The
HORRIFIED MOTHER’s Movie Reviews
by Kathy
Sanders
Help! Ever since
I learned about the moral view of disability, I’m
seeing it everywhere. It’s gotten to where I can’t watch
horror movies. Don’t get me wrong. I love to get scared out
of my tree. Unfortunately, horror movies insist on showing people
with disabilities as either frightening or special. Why can’t
they portray someone with a disability as a regular person, like
my daughter for instance?
The Moral View Of Disability:
Saint or Sinner
In case you’re wondering what I’m talking
about, I’ll
back up a little. The moral view of disability is the false idea
that people with disabilities are morally different from others.
People with disabilities are pre-judged to be either especially good
or especially bad because of having a disability. They are not allowed
to be regular people. Instead, people with disabilities are labeled
as either special angels, innocent and worthy of charity or as frightening,
evil and worthy of ridicule. Literature, legend, religion and language
have all played a strong role in spreading this stereotype throughout
society. Now let’s look at just a few examples of how this
harmful viewpoint continues to be driven home again and again by
the popular media.
Review #1: “The
Village” (movie)
In this “blockbuster,” we have
to endure both stereotypes (people with disabilities are devils– people
with disabilities are angels) all in the same plot. A small isolated
village lives in fear of a monster that legend says lives in the
surrounding woods. Early on, a gruesome stabbing is committed by – surprise – a
person with a cognitive disability (devil stereotype). Later on,
this villain turns out to be that mythical monster. And who comes
in to save the day? A hero who just happens to be blind (special
angel stereotype.)
Review #2: “Kingdom
Hospital” (15-part
TV series)
Stephen King is a favorite
author of mine, so I just had to watch his Kingdom Hospital. Initially,
I was pleased to see two young adults with Down Syndrome play small
parts. But my antenna went up as the weeks went on – there was obviously
something we didn’t yet know about these two. Guess what
we find out in the last episode about the only two people with
disabilities in the whole movie? That they’re evil? No, but
good guess. Try again. They’re special angels? Right! They’re
not regular people at all--they have special saintly powers.
To be fair, I should point out that this type of stereotyping is
not at all typical for King. I certainly hope he can avoid such harmful
portrayals of people with disabilities in the future.
Review #3: Practically
any book by Dean Koontz
After reading a couple
of his books, Koontz is now completely off my escape reading list.
Every person with a disability who enters his plots is frightening,
evil, devilish, and a menace to society. Attention any readers
out there who know Dean or live near him: how about inviting him
to a self-advocacy conference. Not only could he meet some regular
people, but perhaps he would also find some new and frightening
villains for his plots – like
SCAPEGOATING, STEREOTYPING, DISCRIMINATION and SEGREGATION.
What Can We Do About It? Here’s
my plan. I’d like to hear from other ex-fans of
horror movies. I’d like to assemble a list of movie and book
reviews. It would be great if folks would send in their examples
of how movies and books portray people with disabilities as evil,
or as special angels, or as regular people. Perhaps as a warm-up
at your next meeting, folks could brainstorm about movies they’ve
recently seen that fit this description. Send me what you come up
with, and I’ll put it on our website (see details below).
This article first appeared
in October 2004 as a weekly email memo of the Self-Advocacy Resource
Network. The responses received since then are as follows:
Judie
Hockel of California writes: Horror shows disgust me, but I have
a daughter who is an actor who has Down Syndrome, so I taped a
couple of episodes of Kingdom Hospital just to see how they used
actors who have Down Syndrome. I found that even in fast-forward
this show was repulsive. It disgusted me that two people with disabilities
were contaminated by appearing in this series; I didn’t even
watch enough to know about the final stereotypical representation
as other-worldly beings! The National Down Syndrome Congress, at
their August convention in Minneapolis, gave the producers of this
series its National Media Award. Too bad.
Lynne from Louisiana writes: I
agree with Kathy on the stereotypes of people with disabilities
in the movies and books. I am an advisor for an Advocacy Group
and sometimes I am so excited that a person with a disability is
even in a book or movie I overlook the stereotyping!
Don’t
forget Stephen King’s book and movie, “Dreamcatcher” where
a man with Down syndrome is a major character but again has “special” powers.
On a good note you may want to check out an excellent science-fiction
book called, “The Speed of Dark” by Elizabeth Moon. I
have met Ms. Moon and the book was inspired by her son who has Autism.
The book is set in the future where people with Autism can take a
drug and the Autism is gone. But do they want to change who they
are and be what society calls “normal”?
Margaret Forbes of Biddeford
Maine writes: I appreciate the diverse comments such as the parent
of the daughter as a regular person verses stereotyping. If I could
make a movie it would be about a success/attractive married couple,
perhaps where the husband of this pair has a developmental disability.
They have executive jobs, with children and a lovely home and are
seen as valuable members of the community…. But these are
the opportunities that are denied, avoided and by some – feared.
Thanks for the chance to dream.
Here are three ways readers
can follow up:
1. Send your movie reviews
to Kathy at act@selfadvocacy.org
2. Request
the free weekly email memo by writing to Advocating Change
Together at act@selfadvocacy.org
3. Read the reviews that
readers are sending in by visiting www.selfadvocacy.org/SARN/index.htm
