ISA
International Stuttering Association

A world that understands stuttering

Dreams for self-help and therapy

By: Thomas Krall*

Our most fundamental dream has become our vision: A world that understands stuttering. But how do we translate this dream into concrete steps for the foreseeable future until e.g. 2010 or 2030? The attainment of our vision means, that the following dreams must come true.

We dream ...

... of a world that understands stuttering, where people who stutter will not feel the need to hide their stuttering any longer, will not be misjudged as fools, psychopaths and figures of ridicule, and that stuttering will not affect their lives negatively.
... of children who stutter, who will be born into a world of greater tolerance and support.
... of parents and the general public in our world, who better know how to deal with stuttering.
... of schools in our world, to which stuttering pupils really like to go. We dream of them having a better opportunity to access effective therapy, to have well-informed teachers, and accepting peer group and to be able to take part in self-help groups for pupils, if they want.
... of therapy in our world, of having more and more stuttering specialists in all countries - especially in developing countries. We call for the most highly qualified and competent stuttering specialists, we don't want the 10% amateur any longer. We dream, that charlatans no longer work in this area, that therapists don't make false promises relating to recovery, that no person who stutters is denied entry into the field of speech language pathology because he/she stutters. We dream that people who stutter don't need ten but only one type of effective therapy.
... of Stuttering and Employment in our world, which is not a problem any longer. We dream that people who stutter work in jobs they really can and want to do - without discrimination - and have expert, competent career guidance.
... of future films, literature and the media in our world, where people who stutter are not portrayed as fools any longer, but as being positive, friendly, lovely - although they stutter.
... of research in our world, which solves the stuttering problem before 2030. By genetic technique, or other interesting approaches.
... of self-help groups in every town of our world, national associations in every country, and a strong and helpful international network of ELSA and ISA, in cooperation with IFA, WHO, UNICEF and other international organizations, e.g. the World Federation for Mental Health.
... finally of ourselves, of people who stutter in our world that we are strong and calm enough to handle our stuttering as best as possible. That we talk if we want to talk. And if we really want to involve ourselves in therapy, the patience and staying power to practice our new skills and lifestyle every day, possibly for our whole life. We dream of being loved, of stress reduction, of increasing our self-acceptance, self-esteem and self-confidence. We dream of positive thinking, and possibly changing our attitude and assessment of stuttering, saying and living, one day: "Stuttering is not a problem - it is a challenge." We dream that our soul will find the peace of mind. We dream of complete mental health.

And to reach all of them, we also dream a Big Financial Dream:



We dream ...

... of a financial situation which is much better than today! Of a budget of 10 Million US$ a year, to finance the needs and our dreams.
... of having a fully paid Executive Director, some staff and a nice office in our world, so that our projects can be managed more professionally.
... to have our own house, somewhere in our world, our own property for ISA; ELSA or the national associations in their countries, possibly even together with the IFA. Until today, no stuttering association owns any property.

"We are searching for sponsors,
for further building our strong house
of stuttering self-help
in our world."

We dream of a home that represents cooperation between all the agencies that best work for the good of those who stutter. This house could be a wonderful collaborative project with many departments. There could be many such houses in the world. A name like "International Agency for the Prevention and Management of Stuttering" could possibly be a good idea if we would make the house a joint project.

Our dream house: "International Agency for the Prevention and Management of Stuttering"

Dreaming of progress, cooperation, sponsorship and our own house, I want to share another little anecdote.
The Parthenon of the Acropolis is over 2400 years old and even today is the visible reminder of the political, economic, cultural and philosophical heyday of Athens. How could Socrates, Plato, Aristotle and their philosophies have developed without this Acropolis - without the dream and decision of Pericles and the citizens of Athens, to build this impressive building? Can you fathom that a building could be of such quality and beauty, that despite its age it could have been preserved so well over the 2400 years? And yet this Parthenon of the Acropolis was built in only 9 years.

From Dream to Reality - What could be the next steps?

What concrete steps can we take before 2005 ?


We can intensify ...

... our excellent cooperation with ELSA and the IFA on our current joint projects and develop further interesting future projects.
... our efforts relating to Stuttering and Employment and possibly implement the ELSA Statement on Stuttering and Employment.
... our efforts relating to Public Relations and possibly establish a "Stutterer of the Year Award" - drawing candidates from famous sportsmen, politicians, actors, etc. - and combine it with ISAD every year.
... our efforts relating to WHO to formalize official relations one day, which will put our work on a higher level. Projects and possibly money will appear which we cannot even imagine today.
... our efforts relating to finance, fundraising, which will help to make our dreams come true one day. Why shouldn't ISA, ELSA and the national associations become interesting as beneficiaries for last wills or testaments in the future?
... our efforts relating to ISAD 2000 - and for the upcoming years - around the world, and make it more and more a day to remember for our stuttering community.
... our efforts relating to the IFA's proposed "Bill of Rights for people who stutter", and try to ratify them before 2004. - That people who stutter should be party to the development of a bill to protect their rights is just and appropriate. We look forward to a successful outcome to this cooperative project which augurs well for our future relationship.
... our efforts relating to the International Year of the Child Who Stutters 2004 (IYCWS), which will help children who stutter to find better ways to deal with their stuttering on many levels.


Finally it is the dream of the ISA to continue nurturing the blossoming partnership with the IFA and ELSA. Together we are stronger. And together we are the motor for the development of the theme of stuttering, the motor of solving the stuttering problem one day.
Can you imagine how glad Aristotle and Demosthenes would be today, knowing that there is now worldwide cooperation to solve the old problem of stuttering, around 2350 years after their attempts - today by research, computers, Internet and World Congresses?
And so we invite you to join us next year in Belgium at the 6th World Congress for People Who Stutter, to move towards fulfilling our dream of A world that understands stuttering.

* Taken from Thomas Krall Keynote speech given in the third IFA congress in Nighborg, Denmark, August 2000