"Modern Day 'Freaks'?: The Exploitation of People with Disabilities"

Abstract

I disagree with Miss Bedini's conclusions. First, people with disabilities are not depicted in today's media as sources of amusement for society. Secondly, her conclusion that Therapeutic Recreation professionals should be responsible for changing attitudes. I intend to show that the act of showing disabled people in a humorous light via forms ofmedia does not necessarily lead to negative associations. I'd like to take issue with a few of the things that Miss Bedini talks about in her article, "Modern Day 'Freaks'?: The Exploitation of People with Disabilities." She makes references to the exploitation of the disabled in horror movies. Is it not the goal of horror movies to stretch the imagination and create excitable and grotesque situations, of fantasy and non-reality? I believe people will continue to watch these movies as a form of entertainment because it is a form of non-reality that people can temporarily buy into and be entertained. Miss Bedini also cites supermarket tabloids being a form of exploitative media. While I believe that one of the underlying purposes of tabloids is to exploit and over sensationalize people, they exploit every group or person they report on. I also view tabloids as having very little, if any, journalistic substantiation or integrity. Therefore, I don't purchase them. However, I do recognize that a certain percentage of the general public does regularly purchase these magazines. In spite of that fact, I would like to believe that these people recognize that the information contained in these tabloids. is most generally exaggerated and untrue. I brought up those two examples from her article because it concerns me that she would use them as a common source of exploitative material when in reality, I believe they encompass a small percentage of media exposure and should be given very little credence in relation to the issue ofexploitation of people with disabilities. Humor can be used as a coping mechanism. The use of humor tends to make certain real life situations a little less threatening. I know the first day I learned to laugh at myself, I also learned how to accept my limitations. John Callahan, the cartoonist who was paralyzed as a result of an auto accident, has created a new level of awareness for the disabled community. John Callahan has fostered a heightened awareness of the disabled through his cartoon depictions. His cartoons are very poignant at times and I'm sure they probably offend some people. However, the people still retain the option not to read the cartoons if they so choose. As far as television depiction of the disabled, Miss Bedini makes reference to "Ironside'" as being an "extraordinary detective." I recently saw a portion of the 1967 pilot to the TV series "Ironside," and considering when it was made, I found the show to be quite realistic, not extraordinary, regardless of the reference to him as a crippled. It is not my objective here to discuss the pros and cons of the changing vernacular. Suffice it to say, however, in light of the 'person first' movement, meaning person first, disability second, the proponents of this movement are in effect shooting themselves in the foot by putting so much emphasis on "politically correct terminology" because with the heightening awareness ofthe changing vernaculars, people have become more tentative in initiating conversations with disabled persons because they are unsure about what labels to use in reference to them in hopes of not offending that individual by using the wrong label. In my opinion, this is a great inhibitor in disabled versus able-bodied interaction. The next movie I would like to discuss is "The Other Side ofthe Mountain-Part I". This movie depicts the true story of former skier, Jill Kinmont, who was paralyzed after falling off a mountain during a skiing competition. I was particularly impressed with the realism exhibited in the scenes in the rehabilitation hospital. It was incredibly accurate in its detaiLDuring one ofher rehabilitative sessions, it was mentioned to initiate all arm and hand movement from the shoulder. I was impressed that they would mention that because that is a reality for quadriplegics. In another scene, when she first met the patients, they referred to themselves as "gimps" and laughed about it. This is another example ofthe use ofhumor as a coping mechanism. ' Perhaps the most poignant scene is what I'll refer to as the "potato chip scene." Her fiance came to visit her in the hospital, and she stated that she had a surprise for him. She had a bowl of potato chips on her lap, and of course, he assumes her surprise is that she's going to get up out of the wheelchair and walk across the room to him, but she sticks her hand in the potato chip bowl and picks up one potato chip and says, "This is the hardest thing of all," and to this he responds, "Jill, aren't you ever gonna walk again?" And she says, "No, I'm never gonna walk again." Subsequently a week later, he terminates the relationship. The point I'm trying to make here is that accomplishing simple -feats is just as important as accomplishing the major feats. One thing I'd like to provide as an example, is Ellen Stohl, a woman from Orange County, California, who was paralyzed in an auto accident in 1983. In 1986, she posed for a Playboy pictorial. Her reasoning for doing this, I believe, was an effort to create awareness of disabled people as sexual beings, just like anyone else. Unfortunately in our society today, there is a common misconception that if you are in a wheelchair, or if you are disabled in any way, it inhibits your ability to have sex, and that's ludicrous. This article opened a lot of doors to counteract that belief. This example is a situation where this woman voluntarily put herself in a potentially exploitative situation and I think that the writers and photographers did a very reputable job. She comes across in print exactly how I would imagine she would in person, very articulate, dignified, and classy. In response to Miss Bedini's second claim that therapeutic recreation professionals should initiate the change by increasing public awareness ofpeople with disabilities, I believe that Therapeutic· Recreation professionals can make a significant contribution to this change; however, it's unrealistic and unfair for her to delegate this responsibility to us because what is a profession made up of, regardless of its specialty? A profession is made up of people, and people are on this earth for a very short time, and therefore, our contributions are small in the large scope ofthe world. Moreover, it is unfair to delegate this responsibility to us as a profession, because by its very nature, it's a global problem; everyone should initiate the change in attitudes. Finally, I have tried to demonstrate that the media's portrayal ofindividuals with disabilities is not always negative, and that acknowledging the humor of disabilities can lead to positive associations.