[with]tv

New Blog [with]tv address...

2007-10-20T17:45:00.000-04:00

This blog has officially moved!

Please visit us on our new site: Blog [with]tv
and remember to change your blogroll links to www.withtv.typepad.com!

Thank you!

Blog Update: THIS BLOG is MOVING!

2007-09-08T21:50:00.000-04:00

Dear Friends,

A decision has been made to move this blog to a new address. Please visit us at our NEW Blog [with]tv site at http://withtv.typepad.com...

While you're there, please feel free to take a moment to comment and tell us what you think. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

And don't forget to change your links and bookmark settings to reflect this change. We're counting on you to help us grow. Blog [with[tv!

Thank you,

Connie Kuusisto
Blog Master [with]tv

This will be a work in progress so please bare with us as we transfer posts and links. Thank you!

Disabilities at the Multiplex: Resurrecting the Champ

2007-09-07T14:40:00.000-04:00

Disabilities at the Multiplex
With Stephen Snart

Resurrecting the Champ

Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Josh Hartnett, Kathryn Morris, Dakota Goyo and Alan Alda
Written by Michael Bortman and Allison Burnett
Directed by Rod Lurie
Distributor: Yari Film Group Releasing
Release Date: August 24 (select cities)
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 111 minutes

Loosely based on a story reported in a L. A. Times Magazine article in 1997, Resurrecting the Champ tells a tale of a brash, young journalist and a former heavyweight boxer turned brain-damaged homeless man. The former boxer, played with verve by the intrepid Samuel L. Jackson, is first seen rummaging through a dumpster behind a Denver sporting complex. He’s become popular with a group of mid-twenty dimwits who come around and give him a few dollars in return for boxing with “The Champ.” One evening, after an unspectacular bantamweight match, local sportswriter Erik Kernan (Josh Hartnett) discovers The Champ and saves him from the group of drunken amateur pugilists with the type of Good Samaritan ethos that only exists in the movies. After talking with The Champ for a few minutes, he learns that the local homeless man is actually Bob Satterfield, a once-great boxer in the mid-50s.

Erik takes an immediate interest in The Champ and begins visiting him on a daily basis, culling information for the makings of a feature article. The Champ is initially reluctant but after Erik supplies him with a brown-bagged 40, the stories start a-flowing. In spite of his shabby appearance and his short attention span, The Champ’s knowledge of the ring is immaculate. Erik invites him to tag along to a local fight and The Champ is instantly able to predict the winner through keen observation and personal recollection; his insight helping Erik to file an exceptional write-up of the match.

But Erik’s interest in Bob isn’t necessarily benevolent; in fact it’s mostly routed in self-aggrandizing opportunism. See, Erik is trapped in the shadow of his deceased father’s prolific career as a sports announcer. He tried to distinguish himself by taking on over 65 bylines for the Denver Times Sports Page the previous year but his prickly editor (Alan Alda) describes it as: “a lot of typing, not much writing.” So, Erik sees his chance meeting with The Champ as a prime opportunity to garner attention for his own sports writing rather than a way to raise awareness about The Champ’s destituteness.

It’s difficult to discuss The Champ’s mental condition without divulging too much of the plot but suffice to say, his brain has been significantly addled in the ring. Although, since his memory of his boxing days seems firmly intact, the film suggests his years on the street have taken a far worse toll on his mentality.

Following The Caveman’s Valentine in 2001, this is the second film in which Jackson has taken on the lead role of a homeless man. In Resurrecting the Champ, he again takes his job as seriously as the consummate professional that he is. His face caked with dirt and grime seemingly seeping from his pores (a flawless make-up job by Allan A. Apone), Jackson is completely immersed in his character for the film’s entirety, never once winking at the camera or revealing his celebrity persona. Unfortunately, the filmmakers don’t seem quite as respectful of the character as Jackson does, as they occasionally exploit his condition for story’s sake; not unlike the way Erik is using The Champ for his article.

The film bears no real examination of the practicality of The Champ’s survival on the streets. No mention is made of the harsh Denver snowfalls that can range from mid-October to the end of April or for that matter, how many of them he has weathered. Nor is there any insight into the homeless community, save for a brief scene set in a soup kitchen. Which in turn raises the question – one the movie refuses to acknowledge – does The Champ deserve any extra attention than the droves of other homeless people roaming the streets? Granted, the majority of the film is told from Erik’s perspective and his character readily illustrates that he has little interest in such details. But that’s not an excuse, the film still features scenes of The Champ that exist outside of Erik’s realm of knowledge; just they’re used primarily to show him fending off his mid-20 assailants.

While the situation of a mentally fractured homeless man is mildly exploited for the sake of dramatic license, it permits the film to conduct a truly remarkable slight-of-hand: convincing the audience to feel almost as much sympathy for a self-centered journalist as for a wandering poor. As Erik spiels the doom and gloom of his journalism career – highlighting everything from the internet’s takeover to corporate politicking to unreasonable time conditions – it’s all enough to dissuade even the pluckiest of high school newspaper editors from considering a career in journalism.

Much of the effectiveness of the character is due to the screenwriters’ decision – and Hartnett’s willingness – to assuage cloy sympathy by playing up the character’s considerable faults instead of clinging to the few positives that he does exhibit. The brilliance being that Hartnett’s performance is able to convey the character’s naïve disillusion.

In a string of heartbreaking scenes, we see Erik filling his six-year-old son Teddy’s head (a sweetly sincere performance by young Dakota Goyo) with a series of white lies about his job, never stopping to realize the damage he is causing until it’s too late. The screenwriters, Michael Bortman and Allison Burnett, demonstrate a keen ability to write complex lead characters but also a need for them to pay more attention to plotting.

There are a number of plot holes here that certainly couldn’t stand nine rounds and probably wouldn’t hold up much longer than one round (i.e. one viewing). Further, the ending is certainly too cutesy for a film hard-hitting enough to present such a flawed lead character and dexterous enough to evoke sympathy for him. But still, the basic story is an engrossing one and the lead performers have such a beguiling quality that it’s easy to brush off some of the less plausible aspects of the script and simply give in to the impassioned yet understated acting.

Description of photo above: Setting: a park in early fall perhaps. It's cold enough for the three characters to wear light jackets. A young man (Josh Hartnett) is sitting on a piece of playground equipment and a child, a boy, is in his lap leaning up against him. Standing in the grass in front of them, facing them, is the Samuel L. Jackson character. He's in a boxer's stance, knees bent, fists in front of his face, as if demonstrating his boxing moves.

Feel Your Heart Race with the Victory Junction Gang

2007-09-06T10:46:00.000-04:00

"Focusing on Abilities"

Written by: Karen Stallings

The Actor, Paul Newman, opened and founded The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Ashford, Connecticut in 1988, for children with cancer and serious blood disorders. He named The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for the ragtag bandits from his movie, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”. Since 1988, Newman has founded camps in New York, Florida, Ireland, France and California. He wants to give children the chance to “kick back,” relax and have lots of fun!” Newman insists that the camps’ focus would be about fun and it could be free of charge for the campers and their families.

The NASCAR Driver, Kyle Petty and his wife, Pattie, partnered with Paul Newman in October of 2000, to launch their most ambitious project to date – The Victory Junction Gang Camp. This project was founded to honor their son, Adam, (the first fourth generation professional athlete in the United States) who was killed in May of 2000 during practice for a NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Race in Loudon, New Hampshire. A study was done and found that there were over 230,000 chronically ill children within radius of the proposed Victory Junction site. The study also found that there were very few opportunities for children with needs to attend a camp and there wasn’t any facility similar to a Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in the region.

Victory Junction Gang serves children from ages 7-15, with the following diseases and conditions: arthritis, asthma, heart diseases, spina bifina, kidney & liver diseases, sickle cell, etc. Victory Junction primarily serves children from North and South Carolina, Virginia. Due to the close relationship with NASCAR, Victory Junction will accept a limited number of campers on a national basis. Final selection for camp admission is determined by the Victory Junction Medical Advisory Board.

Victory Junction is an independent not for profit organization with a dedicated staff. Each camp in the Hole in the Wall Association has boards of directors and founders. NASCAR named Victory Junction as a proud sponsor and pledged their support through a comprehensive media campaign. In addition, many of the teams, owners and track owners support the camp with individual contributions.

Victory Junction has its camp year round! During the summer, there are eight one week disease specific camp sessions. The reminder of the year there are family retreats, specialized programs for smaller diseases groups, sibling weekends and camper reunions. There is no fee to attend the camp for the children and their families. The camp has volunteers and medical volunteers that work there. Everyone is welcome there to work as a volunteer including people with disabilities.

