A champion of inclusivity

24-year-old quadriplegic seeks greater representation of people with disabilities in society

Despite having been athletic since she was seven, Ms Fathima Zohra, who is quadriplegic, sometimes still feels like she does not belong when she works out at the gym.

"At the gym, people tend to stare like they are wondering what I'm working out for. But disabled people need to work out too," says the 24-year-old, who was left paralysed from the neck down after suffering a spinal cord injury in a car accident in 2017.

"We have hobbies just like everyone else. It's the same with working. Disabled people have dreams and aspirations too - we don't just work to keep ourselves busy, which is what many people assume."

Zora working out as her brother Mr Mohamed Saad, 20, helps her at the gym. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora doing upper body exercises at the gym. "Disabled people need to work out too," says Zora, who hopes the presence of people with disabilities in places like gyms will become normalised. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

The desire to promote greater inclusivity and disability representation in society drives Ms Fathima, who also goes by the names Zoe Zora and Zora, to speak up for people with disabilities.

The programme manager at Running Hour, an inclusive running club, posts candidly about her experience as a person with disability on her Instagram account @zoraaax6, which has almost 32,000 followers.

Outside of social media, she has featured in advocacy videos and fund-raisers for people with disabilities, and speaks to peer support groups.

Zora on a panel with (L-R) host Ms Victoria Cheng; fellow panelists Ms Kim Underhill, life coach and president, Daughters of Tomorrow; and Ms Becks Ko, editor of Clozette, during a livestream event about self-love and female empowerment, organised by The Body Shop and women-focused social network Clozette. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora speaking with members of Running Hour, an inclusive running club where people with disabilities train together with able-bodied people, where she works as a full-time programme manager. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora with members of Running Hour at the Singapore Sports Hub. As programme manager at the inclusive running club, she organises sessions that include both able-bodied members and people with disabilities. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
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She is also a part-time model, wishing to increase disabled representation in the media and advertising. "I am loud about my disability and put my disabled body out there to speak up not just for myself but also for my community, because we deserve to be heard," she says.

"For 20 years, I lived without a disability and I know what that feels like. But when I was suddenly disabled, people stopped looking at me like I was still a person or a woman. People defined me only by my wheelchair.

"It's not a good feeling."

Ms Fathima Zohra, who also goes by the names Zoe Zora and Zora, preparing for a photo shoot for inclusive fashion label Will & Well and jewellery brand 3125. "Disabled people wear the same clothes and use many of the same products as able-bodied people. Yet we are rarely represented in the mainstream media and advertising," says the 24-year-old. With her are 3125 founder Caroline Goh (left) and Will & Well founder Elisa Lim. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora featured in a promotional video for The Body Shop at the brand’s outlet in Ion Orchard. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora in her room as she prepares for an upcoming photoshoot. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

She hopes society can be "more kind" and empower people with disabilities instead of pitying them.

For her efforts, Zora received in 2019 the Goh Chok Tong Enable Award, which celebrates exceptional people with disabilities.

She has come a long way since her accident, having been unable to accept her situation initially.

A scar on the back of Zora's neck as a result of surgery after she injured her spinal cord in the 2017 car accident. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora uses her phone as her helper Ms Yu Zana Win, 42, wheels her through a food court at Causeway Point mall. Zora, whose Instagram account @zoraaax6 has almost 32,000 followers, posts candidly about her life as a disabled person. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora exiting an elevator at Causeway Point mall, with the aid of her helper Ms Yu Zana Win, 42. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

"When I couldn't move or do anything on my own, all I could think about was - is this how the rest of my life would be like? And if that was how it was going to be, I didn't want to live. You're active your whole life and now you have to ask people to help you eat, give you your phone, move out of bed."

But an exchange with one of her previous doctors spurred her to turn her life around.

"I asked him when I would be able to walk again, and he looked at me, started laughing, and said I have very great ambitions," she recalls, adding that she cried after leaving the hospital.

Zora undergoing rehabilitation with physiotherapist Lee Jie Yi (right) and therapy assistant Syasya Adlina Fazali at charitable healthcare organisation Sata Commhealth in Woodlands. She has come a long way since a car accident in 2017, having been unable to accept her situation at first. The desire to promote greater inclusivity and disability representation in society drives her to speak up for people with disabilities. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora attending a rehabilitation session. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora takes a breather in between exercises during a rehabilitation session at SATA Commhealth in Woodlands. "I'm still accepting what had happened to me because this is something you don't just accept very easily. It's going to take me a lot of time to completely accept what has happened to me, but I will say I'm getting there." ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

Zora says she initially felt "demotivated" by the doctor's words, but the incident became the catalyst for her to take control of her life.

She decided to start exercising more.

A year and a half after the accident, her fitness regime had reaped dividends, with her regaining limited control over her arms and, crucially, achieving a feeling of greater independence. Today, she is able to use her phone and put on make-up by herself.

"I think I'm still accepting what happened to me, because this isn't something you just accept easily. It's going to take me a lot of time to completely accept it, but I would say I'm getting there."

Zora with her parents Syeda Banu, 49, and Mohamed Ilyas, 52, during a photo shoot for SG Enable, an agency that seeks to enable people with disabilities. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora checking her make-up with her phone’s camera before a photo shoot. It took 1.5 years of rehabilitation and exercise before she regained enough movement in her arms to independently carry out tasks like putting on make-up and using her phone. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Zora having some downtime in her room. Her busy schedule leaves her little time for herself. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH