Justitia
impression of Maayan Ziv
“I don’t want words. I want actions. I’m demanding change to protect the rights and safety of people with disabilities in air travel.”
Maayan Ziv, Founder/CEO: AccessNow
“Accessibility is not a checkbox. Accessibility is a mindset that can lead to a very powerful sense of inclusion.”
Maayan Ziv, at Herzilya’s Beach, Israel
Maayan Ziv is an activist, a photographer and an entrepreneur based in Toronto, Canada. Living with Muscular Dystrophy, Maayan is a passionate and relentless advocate for creating a more accessible world. In 2015, Maayan founded AccessNow, a crowdsourced app to map the accessibility status of locations worldwide. She has since been a regular media commentator in the media on topics such as disability and inclusion. In 2016, Maayan received the City of Toronto Access Award and the David C. Onley Leadership in Accessibility Award in recognition of her innovative solutions and commitment to improving the lives of people of all abilities.
Maayan Ziv handles adversity and, consequently, advocacy with tremendous grace, eloquence and poise. On a recent trip to Tel Aviv, where she was to give a talk on accessibility, her wheelchair was badly damaged by the airline, Air Canada. She spoke on Instagram after landing.
“I’m sitting here shaking in anger, in shock, and yet entirely not surprised that once again my wheelchair has been broken by an airline. Too many disabled people have faced this trauma. Our stories, and our lives matter and this cannot continue to happen! We deserve equity. We deserve justice.”
justitia
Known as one of the four Virtues in Roman mythology, Justitia (Lady Justice) is the goddess of divine law and order, wisdom and good counsel: the personification of justice. She is the Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess Dike.
Justitia is often depicted blindfolded, holding a balance and a sword.
The idea of justice balancing scales dates back to the Egyptian Goddess Ma’at.
Statue of Lady Justice blindfolded and holding a balance and a sword, outside the Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong
The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead depicts a scene in which a deceased person's heart is weighed against the feather of truth.
The idea of Justice being blindfolded initially was initially intended to represent impartiality, the idea that justice should be applied impartially regardless of wealth, power or other influences. In the 16th century she came to be represented as blind.
The sword represents authority and the idea that justice can be swift and final.
Justitia (source Wikipedia)
Justitia
References
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Themis-Greek-goddess
- https://www.theoi.com/Titan/TitanisThemis.html
- New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology, Hamlyn Publishing Group Ltd., New York, 1959
- Ancient Mirrors of Womanhood, Merlin Stone, Beacon Press, Boston, 1984
- Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology
- When God Was A Woman, Merlin Stone, Harvest Edition, 1976
- The Civilization of the Goddess, The World of Old Europe, Marija Gimbutas, HarperCollins Publishers, 1991
- The Language of the Goddess, Marija Gimbutas, HarperRow publishers, San Francisco, 1989
- https://hubpages.com/education/The-Goddess-Themis-In-Greek-Mythology
- https://www.greekmythology.com/Titans/Themis/themis.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katerina_Sakellaropoulou
- https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moïse_Allatini
- https://www.presidency.gr/en/president/
- https://www.fastcompany.com/90454456/katerina-sakellaropoulou-4-things-to-know-about-greeces-first-woman-president
- https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/16/greece-first-female-president-katerina-sakellaropoulou-kyriakos-mitsotakis
- https://www.womenalliance.org/katerina-sakellaropoulou-first-elect-female-president-of-the-hellenic-republic/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mermaid