If you are interested in attending the camp, being a volunteer and making donations, contact the Victory Junction Gang Camp at 4500 Adam’s Way, Randleman, North Carolina 27317. The telephone number is (336) 498-9055. The fax number is (336) 498-9090. The website is www.victoryjunction.org

So, climb on board the Victory Junction Gang Platform and feel your heart race!

Meet Columnist Karen Stallings

2007-09-06T10:17:00.000-04:00

Karen is the Executive Director of the Association of Self Advocates of N.C., Inc. She's an actress & a board member for a inclusive theater company, Raleigh Ensemble Players and she's currently writing her autobiography, "I'm not Disabled, I'm just a little Inconvenience", as well as a play "Soldiers of Empowerment". Karen is on many boards & committees in her community. She's been married for 9 years and she loves to travel.

Karen and her husband host and produce an award winning TV program called "Speak Up, Speak Out, Voices in the Community" on which they interview guests to talk about different disability issues...It has been on the cable access channell for 8 years. In addition, they edit and distribute a newsletter, Disability Express

Karen will be contributing posts in a column she is calling "Focusing on Abilities."

Disabled Peoples Assembly Film Series

2007-09-06T09:44:00.000-04:00

Submitted by Day Al-Mohamed

The 7th annual DPI World Assembly in Korea has a small film festival attached to it. The mission of the Assembly is for people with disabilities from around the world to have the opportunity to meet and discuss the various status’ of people with disabilities in their countries, and to consider various progress plans together, share best practices, adopt resolutions and to basically share information.

Their side event of a Disability Film Screening includes 9 films. Most are from Korea and unfortunately I couldn’t find out much about them; Google translator isn’t quite ready for Korean. But there were two American films.

39 Pounds of Love

This film is about Ami Ankilewitz who was born with spinal muscular atrophy. A doctor told his parents he might live for six years; the film starts at his 34th birthday. The film follows him on his journey to fulfill his dreams: to visit his brother in America, to ride a Harley, and to find that doctor and tell him he was wrong.

http://www.39poundsoflove.com/main.html
39 Pounds of Love Official Website (Not screenreader accessible)

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051208/REVIEWS/51205004/1023
Roger Ebert Movie Review

Bethel - Community and Schizophrenia in Northern Japan

This film is about a small fishing town on the northern island of Hokkaido where the Bethel House organization supportsa small but vibrant group of people with schizophrenia and other psychosocial disabilities. Through various work programs, group homes, and a close relationship with the hospital and town, Bethel’s members slowly reintegrate into Japanese society. The film explores how the members of Bethel struggle with their lives, their problems, and the meaning of community.

http://www.disability.jp/bethel/
Website for Bethel

http://www.photoethnography.com/blog/
Bethel Director’s Personal Blog

What I think is important and what I want to draw attention to, is the growing number of conferences and festivals that have added side presentations, sessions and events on disability film. Yay! Hopefully, eventually we will be seeing more people with disabilities not only in film at these “disability events” but more people with disabilities making movies and these films at all film festivals and events.

Main Event Link: http://www.dpiwa.net/eu/
7th annual DPI World Assembly in Korea

Cross-posted at Day in Washington

Meet Columnist Mark Siegel

2007-09-06T08:46:00.000-04:00

Mark Siegel is an attorney who works as a policy consultant for the State of Minnesota, where he specializes in the areas of disability and employment. Mark lives in Minneapolis and when he's not working, Mark enjoys film, live music, writing, and all things geek. He is a graduate of St. Norbert College and the University of Minnesota Law School.

For the past five years, Mark has been blogging at The 19th Floor. He is also currently guest-blogging for the BBC.

TV Nation

2007-09-06T08:44:00.000-04:00

Written by: Mark Siegel

I love television. For a long time, a statement like that was likely to earn you sneers from the intelligentsia. After all, television was supposed to be a wasteland that that catered to the lowest common denominator. Cheap laughs, shallow characters, simplistic plots: television was supposed to have none of the qualities of great art or literature. Television belonged to the great unwashed masses and it would never transcend its pedestrian limitations. At least, that was the conventional wisdom.

In truth, television has never been quite as mind-numbing as its critics proclaimed. For every dozen wretched sitcoms, there's at least one MASH. For every hackneyed drama, there's at least one The Sopranos. But now, television writers are finally beginning to realize that television is capable of telling layered stories with complex characters. Lost, Battlestar Galactica, The Office, The Wire: these shows rival and sometimes surpass anything that can be seen at the multiplex. There are so many good stories being told on television that I was compelled to add extra storage space to my TiVo.

And that's why I'm so excited about [with]tv. It's an opportunity to tell some great stories--our stories. As people with disabilities, we have perspectives and experiences that don't get much play in the media, except for the occasional human interest story on the local news. When [with]tv becomes a reality, it will give us the means to tell our stories on our terms. But I don't want [with]tv to simply be "the disabled channel". I want to see shows that aren't just about people with disabilities; I want to see shows that feature characters who happen to have disabilities. Sometimes the disability will be a part of the story and sometimes it won't even be mentioned. Because isn't that how it is for most of us with a disability? There are those occasions when our disabilities are front and center and can't be ignored, but much of the time it's background noise.

Over the coming weeks and months, I'll be posting here about various topics related to disability, pop culture, and whatever my current television obsession is. I'll do my best to keep it interesting. I'm really excited to be part of the [with]tv community.

Thank you, David

2007-09-04T18:18:00.000-04:00

For this endorsement of [with]tv...

A piece of fiction, with a link to reality.

2007-09-04T08:10:00.000-04:00

Written by: Thomas Reid

When I lost my sight, many people asked if I was going to eventually get a guide dog. I usually responded, “No, at least not right now.” The geek in me started thinking of my ultimate guide, a robot. I am not talking about one of those little robot dogs kids play with or one of those little vacuum cleaners, I am talking about a full sized, multi featured robot. Let’s call him Belvedere or Belvy for short - at least that is what I would call mine. Think of Robocop without the automatic weapons, at least not in version 1.

Belvy would stand about 6 feet with a muscular frame. He would not take on any characteristics of a human other than two arms legs torso and head. A shiny silver metallic color equipped with some really useful functionality and of course some cool gadgets.

Check out a day in my life with my robot Belvy.

“Good morning Sir, this is your scheduled wake up call. As you requested, I will play the song you decided would best help you to begin your day. As Public Enemy’s “Welcome to the Terrodome” plays, Belvy accompanies me into the bathroom where heÂ Â has prepared my clothes for the day, according to my previously loaded command, loaded via Bluetooth of course

After brushing my teeth and shaving, Belvy cleans up, removing any hair left in the sink. “Would you care for cologne today sir?” Yes please Belvy” Belvy recognizes my voice and only obeys my commands.

While eating my breakfast, made to order, I ask Belvy, “What is on my calendar today?” You have a meeting at10:30, a lunch appointment at 1 and you have to pick up your daughters at 4.” “Great! Start the car. For my music, I would like to hear “Songs in the Key of Life.” Set your GPS to the address listed in the address field for my first appointment.” As Belvy walks out to the garage where my truck is parked, I gather the rest of my things.

Many people wonder how Belvy is able to drive me any where I want to go. Both he and the truck are equipped with matching GPS navigation systems. Belvy’s however, includes walking routes. The truck is equipped with auto sensory detection that automatically senses on coming traffic and alerts when cars are too close. Between the technology in the truck and Belvy, I am safer than driving with a human. Belvy doesn’t get road rage or upset. As we are driving to the appointment, Belvy asks “Would you like me to call ahead sir” “Yes please.” Belvy activates his on board phone and dials the number directly from my contact database. “Good morning this is Mr. Belvedere calling on behalf of Mr. Reid. He will be attending the meeting and according to my calculations should be arriving by 10:20. Thank you.” All the while I am seated comfortably in the back seat enjoying Stevie Wonder’s “As.”

When we arrive at the appointment, Belvy immediately parks the truck. Belvy exits and opens the back door for me. “Would you like to go sighted guide sir?” “Yes please Belvy.” I hold onto his elbow and we proceed to the entrance of the building. His on board navigation kicks in automatically to the walking route. When we enter the building the GPS immediately detects a building internal navigation system, Belvy determines the meeting will be held on the 4th floor in conference room C.

I earlier programmed Belvy to record the entire meeting. I remove the wireless keyboard, securely stowed away in Belvy’s rear compartment located on his torso and jot down some notes.Â Belvy’s hi speed wi-fi connectivity allowed me to quickly check my email and access documents on my home network.

