Over the past few lessons, students have been introduced to several negative stereotypes and misrepresentations related to the disability community, and the ways in which these portrayals are perpetuated in the media. As this unit comes to a close, students will now be turning to the topic of disability as empowerment.
In this lesson, students will come to understand how the media has been used as a tool for social empowerment for members of the disability community. A video example from the movie “Shameless” will be shown to demonstrate how one group of persons with disabilities used the media as a means to educate the general public. Secondly, this lesson will also discuss the phenomenon of disability-only episodes. In an attempt to diversify the media and increase the inclusion of persons with disabilities on TV, certain shows have been created that specifically focus on disability or disability related issues. Examples of these shows will be drawn upon to encourage a brief discussion: Is this the right way to increase the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the media? Or, by segregating persons with disabilities onto their own shows, are we perpetuating the difference among persons with and without disabilities and working to “other” the disability community? Is it better to include persons with disabilities into mainstream programs? Questions such as these will allow students to meet the below objectives. The final portion of the lesson will be devoted to a guest speaker. Please see the timeline for more details.
Upon completion of this lesson, students will be able to:
(5 min.) As the class is settling, play the Special Olympics video clip (2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games).
(10 min.) Commence the initial discussion by asking students whether they believe disability-specific, or disability-only, programming is an effective way to increase the visibility of persons with disabilities in the media?
In some instances, such "specialized" programming (such as the Special Olympics) may be appropriate and necessary to ensure a level competitive playing field. But beyond this event, are there other events or presentations where such a distinction is wararnted? If a television channel chooses to create an entire episode that includes persons with disabilities, is this better than trying to increase the number of disabled actors onto mainstream programming?
Mention to students that most characters with disabilities in movies and on TV are played by actors who are non-disabled. Many argue that persons with disabilities should be consulted to ensure that they are being accurately represented and with integrity. Furthermore, persons with disabilities should arguably play the roles of persons with disabilities whenever possible.
Mention that one side effect of not consulting persons with disabilities and relying on actors without disabilities to play the role of characters with disabilities is that members of the disability community tend to be portrayed as a homogenous group. That is, rather than demonstrating that persons with disabilities are unique individuals with different traits, talents and intersecting identities, generalizations are often applied that portray them as one single group.
(15 min.) Describe some examples of how members of the disability community have used the media as a form of empowerment: either to educate the general public, or to ensure that their voices are finally heard.
Show the video clip from Shameless (The Art of Disability) at this point in the lesson.
Allow 5 minutes or so for follow-up discussion and questions on everything in the lesson to this point.
(20 min.)Devote the rest of the lesson to the guest speaker. The guest speaker should be an individual with a disability. The guest speaker should be invited to share their own opinions about hwo the media and its portrayls of persons with disabilities affects them, as well as how they may have used the media as a form of empowerment. This guest presentation should empower students to be critical of the messages they are fed in the media, and to question the often taken for granted stereotypes they have adopted through socialization.
(10 min.)Allow time for students to ask any follow-up questions they may have, and to address any last-minute questions regarding the final PowerPoint presentations.
Write a blog entry reflecting on the issues raised in class and by the guest speaker. Students should also assess if and how their own perspectives on disability have been shaped by their exposure to disability in this course, and comment briefly (1-2 sentences) on those thoughts.