Nancy, 11 people with very different experiences who are just a small representation of the nearly 10% of the population of Spain that has a disability. 

#queremosparticipar is part of the social research project PARTICIPA, which aims to identify the barriers and facilitators that determine the everyday lives of people with disabilities and to generate scientific evidence that leads to social change. With more than 55 years of experience in the field of neurorehabilitation, the Institut Guttmann aims not only to offer people the best treatments, but also to work to achieve a 100% inclusive environment once they leave the hospital.   

All adults residing in Spain and Andorra can register in PARTICIPA and complete the questionnaires. The project's Forum is open to everyone, whether or not they have a disability.