Following the meeting I decide to walk to my lunch date 10 blocks away. As we walk, “Belvy, tell me the points of interest.” Belvy immediately begins listing the various businesses and shops in the area. “As we pass a perfume store I decide to purchase something for my wife.” Belvy immediately detects the RFID tags and generates a list of perfumes. He compares that to a list of my wife’s current collection to determine which she would most like. I sample a few and decide on a purchase. “Sir, you have 12 minutes to get to your next appointment. I pay for the perfume and continue walking. Belvy has adjusted his walking speed to assure we are not late. Several on lookers try to stop us asking about Belvy, but I engage the anti on looker mode. Each time someone calls out to us Belvy simply says through his surround sound speaker system “Sorry, we cannot stop right now, but if you are interested in learning more about us please visit http://www.reidmymind.com/.”

During the lunch with my wife, Belvy sits in a chair at the table with us. I ask Belvy to play some random slow jams from back in the day. Shirley Murdock’s As we lay” begins as I hand my wife the perfume.

After lunch Belvy and I head back to the truck. This time I disengage the anti on looker mode. Stopping several times to talk with various people on the street to explain how Belvy works. I even show off his high speed internet access, his on board high definition television screen, mainly used by my kids when we are on the road to access the thousands of movies stored in the 10 terabyte hard drive.

On the way home my music selection changes a bit and I listen to Boogie Down Productions “Criminal Minded.” We make it back in time to get my daughters from school. As usual they ask if they can show Belvy to one of their friends. I have him demo’ his latest Xbox, games. The girls just smile as their friends admire Belvy.

When we arrive home Belvy begins dinner as directed while I help the girls with their homework. When my wife arrives home we all sit down and enjoy a meal together. “Belvy, why don’t you head over to your recharging center and I’ll do the dishes.” “Thank you Sir, will do.”

That’s the least I can do for my man, uh, robot that is, Belvy!

Think it’s far fetched, check this out.

Cross-posted at Reid My Mind

Protesting Pity

2007-09-03T15:31:00.000-04:00

It's Labor Day which to many people with disabilities has a meaning all it's own, as was mentioned in this post.

Join Kara and friends as they "Protest Pity" and examine each other's reactions to the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon. Kara writes:

"Welcome to the first annual Anti-Telethon Blogswarm (online gathering of bloggers to bring attention to an important issue). By stopping by, you’ve joined our protest against pity."

Cross-posted on Planet of the Blind

Thoughts on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon

2007-09-02T20:01:00.000-04:00

Written by Howard Renensland, CEO & Founder, [with]tv

I wanted to add a few thoughts on the ongoing and most probably never ending discussion – slash – debate on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon. I started [with]tv so people with disabilities and their community could have a true mainstream media voice.

While I personally applaud all those brave individuals who continue to wage a war of protest against the myriad wrongs inflicted upon this community and urge the continuance of these and any and all measures –acts of violence aside –meant to advance the global cause of people with disabilities I do not feel they will accomplish their mission without the existence of [with]tv or something very much like it.

Indeed I feel that [with]tv as an element of “popular culture” will accomplish this mission more quickly. We need a media voice where anyone can see people with disabilities in the same numbers and in the same roles as they can see people without disabilities. Period. We need a media voice that will include “our stories” from “our perspective” amongst the remainder of its 168 hours of weekly programming and in those stories that have “Absolutely nothing” to say about or do with disabilities have casts and crews where 17%+ of the workforce and management are people with disabilities.

Let me again state clearly that I support all forms of advocacy and protest. Yet, we must be aware that there is in the world an overwhelming amount of backlash against people who protest anything, including people with disabilities, that at many times rises to outright anger, hatred, and in some cases what are now being termed “hate crimes” against people with disabilities. In addition to this backlash there is so much confusion, lack of knowledge, inconsistency, misunderstanding, and fear. We still have members of our community who use terms like “wheelchair bound” and are totally comfortable doing so.

It will be the editorial position of [with]tv to give voice to all sides of all questions and we will invite commentary from those with and without disabilities. When we feel strongly about an issue we will say so, but we will respect all sides. I have followed this philosophy personally. My family and I have always advocated for full inclusion while respecting the opinion of others and recognizing that each person and family must choose their own path.

So as to Mr. Lewis and the folk at MDA I would say, “Raise all the money you can to favorably impact on those with MDA, but look to your methods and trust your donors. Some people with a disability might welcome some form of help; some are fine without it. We would all like a voice and a say in how we are represented and viewed by those who know us and those who do not."

Thank you, Ruth Harrigan

2007-09-02T16:50:00.000-04:00

...for this endorsement of [with]tv!

Same Old, same old...

2007-09-02T08:00:00.000-04:00

Written by: Connie Kuusisto

I think I was ten years old when I saw my first Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon. I was definitely too young to know better. For the next couple of years I spent much of Labor Day afternoon watching the spectacle. But I was ironing mind you - what better way to spend hours ironing your father's white dress shirts, slacks and hankies and your family's pillowcases than to watch all those celebrities dance and sing and applaud each other for the wonderful work they were doing. (Yes, we ironed pillowcases back in those days.)

Oh and the kids. Those "poor, sweet" kids. Why they were just as cute in their little leg braces and their wheelchairs as any of the kids I knew. It's a shame they couldn't run and play like I could. (Yeah, but they didn't have to stand there and iron for hours either.)

The money just kept pouring in as the oh, so generous people opened their wallets and corporations tried to best one another. A check for $10,000! Oh, thank you! Here's one for $50,000! Can you believe it? Oh, thank you, thank you! And here's little Timmy: Timmy cracked open his piggy bank and is donating $12.32. Timmy, your parents must be so proud of you...

Drum roll please...our new total is....!

On more than one occasion I plunked coins into the MDA display can by the cash register as I purchased bubble gum and ice cream. That was something to be proud of too wasn't it? I thought so...

You know, I'm not going to totally bash Jerry Lewis and the MDA Telethon. In the title of a post I submitted on Planet of the Blind, I stated that the wrong message overshadows the original good intentions and that's as cynical as I'm choosing to go. Jerry Lewis and thousands of other people have worked tirelessly to raise funds for medical care and research for people with disabilities. They do have good intentions don't they?

Here's the thing though: in the 27 years since I was ten years old, I've evolved. I almost never iron anymore. I've worked side by side with people with disabilities; I married a man who can't see; I've been involved in walkathons as support staff to people with disabilities (and their guide dogs) who raised all the money and then did all the walking. I've learned that no one needs my pity. I've come to understand that emotional appeals used by the telethon industry often lead to corresponding anguish felt by people with disabilities.

Yes, I have evolved. I wish I could say that the Jerry Lewis sponsored MDA Telethon has also, but strong voices insist otherwise. I wouldn't know. I haven't seen it in years. But I'm not the least bit surprised. Why just this morning I heard on the news that Tony Orlando is in NYC to perform for the telethon....I think he said he's been doing it for what, 28 years...?

Meet Columnist Ruth Harrigan

2007-09-01T20:04:00.000-04:00

Ruth Harrigan is an attorney with a B.A. from Rutgers College and a J.D. from Wayne State University. She is a member of the NJ Coalition for Inclusive Ministries and started her blog Wheelie Catholic to raise awareness of the need for inclusion of people with disabilities. Ruth also writes essays and fiction about disability issues at her blog A Different Light. Ruth enjoys skiing and was nationally ranked as a wheelchair tennis player.

When a Man Loves a Quad

2007-09-01T20:02:00.000-04:00

Written by: Ruth Harrigan

One of the negative attitudes toward the disabled I encounter socially is when I'm dating an able bodied man and someone assumes he's doing it out of pity or some misguided reason. (I also hate when I'm dating a disabled man and people say we're "cute together". Oh please.) People with disabilities are not asexual. Nor are we "less than" in terms of a catch, if you must think of it that way. (I hate talking about these things. It reminds me of awkward high school dances.)

Both before and after I acquired my disability, I've dated able bodied and disabled men. I never thought of it that way - putting people in categories. I dated a guy in college who was blind so I learned about radar canes and braille and such. We loved going out to dinner and theaters. When I dated an amputee, I learned about prosthetic legs. They, like the able bodied men I dated, had their own way of doing things in life. I don't see the difference if it happens to be about a piece of assistive equipment or a resourceful way to do something because of a disability. How is that any different from the able bodied man I dated who would only drive into New York city on one route and park in one parking lot? It was his way of doing things. Actually that was different - he was just being stubborn. But you get my point.

It's very difficult to write about this. There are a lot of bad memories-like the times when I've been at a social function with an able bodied man and another woman sidles up next to my wheelchair and asks "How did you catch him?" and I smile politely until she adds "with you in a wheelchair?" Or the people who ask him - or me- intrusive questions like whether I can have sex. Then there are the able bodied boyfriend's friends or family members who talk to me privately and suggest that I break up with him and not be "selfish so I don't ruin his life".

