I chose this Nike ad because I think it does a bad job portraying disability. Rather than being educational for the viewer or something that uplifts the disabled community, they use disability as motivation for "normal" people. This ad is entitled "no excuses" which is targeting the viewer and basically saying that if the man in the wheelchair is working out then you have no excuse not to. Once again disability is being portrayed in media as a bad thing or something that makes people less capable, but that simply isn't true. 

PORTRAITS OF DISABILITY AND DIFFERENCE

Writing Seminar 118, Fall 2021                                              Prof. Kristin Lindgren

Monday/Thursday 2:30-4 PM                                                klindgre@haverford.edu

Hall 106                                                                                                                                                                                

COURSE DESCRIPTION                      

Register for Disability Futures Festival

Hi, everyone! I came across a podcast from Short Wave discussing inaccessibility in the lab and other spaces in STEM fields. Krystal Vasquez, a disabled scientist, speaks about how her relationship with science changed when she became disabled and how we can make science more accessible to everyone. I especially recommend this listen to fellow STEM students! Vasquez talks about we can use universal design in the lab, which I think would be very valuable to both disabled and non-disabled folks conducting research. Throughout this past semester, I noticed that I always felt really tired and somewhat achy after my chemistry lab. We often had to stand for hours at a time by the fume hood.

Some of my thoughts over the course of the semester have led me to discover the right-to-repair movement. Organized from mostly farmers who could not repair their equipment without paying companies like John Deere to repair it for them, putting them in an unfair power dynamic with a machine that is necessary to their liveliehood and that they own. Recent platforming of the issue has allowed for a multiplicity of right-to-repair coalitions in support of the rights to repair medical equipment, electronics, industrial equipment, and manufacturing apparatuses, inducing an impetus for the intersection of disability advocacy into the movement.

I went from having almost no knowledge of disability studies before taking this class, and now I feel as though I cannot unsee the intersections at every turn in my academic and personal life. I don’t exaggerate when I say this; I am familiar with disability but have never had the language to explain, describe, or enunciate what I have experienced. Repeating many others, the current public lexicon is woefully equipped to address the diversity of human experiences, especially when it manifests itself as disability. Taking this class and holding on to several questions important to me throughout the semester has led to my understanding of disability being expanded upon in many ways.

Disability as an issue of the study was only restricted to everyday activities. The study of disability has given light in comprehension of racial and ethnic differences experienced among children with disability. The study has deepened the access to information regarding disability. When talking about accessibility, what came into mind is helping them access wheelchairs and building more structures. True accessibility, however, entails giving meaningful thoughts to disability. Coming up with initiatives to educate different parents on the different types of disabilities to avoid delays in accessing medical concerns. The communication and attitude toward disability have to be enhanced to eliminate racial disparity and promote equality.

The link to the Google Document is here, and it includes the advertisement as well as footnotes for news I reference. LINK: https://docs.google.com/document/d/13REpUzKXYEtbeorUTWry4vmBiiVVR_t77Spy6GqCud0/edit?usp=sharing 

I recommend that y'all read this article from the Los Angeles Times about Eryn Brown, a talent manager at Management 360. She speaks on her experiences in Hollywood as a disabled person and the humiliation of attending physically inaccessible awards ceremonies. She represents Nicole Newnham, the co-writer and co-director of Crip Camp. The article includes some quotes from Newnham and from Jim LeBrecht about disability inclusion in Hollywood.