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80 Years On: Honouring the Unsung Disabled Heroes of VE Day
Written by
Sammi Leaver
Published on
May 8, 2025
Today marks 80 years since VE Day and the end of World War II in Europe. A day for street parties and flag waving, yes, but also for remembrance. For stories that rarely make it into school textbooks. For a moment of quiet, grateful reflection.
At Purpl, we want to shine a light on the disabled and neurodivergent people who served, survived, and shaped the world that came after.
Because while the war ended, for many, the battles continued long after.
The Legacy of Disability and War
More than 300,000 British servicemen and women came home from WWII with physical and psychological injuries. Many lost limbs, sight, or hearing. Others lived with shell shock – what we’d now recognise as PTSD. War made disability part of everyday life, and yet, most were left without the support they needed.
But they weren’t forgotten. Communities rallied. New charities formed. Veterans helped each other adapt, rebuild, and live full lives against the odds.
Blind Veterans UK (then St Dunstan’s) supported over 1,500 blinded servicemen during WWII alone. They taught braille, woodworking, and how to navigate a sighted world in new ways.
The Royal British Legion’s Taxi School helped wheelchair users and amputees become licensed black cab drivers, offering both employment and dignity.
Hidden Figures: Neurodivergent Minds Who Helped Win the War
While the language didn’t exist at the time, many of WWII’s greatest minds would now be recognised as neurodivergent.
Take Alan Turing – the mathematical genius who cracked the Nazi Enigma code. He was logical, socially withdrawn, often misunderstood – traits now widely associated with autism. Turing shortened the war by years and saved millions of lives. He died uncelebrated, persecuted for being gay. We remember him now with pride.
Or Louis Braille, whose writing system – though developed long before WWII – was a lifeline to thousands of blind soldiers after the war. His invention helped entire generations regain independence, education, and connection.
Books That Bear Witness
If you want to understand this chapter of history better, here are a few powerful reads:
- “Crippled: Austerity and the Demonisation of Disabled People” by Frances Ryan – A sharp look at the treatment of disabled people post-war.
- “The Broken Years: Australian Soldiers in the Great War” by Bill Gammage – A raw account of returning soldiers living with both visible and invisible wounds.
- “The Disability History Handbook” by Anne Borsay & Pamela Dale – A brilliant overview of disability through key historical periods, including WWII.
Then and Now: Numbers That Matter
Back in 1945, many disabled veterans weren’t even recorded as such. It’s only in recent decades that the Ministry of Defence began tracking data around disability and neurodivergence in the Armed Forces.
Today, over 3,700 serving members of the UK military are recorded as neurodivergent – with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and dyspraxia among the most common. Modern forces are slowly learning what our community has long known: disabled doesn’t mean unable. Different doesn’t mean broken.
Today and Always – We Remember
VE Day is for the flags, the music, the dancing in the streets.
But it’s also for the quiet courage.
The amputees who learned to walk again.
The men who couldn’t speak of what they’d seen.
The women who took over factories, lost husbands, and kept going.
The veterans who came home changed forever – and changed the world anyway.
At Purpl, we’re here because they were.
Their fight paved the way for disability rights, mental health awareness, and the slow march toward inclusion.
So today, we pause.
We remember.
We say thank you.
To all disabled and neurodivergent veterans, past and present:
We see you. We honour you. And we celebrate your legacy.
Sammi is autistic, has ADHD, and lives with POTS. She’s passionate about disability advocacy, accessibility, and creating spaces where people feel seen, heard, and understood. With a sharp sense of humour and a deep love for community, she speaks openly about the realities of being neurodivergent across all of her personal platforms, always aiming to challenge stigma, spark conversations, and remind others they’re not alone.