No, it's not easy to talk or write about this kind of thing from the point of view of the person who is being seen as the deficit. Much of it is like a quick hit and run where you don't even want to deal with the insurance company at all and prefer to take a hammer to the fender, bang it back in and pretend the accident never happened. But this behavior needs to be addressed just like other attitudes toward the disabled that continue to lurk around.

These attitudes come from a negative way of seeing the world - and disability. It says that a person with a disability is less than an able bodied person and a deficit as a partner. (When they refer to you as a "special someone", they don't mean it in a good way at all.) You might hold him back or, worse yet, "drag him down with you".

Into what? Where are we going? Where is all this fear coming from and where is it all taking us? Not toward inclusion. Not toward a vision of the world where all people are treated with dignity and respect. It is up to us to work out the boundaries and issues surrounding our relationship - the give and take and the reciprocity. This is the same as it is in all relationships. For those who assume that an able bodied person will become a burdened caregiver, I can only say this shows an exquisite lack of imagination as to the myriad possibilities that can be worked out. It exaggerates the situation in a negative way.

And if I have to be the special someone to say this, I will : jokes, sarcasm, crude and rude remarks, busybody interference and other misbehaviors are not only ableist but disrespectful of my autonomy and the autonomy of the man who loves me - as a quad

Cross-posted at Wheelie Catholic

Stay-Focused with Brandon Lloyd

2007-08-31T11:07:00.000-04:00

Stay-Focused (S-F) is an organization that offers mobility-challenged persons the opportunity to become certified SCUBA divers, and through that experience to learn lasting lessons about life and achievement. It promotes empowerment, discipline, and focus in helping young adults achieve personal goals. Also, Stay-Focused is committed to supporting medical research that explores the beneficial aspects of water sports on persons with mobility issues.

While in the Cayman Islands in May for the 2007 NFL Quarterback Challenge, NFL wide receiver Brandon Lloyd (Washington Redskins) spent time with Ryan Chalmers, Jackie Cimino and others as they all learned to Stay-Focused while scuba diving.

Take a moment to watch this NFL Network Feature YouTube clip and no doubt you too will be caught up in the wave of enthusiasm exhibited by these folks.

Disability Matters. 1st Edition

2007-08-29T11:49:00.000-04:00

Written by: Connie Kuusisto

Just as "It Takes a Village" to raise children, it also takes a village to raise awareness about issues of disability.

"By uniting people with disabilities and those desiring to enjoy our social intercourse, share our cultural perspective, understand our political agenda, and address our broad general and specific consumer needs, we will achieve success."

This statement, borrowed from the powerful Mission Statement of [with]tv is also useful when referring to the community of bloggers discussing issues of disability. [with]tv is on a mission to unite people with disabilities....and everyone else. This blog has been created to support that mission and this blog, like every other blog, needs a village.

Having said that, we would like to introduce the following blogs to our blogroll titled "Disability Matters". Please visit, comment, link and enjoy one another as we celebrate life, with or with out a disability, and each other. Let us welcome these blogs, and their "bloggers", to our [with]tv Village.

The Day Al-Mohamed Blog: Day lives in Washington DC with her partner and two very spoiled yellow labradors. By day (no pun intended) she is a mild-mannered Legislative and Federal Affairs Officer but by night she is another frantic-typing, tea-swilling, candle-burning writer. For a more formal bio, please visit Day at her other blog, Day in Washington: Home of the Disability Policy Podcast.

David at Growing up with a Disability says "I am 21 years old and am taking a year away from college to pursue this project. I like sports, music, travel, and conversation. And, I have cerebral palsy. I believe society often underestimates the complexity of living with a disability - the joys, the challenges, the ordinary, and the extraordinary."

Planet of the Blind is "a space where those of us who live on the Planet of the Blind, or any other planet, can share our experiences and network together."

The Rolling Rains Report is a most informative blog "Precipitating Dialogue on Travel, Disability, and Universal Design" - and then some - by Dr. Scott Rains.

Rob Roy at The Journey believes that "Through sharing stories, we can learn accurate information about specific disabilities and challenge ourselves to look beyond people’s limitations and embrace diversity. Welcome to the journey where we explore truth and watch it evolve creating a better world for all -- one that is inclusive of all."

Ruth is a Wheelie Catholic and writes "a blog about issues concerning people with disabilities providing information, raising concerns, sharing experiences and encouraging prayerful efforts toward social justice and inclusion in the Catholic church community and the world at large."

The Six Knows of Preparing to Travel

2007-08-29T09:30:00.000-04:00

By Scott Rains

"Vacation" is a magic word. Use it in a conversation and people are likely to momentarily spirit off to their private bit of paradise; disappear to somewhere that exists between fantasy and the world-as-we-know-it. But even Harry Potter puts in long hours of preparation to work his magic. So, what's the magic formula for conjuring up a charmed vacation?

First, open up your own personal travel style for inspection. Add a pinch of experience from each of the Six Knows below and you will spice your formula with the wisdom of other travelers with disabilities. Stir it up with a friend or travel agent. Then get out there and see the world!

Know Yourself

Socrates said, "The unexamined life is not worth living." Take it from me, it's not worth carting along on the road with you either.

First off, ask yourself: What would make this vacation a success for you? Try to answer that question even before you decide on a destination, a reservation, or a travel companion. Pare down to the non-negotiables. Are you looking for quiet rejuvenation -- or exhilaration? Do you have strict budget limits -- or room to splurge? Does success mean having sun, snow, a tropical rainstorm -- or are you content with whatever comes along? Do you have "must includes" for your trip such as a food, an event -- or a language?

Secondly, review your physical health. Do it with your physician if necessary. How is your physical strength? Your stamina? Your immune system? Are you in physical pain that would influence your travel plans? Are your medications working correctly and do you have enough to bring on the trip?

What about your mental health? How is your emotional resilience? What's the recent pattern of your moods? Are your dreams or fantasy life telling you something about how you might react to travel right now?

First published at Suite101.com

Disabilities on DVD: "The Lookout"

2007-08-28T09:00:00.000-04:00

Disabilities on DVD
With Stephen Snart

The Lookout
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jeff Daniels, Matthew Goode, Isla Fisher, Sergio Di Zio and Bruce McGill
Written and Directed by Scott Frank
Distributor: Miramax Home Entertainment
DVD Release Date: August 14
Running Time: 99 Minutes

The Lookout is one of the year’s most exciting films; a rousing, supremely entertaining crime thriller about a bank heist. But what the marketing doesn’t divulge is that it’s much more than just a genre picture. In fact, it’s an intense character study about a young man coming to terms with a self-induced disability.

The lead character is Chris Pratt (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a one-time high school hockey superstar whose career came to a halt when a post-prom joyride ended in tragedy. He awakes from a coma to find out his moment of behind the wheel recklessness led to the demise of two of his closest friends, a permanent injury for his ex-girlfriend and saddled him with a moderate traumatic brain injury.

Four years later, Chris spends his nights as a janitor at a rural bank outside of Kansas City and his days taking classes at the independent life skills center. His disabilities are predominantly routed in his cognition and mental health. He’ll cry without knowing why, inadvertently blurt out profanity and call a juicy red fruit a lemon instead of a tomato, even though, as he puts it, he knows it’s wrong. He’s also diagnosed with a sequencing problem but his blind roommate Lewis (Jeff Daniels) assures him that he can sequence fine; he just needs to start from the end and work backwards. Like Chris, Lewis’ disability is permanent and a product of his own rashness (a methamphetamine lab explosion in his 20s) and their living situation is mutually beneficial.

Aside from Lewis, Chris finds opposition from almost everyone in his life. His haughty, affluent family doesn’t know what to do other than infantilize him. That is except for when his pompous father (Bruce McGill) takes pride in defeating Chris in a game of chess. “Would you rather I let you win?” he asks when Chris declines a rematch. Even the well-intentioned Deputy Ted (Sergio Di Zio) inadvertently crushes Chris after griping about his own newborn baby woes by callously adding: “You’re lucky you won’t have to deal with this stuff.”

Others try to capitalize on his disability. Whether it’s day-to-day stuff like the bartender who quietly collects a $17 tip due to his diminished mathematical skills or it’s more egregious like what local hoodlum named Gary Spargo (Matthew Goode) has in mind. Gary initially disarms Chris by watching out for him in the face of other opportunists and by introducing him to a beautiful pole dancer named Luvlee (Isla Fisher). After disillusioning him with false friendship and sexual relations, Gary recruits him to play the part of the lookout during his plan to rob the bank at which Chris mops the floors every night.

