Dis/Ability in Popular Culture Class 2: Krazy Kripples: Using South Park and other movies to talk about dis/Ability

Agenda Lame idea – language, metaphors, and labeling South Park and Family Guy – the use of satirical animated series to portray dis/Ability in our society

Lame idea – main points… What did you learn from the article? –The use of disability as a metaphor perpetuates false beliefs about the nature of impairment and disability. People who are blind, for example, do not lack in knowledge; they simply have different ways of obtaining it. Paralysis does not necessarily imply lack of mobility, stagnancy or dependence since there are augmentative instruments, such as wheelchairs and personal aids, that secure independence and mobility –Disabling language is language that accepts the assumption that disabilities are bad, unfortunate or denote lack/deficiency; that they are invisible and insignificant to society as a whole; and that disabilities belong to the Other and are distinct from what we would term as normal. –What this language hides is that there is a power struggle of definitions; that normalcy is culturally determined and ever- changing; and that there are more people who are defined as having disabilities than we acknowledge.

Lame idea… Disability is not a metaphor; it is an identity How can we refer to disability as an identity and to the people who embody this identity and not be offensive? –Disabled people –People with disabilities –Deaf –Handicapped or mentally handicapped –Value-laden terms Emotive terms relating to disabled people, such as ‘afflicted,’ ‘restricted,’ ‘stricken,’ ‘sufferer,’ ‘unfortunate’ and ‘victim,’ tend to reflect a person’s negative reactions to a disabled person” –Challenged –With special needs

APA guidelines: How to talk about PWD Do not focus on disability unless it is crucial to a story. Avoid tear-jerking human interest stories about incurable diseases, congenital impairments, or severe injury. Focus instead on issues that affect the quality of life for those same individuals, such as accessible transportation, housing, affordable health care, employment opportunities, and discrimination. Put people first, not their disability. Say woman with arthritis, a child who has a learning disability, or person with a disability. This puts the focus on the individual, not the particular functional limitation. Labeling the person as the disability (for example, a quad) dehumanizes the individual and equates the condition with the person. (However, note that some disability advocates use the term “disabled person” as part of a disability pride.) Do not portray successful people with disabilities as heroic overachievers or long suffering saints. Even though the public may find these portrayals inspirational, these stereotypes raise false expectations that all people— with and without disabilities— should be such “super humans.”

APA guidelines: How to talk about PWD Saying afflicted with, crippled with, victim of orsuffers from devalues individuals with disabilities by portraying them as helpless objects of pity and charity. Emphasize abilities, not limitations. Forexample, uses leg braces or walks with crutches, is more accurate than confined to a wheelchair or wheelchair bound. For, in reality, wheelchairs and crutches represent independence, not a burden. Bypass condescending euphemisms. Terms such as handicapable, differently abled, special, and challenged reinforce the idea that people cannot deal honestly with their disabilities. Maintain the integrity of each individual. Do not use words or phrases regarded as offensive such as freak, subnormal, vegetable, misshapen, feeble minded, or imbecile.

Czech terms Postižení Handicap (x Francie) Invalidita …jednotný termín/one overarching label??

What offensive labels come to mind? Tell me some words related to disability in English or Czech Dement, kripl, kreten, idiot, debil, slepejs, Jsi hluchej nebo co?, Jsi slepej jak patrona, jsi levej, priblblej, chovas se jak z Jedlickarny, magor, Jsi na Bohnice, Hluchej jako poleno, …

Labels deaf and dumb, deaf-mute, mongoloid, cripple, crippled, retard, retardate, idiot, imbecile, feeble- retarded, crazy, maniac, insane, mentally ill, abnormal children; abnormalities, atypical, feeble-minded….

Stereotypes by Bogdan and Taylor 1. The disabled person as pitiable and pathetic 2. The disabled person as object of violence 3. The disabled person as evil 4.The disabled person ad „atmosphere“ 5. The disabled person as „Super Crip“ 6. The disabled person as laughie, soliciting many to laugh 7. The disabled person as a burden 8.The disabled person as his/her own worst and only enemy 9. The disabled person as nonsexual 10. The disabled person as incapable of fully participating in everyday life

South Park Who are the dis/Abled characters in South Park? Who is Christopher Reeve? What is the purpose of South Park, what does it bring to our society?

Family Guy Another satirical American animated series The main character Peter is portrayed as a simple man who mistreats people and disregards differencies

You will hear… Things like –ADD and Ritalin (RitalOUT) –Timmy and laughing at him? –Club for people born disabled –Joe and doctor: You are paralyzed from the waist down. I know that. Oh mY God, I was standing there for like 10 min… –Special People´s Games –God´s twisted desires will go to hell