#DisabilityTooWhite is a hashtag started by disability activist and blogger, Vilissa Thompson. It led to discussions within the disability community regarding the media’s visibility and the lack of representation for disabled people of colour.
The interview touched on many interesting points, some unfortunately weren’t surprising to hear about, like the lack of representation of actors who were both a person of colour as well as disabled. We are yet to produce media that accurately represents the diversity of the audience that engages with it. Furthermore, the discomfort of being show representation of disability but with actors who are able-bodied. The disabled community is a vast and varied with a multitude of stories and experiences to share. However, by using able-bodied actors to convey these stories is a form of erasure and almost removes ownership of the narrative.
[Our] experience is as important to the black experience as every other part of blackness.”
(Blahovec, 2016)
A recent example of something similar happening (again, excludes being a person of colour and disabled) is the backlash Sia received for her musical dram film, Music. The movie follows Zu, newly sober and receives news that she is to become the sole guardian of her half-sister named Music, a young girl on the autism spectrum. Some critics have taken issue with the casting of the lead role, saying Music should have been played by an actor with autism, not Maddie Ziegler.
Sia defended the casting of Ziegler by saying she initially tried working with a young non-verbal girl on the spectrum who found it too stressful. This reminds me of the social model of disability and leads me to question what barriers were removed in order to include her in the process?
Thompson refers to the argument of whether any representation is better than no representation at all, representation that is “not as inclusive or as empowering as it could be.” However this makes visibility seem as something nice to have rather than absolutely necessary to include the disabled community.
…the lack of representation hinders our abilities to feel like we belong, to feel like our lives and our stories are important. We feel isolated and outcast when you don’t see people who look like you, not just racially but disability-wise.”
(Blahovec, 2016)
This also reminds me of “This is not a humanizing poem” by Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan.
“…I will not let this poem force me to write it because it is not the poem I want to write
It is the poem I have been reduced to
Reduced to proving my life is human because it is relatable
valuable because it is recognisable…
Love us when we aren’t athletes, when we don’t bake cakes
when we don’t offer our homes, or free taxi rides after the event,
When we’re wretched, suicidal, naked and contributing nothing
Love us then
Because if you need me to prove my humanity
I’m not the one that’s not human….”
(You can read the whole poem here.)
While the poem is written with the context of being Muslim, it highlights the dominant narrative present within the media of having to be relatable and recognisable to be seen. While all other examples are rejected.
Another aspect the interview brought to my attention is the different models of disability (Social Model vs Medical Model of disability – disabilitynottinghamshire.org.uk, n.d.)
Social model of disability:
The social model of disability says that disability is caused by the way society is organised, rather than by a person’s impairment or difference. It looks at ways of removing barriers that restrict life choices for disabled people.
The medical model of disability:
The medical model of disability says people are disabled by their impairments or differences. Under the medical model, these impairments or differences should be ‘fixed’ or changed by medical and other treatments, even when the impairment or difference does not cause pain or illness.
The medical model looks at what is ‘wrong’ with the person and not what the person needs. It creates low expectations and leads to people losing independence, choice and control in their own lives.
How could you apply the resources to your own teaching practice?
The interview was really enlightening is sharing the importance of representing the range of people, specifically the intersectionality of race and disability within different narratives. It is also important to acknowledge that the disabled community is vast and varied, additionally that anyone can experience a disability at any point in their life (I.e temporary disability like breaking a bone). I would apply this resource to mu own teaching practice by trying to be more aware and conscious of my privilege (being able-bodied) and recognise the tit is easier for me to move is certain spaces compared to the experiences of others.
While being an ally is crucial, I need to be aware of what spaces I am taking up and where I need to step back and allow other to speak – knowing that I only know my experience and therefore need to respectfully listen to others too.
References:
Blahovec, S., 2016. Confronting the Whitewashing Of Disability: Interview with #DisabilityTooWhite Creator Vilissa Thompson. [online] HuffPost. Available at: <https://www.huffpost.com/entry/confronting-the-whitewash_b_10574994?guccounter=1>.
disabilitynottinghamshire.org.uk. n.d. Social Model vs Medical Model of disability – disabilitynottinghamshire.org.uk. [online] Available at: <http://www.disabilitynottinghamshire.org.uk/index.php/about/social-model-vs-medical-model-of-disability/>.
Manzoor-Khan, S., n.d. This is not a humanizing poem by Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan. [ebook] Available at: <https://www.amnesty.org.uk/files/2019-01/This%20is%20not%20a%20humanizing%20poem%20by%20Suhaiymah%20Manzoor-Khan.pdf?VersionId=M_Ete1czrWfvCc1.aWOxS4DS1svfGFw1>.
Good Morning America, 2021. Sia’s new film about teen with autism causes controversy | GMA. Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irGubXIm_oA> .