For as much as there are perfectly executed moments of heist-related suspense (and The Lookout contains a number of taut nail-biter’s), the emotion is always reliant upon the viewer’s sympathy for Chris. In the wrong hands, the character could have easily inspired apathy or maybe even detest considering the horrific car crash that opens the film. When Chris says that he didn’t do any prison time for his accident, another character grimly replies, “You’re doing your time now.” But the filmmakers aren’t interested in damning him for mistaking his youth for immortality. Instead, they present him as a tortured soul in search of self-retribution. One of the film’s saddest scenes shows Chris going to a bar, ordering a non-alcoholic beer and trying to scribble down pick-up lines he overhears from a more confident patron.

Much of the credit has to go to the performance by the tremendous young actor Gordon-Levitt as Chris. In one segment of the DVD’s special features entitled “Behind the Mind of Chris Pratt,” the actor states that this was the hardest role of his career. Normally, such a pact statement like from a 26-year-old actor would elicit an eye-role of pomposity but considering his previous work as a juvenile delinquent in Manic or a child sexual abuse victim in Mysterious Skin, it really is quite a testament to his regard for his role in The Lookout. Also on the DVD supplement, Gordon-Levitt expresses his concern not to make the performance morose and goes into detail about the research he did for the role, which involved spending time with real-life people suffering from similar conditions as his fictional counterpart.

It is worth continuing to reiterate how much of the film’s strength resides in its characters because it’s so rare to find characters with this depth of complexity in contemporary American genre cinema. Even the most minor of characters in the film is bestowed with careful detail. Consider a party scene in which the camera takes the time to focus on a young mother calling her child with the news that “Mama will be back in three weeks” or a dementia-addled grandfather who creeps into the room on a walker for a moment before being ushered out of sight. The one weak link in the film is the character of Luvlee, an utter cipher of whom neither the writing nor the performance give enough evidence to know whether she is a calculating femme fatale or a bubbly, air-headed victim of persuasion.

A much better example of a supporting character is Lewis. If The Lookout had been produced by a big studio (although the $16 million allocated by Miramax is still sizable), the character of Lewis would have almost certainly been excised from the script under the economy of character ethos as he serves no direct benefit to the ‘plot.’ Fortunately, the producers understood that the film is a character piece and that the beautiful friendship between Lewis and Chris is one of the film’s most winning qualities.

Curious? More Links:

Monday Movie Review: The Lookout

DVD Review: The Lookout

Cable Network GSN Launches the Without Prejudice Project

2007-08-27T22:29:00.000-04:00

Article submitted by Day Al-Mohamed

This summer, GSN (The Network for Games) is airing Without Prejudice?, a groundbreaking new television series that features frank discussions about race, gender, religion, disabilities and a variety of hot button issues. To complement the premiere of the show, GSN launched the Without Prejudice Project, an initiative designed to help Americans address and combat prejudice in all its forms. The network is working with a coalition of social justice organizations to encourage a national conversation about prejudice in America. You can find this conversation, at www.gsn.com/withoutprejudice and catch Without Prejudice? every Tuesday at 9PM/8C.

Other Links:
Without Prejudice.....The Review
Are You "Without Prejudice"? (Video)

This Week in Sports

2007-08-27T08:40:00.000-04:00

Written By: Jamie Lazaroff
Edited By: Bob Lazzari

Although this is a national blog, I was born and bred in New England and still reside here. It is truly a great times to be a sports fan in New England. The Red Sox are in first place and just pulled off a great deal. In basketball, it appears the Celtics are back on the map.

*First up, the Red Sox just traded for Eric Gagne of the Texas Rangers. What a pick up! I know that Gagne has been injured the last few years and has struggled lately, but he'll still be effective; having both Jonathan Papelbon and Gagne, the Sox' bullpen is all set. If the bats can get hot and the starting pitching remains fairly strong, the Red Sox will be fine and win the American League East.

*I have some questions about the Celtics' recent deals involving Kevin Gannett and Ray Allen. To get KG, the C’s had to give up many of their young players. Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green (the slam dunk champion this past year) and Sebastian Telfair are all under 22 years old. In order to obtain Ray Allen on draft day, they had to give up Delonte West--who is also under 22 and led the team in assists last year. I would have chosen to deal for KG OR Allen--not both-- because they still had All-Star Paul Pierce in their lineup. My opinion is that two star players are better than three because:

A. They may have to divide playing time.
B. They would have more young players on their roster.
C. It just makes more mathematical sense--salary-wise.

The Celtics still have Kendrick Perkins and drafted Glen Davis (Big Baby) from LSU. The immediate future is surely looking bright, but will all the pieces fit together? That will be the question.

*I’m not a fan of fantasy football because I like rooting for an existing professional team (New England Patriots) and not individual players. It may enhance the football viewing on Sundays for most people, but it’s just not for me. Speaking of the Patriots, I can see another Super Bowl championship this year. Randy Moss will fit in nicely with his new team.

*This week's spotlight comes from the Paralympics website. Paralympian Lee Pearson from Great Britain has added three more titles to his impressive career at the 2007 International Equestrian Federation (FEI) World Para Dressage Championships in Hartpury, Great Britain. Being born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenital, Lee Pearson made his competitive debut in 1998 and from there became one of the most successful riders in his class. At his first Paralympic Games in Sydney in 2000, he won three gold medals and did so as well in Athens in 2004. Even though his horse Blue Circle Boy had retired before the 2007 FEI World Para Dressage Championships, he once again won every competition he competed in. Lee has been nominated several times for the Laures World Sport Award and also for the Eurosport Sport Star Award, which he won in 2004. In May 2007, he became the first chairman of the FEI Athletes Committee. Career Highlights:

· Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games – Three gold medals
· Athens 2004 Paralympic Games – Three gold medals
· 2007 FEI World Para Dressage Championships – Three gold medals

That’s my take; I would like to hear yours.

Jamie Lazaroff

Dream Mom has a Dear Son

2007-08-27T08:00:00.000-04:00

On her blog: Dream Mom, this "single parent of a special needs child" submitted a post to the most recent Disability Blog Carnival found at David's site. She titled it "Top Ten Things Dear Son Has Taught Me". Here is the first:

10. He taught me that children with disabilities are not children to be afraid of, but rather, children to celebrate. They are the children who will cherish all the love, kindness and happiness that you bestow upon them, not once in a while, but every time they look you in the eye.

After having read the other nine things Dear Son taught Dream Mom, Ruth commented: "Wonderful list - very powerful and moving."

Ruth is right about that.

Managing Perception is Key to Success

2007-08-27T06:00:00.000-04:00

Buzzing in the Workplace

By: Rob Roy

While some might still consider me ‘fresh’ in the workplace, the past couple years have provided me with wisdom that has left horizontal impressions on my forehead! The growth I’ve experienced was most evident to me when I met a group of new hires who recently began working at my firm. I recognized the gleam of enthusiasm and anticipation in their eyes and the innocence of their smiles – a familiar look I know I had two years ago.

If I could share my nugget of wisdom with the new hires, I would tell them the following: managing perception is key to success.

What do I mean? How people perceive you in the office and how confident you feel about your contribution to your team ultimately impact the substance of work you receive as well as the availability of opportunities that can advance your career. With substantial work and solid opportunities, you are well equipped to demonstrate potential that (I hope) will lead to a promotion.

So, how to begin managing perception? (Obviously, it is easier said then done.) The following five tips have worked well for me and my co-workers:

Praise in public and criticize constructively in private. When a peer does well leading a team meeting or presentation, congratulate them on doing a good job. If an organizational process has improved, commend the person in charge of leading the change. When feeling disgruntled because of a policy change or the printer doesn’t print correctly, leave the criticism for you to discuss with your manager. Avoid raising any criticism in front of a large group.

Act engaged at all times. Ask good questions - even if you think you know the answer – and follow-up with additional insight or observation on what you learned. Active participation shows you are not a silent observer and that you are engaged in the content of your job. Be wary though – peers often recognize and dislike excessive participation. Don’t go overboard!

Always know the next step. Understand the different responsibilities between your current and any future position you desire. Seek out opportunities to demonstrate capability for tasks that are part of the next job. Perform these responsibilities well and utilize peers for guidance and direction when uncertain about how to approach the tasks.

Work on ad hoc projects or participate on a task force. Extra points are usually earned when you participate on a task force or ad hoc project outside the scope of your day to day responsibilities. However, it is important to be proactive about finding a project or task force as it typically doesn’t drop in your lap. You could participate on anything as big as a team devoted to positively impacting how your company is structured to as little as creating a committee that plans out-of-office social events.

