The Abled Disabled

Mrs. Pedrick

AP Language and Composition; Period 4

22 September 2015

The Abled Disabled

In Nancy Mairs “Disability” she discussed the issue of the disabled not being seen positively in the media. While there are many examples of actors/actresses and models who flourished while being disabled, Nancy also forgot to mention that the media can be un-just or stereotypical to other minorities as well. People with disabilities   are shown in the media.

The disabled are positively viewed in the media in movies/shows like Forrest Gump, Glee and Iron side. Mairs goes on to say, “- I’m just like every normal person.” In shows like Glee you get to watch Becky Jackson live a, for the most part, normal life. Becky isn’t viewed as “a walking talking embodiment of a chronic incurable degenerative disease.”  In shows like this it proves that you can be a model/ actor with a disability and still be successful and live a wholesome life. Furthermore, the disabled are perceived as normal.

           There are many more actors that prove that a disability doesn’t affect how well you can perform. Like the models and actors/ actresses Robert David Hall (CSI Las Vegas), Nyle DiMarco (America’s Next Top Model), Madeline Stuart and Lauren Potter (Glee). This is proof that times have changed. The media no longer relies on petty stereotypes. In media, they represent the disabled as abled. The problem with stereotyping is that it happens to all minorities.

          The disabled have the same problem with stereotyping as other minorities. In shows like Family Guy, American Dad, Robot Chicken, South Park and the movie Tropic Thunder. They don’t show minorities as the average person. It’s never a “representation I had in mind “or in this case Mair’s had in mind .In most cases it causes an uproar for the media. This gives hope to minorities, especially the handicapped.