50 Of The Strangest Photos That Are Both Cringy And Hilarious Has Been Shared By Instagram Pages Of Similar Interests
![50 Of The Strangest Photos That Are Both Cringy And Hilarious Has Been Shared By Instagram Pages Of Similar Interests](https://static.pupperish.com/posts/3c0a64a3fe54610de0b16a966bea8da9_26229_400.jpg)
Paralympic Gold Medal Winner Jessica Long turned to TikTok to share some thoughts and hopes the offender sees the video.
If you've never heard of her, 28-year-old Jessica Long is a decorated and accomplished swimmer who happened to win one gold, three silver, and two bronze medals at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio. The Baltimore, Maryland native in total has won 26 Paralympic medals and has held many world records.
Because of fibular hemimelia, her lower legs were amputated when she was 18 months old, and yet for everything this incredible athlete has done she hasn't been free from criticism that face disabled individuals on a daily basis. Recently, Jessica turned to TikTok to share a frustrating experience and incredible response.
“So, it just happened again. I was parking my car — and I hope she sees this — this woman just has the nerve to look me up and down disgusted that I parked in the handicapped spot..."
“I get two to four comments per week, just going about my normal routine and parking in handicap spaces. I’ve had people yell at me, leave notes on my windshield, knock on my car window, or wait for me to get out of my car just to tell me I can’t park there. My worst experience to date was an older couple that followed me around a grocery store and kept making comments because they wanted the handicap spot I took and said that I didn’t need it. I even explained I had two prosthetic legs and they told me I was a liar."
"“I was missing my fibula bones and several other bones in my lower legs."
“I did have a little foot with three toes on each leg”
“If I can do it with the challenges I face, you can too. What I don’t like is people commenting how ‘inspiring’ I am doing normal daily tasks like grocery shopping, getting coffee, or taking a walk. THAT is not inspiring. People can be inspired by my work ethic, career, healthy lifestyle, or positive attitude, but not me living my normal life.”
"“I get it, I don’t ‘look’ handicapped, but what does that even mean?! I’ve been through more surgeries than I can count. My whole life I’ve had to adapt. I rely on my handicap pass."
“I think people are afraid to ask questions because society says it’s rude, but a lot of times that translates to shame around the topic of disabilities."
“I absolutely love sharing my story and journey with the world. I hope to educate how amputees use their prosthetic legs. We make it look easy and it’s a natural part of our everyday lives, but it’s also hard and can be painful.”