Record, record, and … yes, record. Keep a documented log of your project work and a description of your contribution to each project. Focus on contributions that positively impact the business. Share the log when moving to a new team or transitioning to a new manager to demonstrate your experience and manage your new leader’s expectations. Also, reference this list – strategically, of course – when approaching your performance review to ensure the scope of your accomplishments are captured in your review.

Cheers to all you new hires that are beginning your careers and best of luck! May you strategically manage perception and have a year filled with success!

Cross-posted on The Journey

Join Us at [with]tv

2007-08-26T21:26:00.000-04:00

If you would like to find out how you can help move [with]tv forward, please e-mail Howard Renensland, CEO, at hrenensland@with-tv.com

If you would like to contribute articles for our blog, please e-mail Connie, Blog Master, at articles@with-tv.com

Please note that by sending in a submission you pledge to adhere to the following requirements:

1. You must be the sole author of your submission.
2. By submitting content to [with]tv, Inc., you give [with]tv, Inc. the permission to publish your submission in this blog, on our web site at http://www.with-tv.com/, on any future form of media that falls under the [with]tv, Inc. umbrella whether it be other web sites operated by [with]tv, Inc., television, radio, or any other medium of [with]tv's choosing, with no expectation of present or future remuneration by [with]tv, Inc.
3. By submitting content to [with]tv, Inc., you acknowledge that all content submitted is not subject to any exclusivity arrangements with a third party.

David Hosts Disability Blog Carnival # 21

2007-08-24T15:56:00.000-04:00

David is Growing up with a Disability and believes "society often underestimates the complexity of living with a disability - the joys, the challenges, the ordinary, and the extraordinary."

As host of the Disability Blog Carnival this month, he warns David Letterman to "move over" because "here come the bloggers!"

"The topic for this carnival is Top Ten Lists, and people put together a variety of lists on a variety of topics."

David, we've never seen you in a double-breasted suit like Letterman wears, but we bet you're equally as dashing! Audience, don't you agree?

As per David:

"The next carnival will be hosted by Reimer Reason on September 13, with entries due by September 10. Posts can be submitted via the carnival site. Update - Penny says the theme is "Resilience".

Cross-posted on the Planet of the Blind

Meet Columnist Bob Lazzari

2007-08-24T15:55:00.000-04:00

Bob Lazzari is an award-winning sports columnist for Connecticut's Valley Times and NY Sports Day; he also contributes a daily sportscast to SportingNewsCT.com and is a member of the Connecticut Sports Writers' Alliance. He will be editing Jamie Lazaroff's column on a regular basis while occasionally adding some material of his own.

How do you measure happiness?

2007-08-22T07:41:00.000-04:00

Written by Scott Rains, Senior Advisor, [with]tv and editor of the Rolling Rains Report

It may sound absurd to put “measurement” and “happiness” together like that. What’s next? People saying, “I’ll take 2 pounds of happiness please?”

Actually, the travel industry is beginning to ask itself for a “happiness metric.” In an industry that successfully markets dreams and sells experience, quantifying the ineffable does not seem to be a goal beyond reach. Innovation is beginning to characterize an industry as it takes up the causes of ecological sustainability, equitable treatment of its employees, and inclusion of seniors and people with disabilities.

Thailand, drawing on concepts from Bhutan, seems to be taking the lead in exploring happiness as a new benchmark. The core concept is a complement to the economic measurement of Gross National Product. It is Gross National Happiness.

A conference on the topic was held in Bangkok, Thailand July 18 & 19, 2007. According to the organizers of this conference, “Happiness and Public Policy”:

As happiness is the ultimate goal of human beings, development paradigm needs a rethinking. Development goal is not only an economic prosperity – which is only a material mean for happiness, but development should also be conceptualized as an instrumental goal of happiness. Higher levels of human happiness involve other factors such as physical, mental, social and spiritual happiness. Public policy, therefore, plays a key role to improve conditions of happiness at all levels of people in the society.

Looking ahead to the 3rd International Conference on Gross National Happiness scheduled for November 22 to 28, 2007 also in Bangok

The launching of the concept of Gross National Happiness in the global arena has induced a growing movement calling for transformation of conventional development policies and practices at all levels. By placing ‘happiness' at the center of development the current obsession by economic growth, measured by Gross National (or Domestic) Product, has been fundamentally challenged… Efforts are made to better understand and to monitor happiness. Well-being indexes serve public policy development, in order to counter wealth-dominated, unsustainable, globalization.

Reporting on these developments in Travel Impact Newswire, Imtiaz Muqbil, writes:

[This is] possibly the first time this subject [Happiness and Public Policy] has been covered in the travel trade media, it will quickly gain traction. Branding gurus will latch on to it, conferences will feature it and industry experts will seek to outdo each other with the perfect solutions and answers. If that happens, and the world becomes even a slightly better and more happy place, the purpose of this dispatch will have been well-served.

The full set of conference papers can be found at: http://www.ppdoconference.org

Let’s hope that the gurus of happiness study the sutras of Universal Design. Let the good times roll!

Meet Columnist Rob Roy

2007-08-21T08:12:00.000-04:00

Rob Roy is an Analyst for the Nielsen Company, a leading provider of marketing information and business media services, where he advises clients on new product innovation and execution strategies. A native of Chicago, Rob received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.

When not working, Rob likes to ride his bike, hang out at the beach with his dog, and spend time wondering what is Buzzing in the Workplace.

You can also visit Rob on his new blog: The Journey, Evolving and Enduring - Empowering People Through Disability Learning

Meet Columnist Jamie Lazaroff

2007-08-21T08:09:00.000-04:00

Jamie Lazaroff is an aspiring sportscaster who has reported for television extensively for Special Olympics International and CT, covering events that include the Special Olympic World Games, for which he received a 1995 New England EMMY nomination. He has also co-hosted several cable television shows in Connecticut. In addition, Jamie was actively involved in the Special Olympics Global Messenger Program through which he trained other athletes for the Special Olympics and speaking engagements.

Meet Columnist Michael A. Harris

2007-08-21T08:06:00.000-04:00

Michael A. Harris is a prominent disability advocate and the founder and executive director of the Disabled Riders Coalition, the tri-state area's only disability advocacy organization focused solely on transportation issues. His work as an advocate has won him international recognition and he makes frequent appearances on local, national and international media. Michael also works as a freelance writer and photographer and has had his work published in amNewYork, Courier Life, Able News and the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. He is currently employed part-time in the office of New York State Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner. Michael is a recent graduate of Manhattanville College, where he majored in political science and journalism.

Meet Columnist Anna Bergholtz

2007-08-21T07:43:00.000-04:00

Anna Bergholtz is a Swedish freelance journalist, motivational speaker and the first blind film critic of Sweden. Web Page (soon to be in English): http://www.annasvision.se/

The Day I Became Different

2007-08-20T13:49:00.001-04:00

Written by Laura of Bums & Bellybuttons: The View From Here
(Cross-posted with permission)

I don't have an actual memory of the day I realized I was different. It's more of a created memory, bred from hearing the story more than once and analyzing the event objectively. Up until this particular point, I lived in blissful ignorance. I can't say with any certainty that I even knew, at the time, what "different" meant.

Today, it's multi-zillion dollar affairs thrown by guilt-laden parents hoping to earn the affection of their entitled children. In the '90s, it was Chuck E. Cheese. But, in the '80s, the happenin' birthday party spot for the under-10 set was McDonald's. I know; I was there. I must have attended a large handful of these parties, always fearful that the clown mascot would suddenly appear. (Hey, clowns are scary. Deal with it.)

At one of these parties, when I was about 5, I learned that I was different. When I entered the restaurant with my parents, a young boy (about my age, I guess) stood up and repeatedly announced to the entire population, "She's in a wheelchair!" Needless to say, staring commenced. Pairs and pairs of eyes swiveling toward me, a little girl, cute in her party dress, suddenly not the girl she was five seconds before she came through the door. Even thinking about it 20 years later makes me want to claw my skin.

It had never occurred to me to realize that sitting down made me fundamentally different than just about everyone I encountered. No one else seemed to notice, so why should I? My parents didn't make a big deal out of it, unless it was for my own physical safety. It just was as it was.

I believe that boy, unknown to him the great power he wielded, changed my life. Sure, my perception would have altered sooner or later, but he happened to be the lucky one to draw that card from the deck of my life. His inexplicable and unexpected assertion that being a wheelchair user was somehow "wrong" robbed me of the innocent nature most children possess. The belief that everyone is just a good/bad/indifferent as everyone else.

