【The article below is the same as the article that appears in the twelfth issue of the CGS Newsletter.】
As seen by developments in recent years such as the enactment of the Support for Persons with Developmental Disabilities Law, there is a growing social awareness about developmental disabilities. Nevertheless, stereotypes of the developmentally disabled as being inflexible, stubborn, or incapable of meaningful communication still prevail. Satsuki Ayaya is co-author of Hattatsu shougai toujisha kenkyuu (A Study of Developmental Disabilities based on Personal Experience), which realistically depicts the problems faced by the developmentally disabled from a personal perspective.
Ayaya has also recently published Zenryaku, rikon o kimemashita (Honey I'm Filing for Divorce; 2009), a book about her marital experience as a victim of domestic violence and her road to divorce. Read on and find out how Ayaya survived domestic violence and learned to live with her developmental disability.
(CGS Editor)