To One on His Back in the Dark: An Examination of the Process of Disability
Image Description: Person lying on their back in a room full of darkness, and unable to see anything forward. Kashif and I met in Glasgow, Scotland through skateboarding. The day I met Kash we went back to my flat and watched skate videos all night with Paul VX and a couple of my friends from […]
15 Cripped-Up Characters That Deserved Better Representation
Inspired by our recent roast of the newest adaptation of “Come As You Are,” here are 15 Disabled Characters That Should Have Been Played by Disabled Actors. Warning – this article comments on plots containing suicide, abuse, and disabled slurs. #15: Sean Penn as Sam Dawson in I Am Sam To start us off, we […]
YouTube Plans to Discontinue Viewer-Submitted Captions
In the latest news of accessibility removal, YouTube announced that they will be removing community captions on September 28, 2020. A screenshot of YouTube’s announcement to discontinue community contributions. Image description: An announcement from Youtube stating: Community contributions will be discontinued across all channels after September 28, 2020. Community contributions allowed viewers to add closed […]
How Film Became a Refuge for Me in a Neurotypical World
When I was younger, everyone looked at my peculiarity as some sort of gift to the world. I was special; smart; gifted; charming. I loved animals. stuffed animals, and even inanimate objects that looked like animals. I could communicate with people older than me fluently – and enjoyed having elderly friends. I felt they understood […]
“Come As You Are” – But Only If You’re Cripping Up
A quadriplegic, a wheelchair user, and a blind man are walking down the road when a cop pulls up next to them. Finding them alone on a busy highway, the cop calls it in: “Yeah, I’ve got two handicapped guys – “ “Actually,” the quadriplegic corrects, “it’s ‘person with disabilities.’” The cop gives the ragtag […]
‘Wicked’ Attempts to Inspire the Golden Rule in Viewers – But Instead, Only Inspires Ableism
Image illustrated by staff artist, Ellie Darby-Prangnell Envision this scenario in the eyes of an able-bodied individual. The house (which is the seating area, for you non-theatre nerds) is filled with hundreds of ecstatic theatre-goers ready to see the critically acclaimed musical, “Wicked.” Hundreds of people of every age are at the edge of their […]
“You Are So Cute” : The Nicest Insult I Have Ever Gotten
“You are so cute!” A phrase I hear all the time. From family, friends and sometimes people I don’t even know. Okay, to a certain degree- I get it. I am quite small in stature and to some I resemble a small woodland creature. But because I am Disabled, calling me cute can mean a […]
Disability Pride: Five Disabled LGBTQ Activists Who Connected Communities
Pride today largely consists of celebrations, rainbow-clad community members, and corporations capitalizing on the opportunity to seem inclusive. The major strides in advancing LGBTQ rights combined with the nearly nonexistent inclusion of our history in school curriculums can allow us to perceive the past through rose-colored lenses. It is easy to forget the myriad of […]
“My Disability is Not a Lie” and More Statements I’ve Had to Tell at School
Most able-bodied people have an image in their mind of what they think a disabled person is and I’d bet the whole two dollars in my bank account that nine times out of ten that person is sitting in a wheelchair. Using this logic, me, a disabled person who can walk without obvious visual issues, […]
10 Disabled Authors & Book Characters You Can Support Over JKR & Harry Potter
With J. K. Rowling’s recent harmful tweets rejecting trans* identity floating to the surface of the internet, we’ve been on the hunt for new authors to read instead of supporting the author best known for writing the Harry Potter series. In light of this, we’ve put together 10 disabled authors and their books that you can read […]