I have done my best to re-instill that belief in my mind. For the most part, I do believe that, unless they prove otherwise, all people are just as worthy as all other people. And yet, there is this twinge from time to time at the back of my mind that says, "Except for you." Now, the part of my brain that doesn't listen to what other people say or pay attention to what other people do blows this off with a flip of the wrist. The rest of my brain dredges up 26 years worth of stares, name calling, rude questions and all-around "make you feel different" stuff.

I wonder from time to time if that boy, whomever he was, carries around any memory whatsoever of me. I doubt it, seeing as how I can't even recall the Day That Changed My Life. I wonder what he would think if he did remember. Would he feel guilty for stomping all over my rose-colored glasses? Would he blow it off with a flip of his wrist, rationalizing that it would have happened sooner or later? Would he care at all? Or, as I fear, is he one of those people who don't believe I'm as good as any girl on two legs?

Calling All Bloggers...and everyone else

2007-08-18T22:05:00.001-04:00

Dear Friends,

As a volunteer working with the folks at [with]tv I have recently been honored with the title “blog master”. In that capacity I am writing to disability bloggers I know and respect to ask for support. I (we) are hoping you would be willing to either write a post, submit a post you’ve already written, or even join us as a “columnist” and submit posts whenever the mood strikes.

Posts can be submitted to my attention at articles@with-tv.com. This blog is a work in progress and I (we) sure would appreciate your support. While you’re here, please sign the Guest Book and let us know what you think. We’re working hard to spread the word. Anything you can do to help would surely give us a boost!

Thank you,

Connie Kuusisto
Blog Master, [with]tv

P.S. A person need not be a blogger to submit articles to [with]tv or to sign the Guest Book. Anyone interested in the topic of disability is encouraged to participate.

Cross-posted on the Planet of the Blind

Support [with]tv

2007-08-16T07:14:00.000-04:00

[with]tv would like your show of support to demonstrate to our potential corporate partners, advertisers and investors that there is not only a need for our service, but strong American and International support for our programming. Please read the support letter, click on "Guest Book" below, and fill out the form.

________________________________________________________________________

Howard Renensland
CEO and Founder
[with]tv

Dear Mr. Renensland:

I would like to express my wholehearted support for [with]tv’s mission of providing accessible television and Internet programming that, while appealing to broader markets, is focused on providing high quality, news and entertainment programming that meets the needs and interests of persons with disabilities, and those committed to them personally, professionally, and commercially.

People with disabilities have a global need as individuals and as a community for access to information, employment, artistic expression, and control of their image. The disability community, which in the United States alone is 54 million strong with a discretionary income of $220 billion, is a grossly underutilized source of both talent and market share for companies, making [with]tv a win-win solution for individuals, society, and business.

I intend to support your content, partners, and advertisers in every way possible. I congratulate you on the work that you and your colleagues at [with]tv have done thus far and wish you the best of luck going forward. Please keep me informed of your progress and let me know if I may be of any further assistance.

To show your support of [with]tv, please sign our Guest Book.

Meet Columnist Connie Kuusisto

2007-08-14T23:01:00.000-04:00

Connie Kuusisto has worked for over twenty years in the world of guide dogs and their blind partners, first as a Trainer/Instructor, then as Manager of Admissions at Guiding Eyes for the Blind, one of the premier guide dog training programs in the United States. She co-founded, with her husband Stephen Kuusisto, Kaleidoscope Connections, a resource for bringing people together to help promote disability awareness. Together they've worked with a wide range of businesses, including Sandals and Beaches resorts in Jamaica, where they've given workshops on customer service for people with disabilities.

You can visit Connie and Steve on their blog: Planet of the Blind

He's Blind. I Married Him Anyway.

2007-08-14T22:44:00.000-04:00

Written by: Connie Kuusisto

Note to reader: I had written this post back in January and was thinking of submitting it for use on this blog. Then I read Laurie Rubin's terrific post, Two Invitations, and realized now is as good a time as any to follow up with mine...

The world is full of perfectly lovely, well-intentioned, but in some ways, clueless people. Admit it. There are people in your life who, as much as you care for them and they you, could use a little "disability awareness" training. There are also people who are ignorant. And there are those who are just plain mean. I won't make the claim that I've "seen it all", but as a former guide dog instructor / manager of admissions at a highly regarded guide dog school, I've seen and heard plenty. As have you I'm sure.

A few years ago I was asked, as a member of a local women's group, to be on the nominating committee for the next year's "officers". I was the youngest person in the room. I was, I'm pretty sure, one of the two youngest women in the entire club. I'm talking decades here. I assure you the other women in the room did not attend school in an age when children with disabilities were "mainstreamed" into public schools. Nor had they ever given much thought, I'm sure, to the concept that they themselves might only be temporarily "abled". Time was no longer on their side..

Before the meeting started, I was enjoying small talk with one perfectly lovely woman; I'll call her "Alice". Alice eventually revealed that she had heard from "Betty" that my husband was blind. Really? Can he see anything? Does he work? Well how does he get to work? Really? How did he go blind? Really? Was he blind when you married him? OH REALLY!!

Well it just so happens that my husband is, among other things, a talented writer and I'll take any opportunity I can to plug his book "Planet of the Blind" (including this one!). So I gave Alice the particulars and suggested she ought to read it. "Oh isn't that nice. Oh I will read it! Thank you for telling me about it...." And then, just as we were being interrupted by the announcement that the meeting was coming to order she said, almost under her breath, "So. He's blind and you married him anyway...." *Smile* Alice fell into the "perfectly lovely, well-intentioned, but in some ways, clueless people" category. She didn't mean to sound insensitive. I know she didn't. She's far too nice.

Is that what people think? Was this sweet little grey-haired old lady just voicing what everyone else thinks? Oh if they only knew. To quote Ralph James Savarese in his soon to be released book: Reasonable People: a Memoir of Autism and Adoption, she "underestimated what a relationship is, conceiving of disability only as deficits."

You see, I was married once before. I call my ex my "insignificant other". My insignificant other could see just fine. He could mow the lawn in straight lines. He could drive to the corner store for milk. He could change the oil in the car and make sure the tires were inflated properly. And I'll say it hear and now, he was the neatest roommate I've ever had. On Saturday mornings we'd do housework together. Let me tell you, he was meticulous. Not a crumb could you find in the kitchen. Not a Labrador hairball could you find on the floor when he was done. Oh he was fine in that regard! Oh, but if only he could have been a friend. If only he could have been loyal.

Several years later I met Steve. My two young children didn't seem to notice he was blind. My parents met him, liked him immediately, and didn't care. Neither did my friends. Most of them had been guide dog trainers too. We had a small wedding ceremony in Jamaica. We call it our "family-moon" because my children and all four of our parents spent most of the week there with us.

So here we are ten years later. Steve can mow the lawn, but I prefer it when he doesn't. I like a lawn to look mowed when it's done. I'm fussy that way. Steve can go to the corner store for milk - he walks. It's too close to drive anyway. I should walk there with him. It's true, he is not the neatest *roommate* I have ever had. He fails to see the crumbs on the kitchen counter and yes, what with three dogs, more often than not there are Labrador hair tumbleweeds everywhere, even after he vacuums. I am fussy. But that is my problem, not the fact that my husband can't see. I mow the lawn now, but in exchange for taking on that chore, I've got a true friend. I've traded crumbs on the kitchen counter for loyalty. I've left the life of a single Mom behind for a life of adventure with a man who's taken me to San Fransisco, Jamaica, London, Helsinki, Milan, Venice, Hawaii...

As for Steve, he traded his days as a bachelor for life with a fusspot and her two teenagers. Can you imagine? A fusspot and not one, but two teenagers!

Yes, Steve is blind. And borrowing these words from Jane Eyre: "Reader, I married him."

Cross-posted on Planet of the Blind

Meet Columnist Dr. Scott Rains, Senior Advisor, [with]tv

2007-08-14T06:30:00.000-04:00

Dr. Scott Rains, Senior Advisor, [with]tv as well as Executive Producer, Catching the 9:05 [with]tv, is also editor of Rolling Rains Report, a website for dialogue on travel, disability, and universal design. Dr. Rains holds a B.A. in Linguistics from the University of Washington, an M.A. in Pastoral Ministry from Seattle University, and a D. Min. in Pastoral Ministry from the Graduate Theological Foundation in South Bend, Indiana.

Travel Feeds the Experience Economy

2007-08-14T06:14:00.000-04:00

Written by: Dr. Scott Rains, Rolling Rains Report

The travel industry knows that it is the quintessential purveyor of positive experience. Destination wedding travel sells the romantic experience. Adventure travel sells the adrenaline experience. Volunteer travel sells the engaged experience. Business travel sells the efficient experience.

