ammy Duckworth (D-IL), U.S. representative-elect for Illinois’ 8th Congressional District, is pictured with other female members of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington. Duckworth, a helicopter pilot in the Iraq war who was shot down and lost both her legs in the attack, became the first Asian-American woman elected to Congress in Illinois, the first disabled woman to be elected to the House of Representatives and the first congress member born in Thailand.. REUTERS/Jason Reed
Sun Jifa moves a brick as he works to build his new house in Yong Ji county, Jilin province, September 25, 2012. Chinese farmer Sun, who lost his forearms in a dynamite fishing accident 32 years ago, could not afford to buy prosthesis. He spent two years guiding his two nephews to build him prosthesis from scrap metal, plastic and rubber. Over the years, Sun and his nephews have built about 300 prosthetic limbs for people in need, charging 3000 RMB ($476) each.. REUTERS/Sheng Li
Wheelchair-bound Palestinian freelance photographer Moamen Qreiqea takes pictures of his daughter outside his home in Gaza City. Qreiqea, 25, lost both his legs in an Israeli air strike in 2008 while taking pictures east of Gaza. The father of two is determined to continue his career despite his disability. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem
Ten-year-old Lucas Amorim, who has phocomelia, affecting the growth of his arms, swims during a training session in Manaus, Amazonas State. Lucas, who was motivated to become a swimmer two years ago by a cousin who is also handicapped and swims competitively, recently won the Amazonas State championship in the S5 category of 50m freestyle for his age group. Apart from his dreams of representing Brazil in a future Paralympics, Lucas wants to be a civil engineer some day.. REUTERS/STRINGER Brazil
A hearing-impaired employee uses sign language to communicate with her co-worker as they work in the kitchen of Atfaluna restaurant in Gaza City. The restaurant run and staffed by deaf people opened for business in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, helped by Palestinians seeking to build a more inclusive society where people with disabilities can realise their full potential.. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem
Jazmin Lopez and Miguel Osorio dance during the First Regional Dance Competition on Wheelchair Sports in Cancun. Jazmin was hit by a car when she was two years old, and Miguel was born with a congenital disability. Both dance for recreation and as a form of expression.. REUTERS/STRINGER Mexico
Fan Ling uses his computer with his foot at a school dorm in Fuzhou, Fujian province. Fan, 22, a sophomore at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, lost his arms and an ear after an electric shock accident at age six. Supported by his family, he started daily feet exercises and gradually became familiar with activities like eating, writing, using the computer and mobile phone, and won prizes during high school for sports.. REUTERS/Sheng Li
A blind Afghan student reads Braille during a lesson at a blind school in Kabul. The vocational blind school, which is the only blind school in Afghanistan, was established in 1977 and has more than 187 students including boys and girls.. REUTERS/Omar Sobhani
Joao Pedro dos Santos Teixeira (L), 11, who is deaf and a music student, plays the trumpet as his non-deaf classmate Raphael Goncalves de Aquino gives a thumbs-up before their music class at the Madre Lucie Bray Municipal School for the Deaf in Sao Paulo.. REUTERS/Nacho Doce
