People with disabilities were seen as inferior, possessed by evil spirits, and unfit to participate in society (Munyi, 2012). The treatment and attitudes towards people with disabilities were filled with societal fears, intolerance, ambivalence, prejudice, and ignorance (Marini, 2017). People with disabilities were infanticide, starved, burned, shunned, isolated etc. (Marini, 2017). The most notable reason behind the attitudes and treatment towards people with disabilities is that they were “devalued and perceived as less than human” (Marini, 2017, p. 1).

Because of this, many used methods such as extermination and sterilization to reduce the population of people with disabilities (Marini, 2017). The definition of normal often implies the absence of deviance or disabilities (Marini, 2017) and achieving that was the goal. It was not until key legislation did people with disabilities begin to have a place in society (Marini, 2017). Even so, there are still many underlying attitudes that transferred over to today’s society that stem from these past views.

Ableism refers to “a network of beliefs, processes and practices that produced a particular kind of self and body (the corporeal standard) that is projected as the perfect, species-typical and therefore essential and fully human” (Campbell, 2009, p. 5). It is dependent on the concept of differences having abled people being superior than disabled people (Campbell, 2009). The medical model of disabilities further perpetuates ableism; the idea that people with disabilities are "out of place" and need to attempt to reach the ideal human (Campbell, 2009). Having prejudice, pity, and associating disabilities as a negative thing are all signs of ableism. Ableism is engrained in the language and the culture of societies. People with disabilities are rarely provided opportunities in voicing, planning, and developing plans that affect them.

The largest issue in regards to the experiences of people with disabilities is the fact that abled-bodied people decide for them and impose their ideas onto others. Much of the issues surrounding ableism and the medical model of disabilities is that people with disabilities do not have a voice in the policies surrounding their life. The problems people with disabilities face nowadays are from “disabling environments, barriers, and cultures” (Barnes, 2019, p. 20). Using the social model of disability provides “insights into the disabling tendencies of modern society in order to generate policies and practices to facilitate their eradication” (Barnes, 2019, p. 20).

“Conversations of ableism, its production and performance” (Campbell, 2009, p. 15) are crucial for the dissemination of ableism. This means ensuring that people with disabilities are part of the planning process. In terms of technology, instead of using it to "fix" disabilities, the decision should be given to the person in which the technology is intended for. People with disabilities should decide how they want to use available assistive technologies to ensure that they learn and live the way they want to.