"Gimphobia" is not a term that is found in a dictionary, but it does exist.
The inventor of the word is Matt Glowacki. He is a man who is perfectly able to do mostly anything-except walk.
"Being 'gimphobic' is much like being homophobic because there is no real word for discrimination against handicapped people," he said. "Prejudice and discrimination happen when we judge people before we can truly recognize people's potential."
Glowacki was born with no legs in 1973 in Janesville, Wis. and is accomplished, yet very modest about it.
"I think I'm a good person, even a great person, but it is not because I am in a wheelchair," he said. "I don't consider myself a motivation or an inspiration. I'm just a guy who gets around in a different way."
If being an Eagle Scout, owning a business during his senior year of high school and speaking more than 25,000 children in Wisconsin during college is not motivation enough, try being a competitor in sit volleyball during the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney, Australia.
Glowacki can do a handstand with his 35-pound wheelchair hoisted above, then perform successive push-ups, making him the only American who can do it, he said. He won't perform such a trick tonight at 7 at The UC Faulkner Lounge, but all students may attend for a speech and question and answer session.
Joseph Weekly, the Student Activities Council ideas and issues committee chairman, said the organization was looking for someone "that could represent the issues surrounding handicapped people and help break down barriers formed against the community."
Through all Glowacki's achievements, his main goal is helping people see that he and other handicapped people are just like everyone else.
"Since most people have no real experience with handicapped people, they immediately try to put themselves in our shoes," Glowacki said. "What I try to do is change the way people perceive others."
