Disability & the Media

In class, we explored disability portrayed in the media. I feel as though every film or TV show defines a disability as something that a person must 'overcome' or something that hinders them from succeeding at certain things. I often think that the media focuses so much on a person's disability that we forget they are a human being with feelings. I think that our society is molded to force people who are different to adapt in order to survive. We expect everyone to assimilate to what is convenient for those who fit into the category of normalcy, we created, and the media only sustains this idea. It is understandable that those who have a disability: physical, social, or learning, often need a little more assistance than those who do not have a disability; however, this does not mean that they aren't 'normal' and need to be shown as overcoming a struggle. Also, people's lack of education and experience, as well as their immense exposure to the media, make their view and ideas of disabled persons, extremely falsified. For example, when someone who does not know much about cerebral palsy, but has only seen a show with a character (who, generally, does not actually have the disability in real life) with that specific disability, they base their expectations on what they saw. They do not know that there are many levels of severity of cerebral palsy and what causes the disability. We also have a limited supply of educators and people willing to work with those who need assistance, which I feel, might be a cause of our stereotyping system and the lack of educated people about disabilities, all sustained through the media.