Welcome to the November installment of trending news and stories in the disability community. This edition features stories on U.S. government regulations, personal narratives on the disability experience and more.
If you come across a piece of media of any sort that you’d like us to feature, from articles to movies and anything in between, please share with us at CEDHARS@uab.edu.
Life on Wheels Behind Bars | New Mobility
Donavan Bryant is a wheelchair user serving a 12-year prison sentence in New York. He shares personal details on what life is like in prison — from getting mobility equipment, to showering, managing health issues, dealing with other inmates and more. “Being in a situation like prison,” he writes, “you’re either going to have some serious personal growth or you are going to go mad, simple as that.”
In 1866, Samuel Able, then around 10 or 11 years old, had a cleft palate so severe he couldn’t speak, which landed him in what was then called the South Carolina Lunatic Asylum. All that’s left of Able’s story now are doctors’ notes about his years spent confined with adult men at one of the nation’s first state-funded asylums for the mentally ill. Doctors called Able “one of the most mischievous patients in the asylum” and noted that if “he had the power of speech he would hardly be regarded as insane,” according to patient records. He died before the 1900s, though exactly when is unknown. When disability rights group Able South Carolina started working on a project to uncover and tell the stories of people institutionalized at the sprawling campus along Bull Street, Able’s story stuck out to director Kimberly Tissot for his age and just how little is known about him.
‘A disabled South Park character from 24 years ago is getting me harassed today’ | BBC
This article is a column written by a wheelchair user in the United Kingdom who discusses the bullying and harassment he’s experienced as a result of the popular show “South Park.” He says, “I can feel the anger rising. How am I facing this abuse again after 20 years? My name is Alex. But increasingly young people shout ‘Timmy’ at me in the street. This isn’t mistaken identity - it‘s mockery because I use a wheelchair.”
Living with a disability doesn’t mean we are worthless | Sickle Cell Disease News
This first-person column by Mary Shaniqua details her lived experience, both positive and negative, of living with a disability. She says, “Although approximately 1 in 6 people worldwide are living with a significant disability, the narrative that those of us with disabilities deserve less continues to be perpetuated. As a sickle cell disease patient, I know that stigma all too well. It suggests that I am worth less than my nondisabled counterparts, and that my diagnosis is the beginning and the end of my life’s purpose. Though frustrating, and at times infuriating, I’ve learned over the years that other people’s preconceptions about me are their own problem. What’s important is how I see myself.”
Exploring disability through student-written play | CBS News Vermont
This television news station shares a video spotlighting a local student Sadie Chamberlain, who wrote, directed and starred in the original play on the lived experiences of people with disabilities. The play, “Taste of Freedom,” came from a desire to channel emotional frustration in an artistic expression, drawing from her experiences as someone with cerebral palsy and the challenges she and others face in day-to-day life.
Hearing loss is biggest disability among military veterans, expert says | Fox News
As thousands of wounded warriors and military veterans battle disabilities and injuries every day, the most common ailment often gets overlooked. Tinnitus, or ringing in the ear, is the leading disability in the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), according to Dr. Thomas Tedeschi, Chief Audiology Officer for Miracle-Ear. Utah-based Tedeschi, who is also a Vietnam-era Army veteran, shared in this Fox News Digital story how prevalent hearing loss and complications are among the veteran community.
The U.S. Department of Labor announced the availability of a new tool that provides access to more than 700 accommodation ideas for workers with disabilities and their employers. The “Situations and Solutions Finder” offers examples of workplace accommodations shared by users of the Job Accommodation Network, a service of the department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy. The database draws its examples from organizations large and small, across industries, and from the private and public sectors. The tool allows users to filter and save results by disability, limitation and/or occupation.
American Airlines fined $50M for violating disability laws | NBC News
The U.S. Transportation Department recently announced a $50 million fine against American Airlines over allegations it mistreated passengers with disabilities, which the department said in some cases caused injuries. The fine is 25 times larger than any other fine by the department for disability-related violations, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on a conference call with reporters. The airline from 2019 to 2023 “provided unsafe and undignified physical assistance to passengers on a number of occasions that, at times, resulted in injuries.”