What do you experience when the experience you paid for meets your expectations? Satisfaction? Happiness? A desire to do it again?

Good businesses pay attention to customer satisfaction. Focus groups, surveys, mystery shoppers, and common courtesy are all best practice aids to achieve customer satisfaction. Goals are set. Targets are achieved. Customer satisfaction is measured.

Why value customer satisfaction? Well, except for sand in your shoes, a couple extra inches around the waist, and a bunch of mementos, it is that sense of happiness attached to memories of a good trip that is the lasting “product”.

Thinking of experience as product is second nature to the travel and hospitality industry.

B. Joseph Pine II and James H. Gilmore wrote the book Experience Economy in 1999.

In it they classify businesses on a spectrum building on commodity markets and progressing through goods, services, experience, and on to transformation businesses. It’s not a big step for businesses in the travel sector to move from selling experience to selling transformation.

To the extent that the industry respects people with disabilities as valued customers, through the application of the seven principles of Universal Design, they will want the experience; they will buy the product. Research from the Open Doors Organization, among others, shows that people with disabilities have the desire, the means, and the time to travel. Given the scarcity of products tailored to people with disabilities the outcome of a well-executed itinerary is almost always transformative for travelers in a market segment hungry for quality travel experience.

Meet Columnist Jennifer Justice

2007-08-13T23:13:00.000-04:00

Jennifer Justice is an artist, writer and independent publisher. She is the creator of two popular ezines, Pedestrian Hostile and This Is Living, and has served as a contributor and editor to numerous publications, writing on art, disability rights, technology and feminism. Jennifer studied art and literature at the University of Illinois and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, earning an MFA in 2005. Her paintings and installations are exhibited nationally. Jennifer has worked as a content developer, disability rights advocate and art instructor.

Unsicht Unseen

2007-08-13T22:40:00.000-04:00

Written by: Jennifer Justice
Today I received an email from a friend who is working in Germany. He wanted to know if I'd like to dine at Unsicht - Bar in Berlin during my vacation, scheduled for late fall. For some reason, I'd thought this restaurant was located in the UK - perhaps there is one like it there. I believe there's one located on the west coast too - owned and operated by a blind chef if my memory serves.

By "like it" I mean a restaurant with a truly unique twist. Patrons dine in total darkness, experiencing elegant three - and - four course meals elegantly served by blind/ visually impaired waiters.

Unsicht- Bar (meaning invisible or unseeable) has locations in Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne and should not be confused with Blindekuh (the Blind Cow), a restaurant with locations in Zurich and Basel. According to Wikipedia, Blindekuh was established by the Swiss - German Blind- Leicht Foundation to create employment opportunities for blind people in the food service industry. The name comes from the German equivalent of the game Blind Man's Bluff. I've yet to translate the German language press releases about Unsicht - Bar to determine if it too is a Blind - Leicht project. Obviously this is a story which begs more research and a first- hand account (I love it when research involves food)!

The Unsicht - Bar website explains that meals and table settings are arranged to coordinate to the numbers on a clock face. Fair enough, I can see how this might help the uninitiated sighted person to navigate their first meal in the dark. However, the site also notes that the food is prepared in bite- sized portions so that visitors don't have to worry about cutting their food!

As someone with a vision impairment, I find this consideration amusing as well as a wee bit troubling. It reminded me of a time hanging out at a friend's house when I was nine. My friend's mom made us lunch. Setting the plate in front of me, she picked a knife and began cutting the food for me! We tried to laugh it off- my friend had certainly eaten with me enough to know I could cut my own food. But her mom made an assumption based on damaging misconceptions of what blind/ visually impaired people are thought to be able to do.

I remember her mom getting really embarrassed and hurriedly saying something like, "Oh I'm so used to cutting other people's food, I don't know when to stop!" My friend offered that she still tried to cut up her food at times as well, but it was a weak cover up.

I'm quite sure I could cut a steak or debone a fish without looking. But then, I've relied on my sense of touch much longer than Unsicht - Bar's sited patrons. For me, touch has always been an integral component and ally to seeing. For years I thought that everyone linked sight to touch like I did, that if you love art and aesthetics then you're a sensualist to boot. I now know that isn't necessarily the case. Perhaps Unsicht's boneless/ knifeless policy is nothing more than a bit of hand- holding intended for ambivalent guests, the clock face analogy extended to touch- phobic foodies who want to know exactly what they're putting in their mouths.

It just so happens that Eastern Europe is flecked with diamonds- in- the- rough tourist attractions of particular interest to PWDs and "With-" minded folk. Other sites on my Hit List: the Kasper Hauser Museum in Ansbach, Germany for a peak into a decidedly intriguing passage in the history of early specialized education. Too bad I won't be there in time for the festival held in Hauser's honor each September.

I'm beginning to think that Ansbach just may be my spiritual home, as their other major attraction is none other than the extravagant Rococo Festival held in July. I'll take any excuse to dress up in skirts and big hair! I am a southern girl at heart.

Visual description: A double portrait of Kasper Hauser, in bronze or possibly iron, stands in a cobble stone square. The figure in the foreground has a disheveled appearance and stands with head cast downward. He holds a battered satchel in one hand and a letter in the other. The companion figure in the background is poised and finely dressed. His hat lies on the ground at his feet, as if knocked off or lost in some unseen disturbance.

Cross-posted at Pedestrian Hostile

Andrea's Buzzing About: Being "ON HOLIDAY"!

2007-08-12T09:48:00.001-04:00

Andrea's Buzzing About: the Disability Blog Carnival # 20 she's titled "ON HOLIDAY!"

Andrea has put this carnival together in a very clever narrative that almost makes you feel like you're there. She's set up a "buffet" and invites us all to help ourselves, then stake out "spots in the shade or a place to soak up some of the abundant warm sunshine. "Do try some of the brownies — I got the recipe from Gluten-Free Girl and they are fabulous..." she says.

If you're ready to take a little holiday of your own, this edition of the Disability Blog Carnival is the perfect place to start. But don't forget the bug spray!

You will find links to other Disability Blog Carnivals: past, present and future here.

(Visual description of black & white photo: a man and a small boy are standing side by side on the shore overlooking a body of water and a bridge in the distance. The man's right let has been amputated. He's leaning on his right crutch; the boy has a hold of the crutch in his left hand in a kind of affectionate gesture.)

Cross-posted at Planet of the Blind

Meet Columnist Stephen Kuusisto

2007-08-11T21:03:00.000-04:00

Stephen Kuusisto is the author of Only Bread, Only Light a collection of poems from Copper Canyon Press and of the memoirs Planet of the Blind and Eavesdropping.

He holds a dual appointment at the University of Iowa where he is Professor of English and teaches courses in creative nonfiction and where he also serves as a public humanities scholar in the University’s College of Medicine. Kuusisto speaks widely on creative writing, diversity, disability, education, and public policy. His essays and poems have appeared in numerous anthologies and literary magazines including Harper’s; The New York Times Magazine; Poetry; and Partisan Review. He has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show; Dateline NBC; The Leeza Gibbons Show; The BBC; The Voice of America; “Talk of the Nation” on National Public Radio and The Arts & Entertainment Network

web site: www.stephenkuusisto.com

blog: Planet of the Blind

The History of My Shoes: Field Work with Body and Soul

2007-08-11T20:54:00.000-04:00

Book Review
by Stephen Kuusisto

(cross-posted on The Planet of the Blind)

The History of My Shoes and the Evolution of Darwin’s Theory
By Kenny Fries
Carroll and Graf

Kenny Fries has ghosts on his shoulders and ghosts in his shoes. It is precisely because of this that the narrator of this important book is a shaman of culture and history. Kenny Fries is speaking for all of us, even if we don’t know it yet. Readers may initially think this is a disability memoir but it is really a post-Victorian narrative about Darwin’s strange legacy in our world of real bodies.

Arriving at the tuff of the Galapagos Islands Fries sees the graffiti carved into the hillside by two centuries of mariners. And he reads the names for us. We are in the company of travelers who have followed the course of Charles Darwin’s famous voyage and whose only writing remains as stark and meaningless as uncatalogued bones.

Enter poetry. Lyric poetry. Subjective experience. The story of a singular body.

Fries walks with damaged legs and wears custom made orthopedic shoes as he follows the path of Darwin’s literal and figurative voyage—and like Darwin he travels because customary ideas are in need of re-examination.

A friend of mine in my undergraduate days at Hobart College once observed that “there’s the real Darwin and then there are the Sears & Roebuck Darwins…” The latter are of course the purveyors of faulty social ideas and certainly people with disabilities have been the sad inheritors of same. The late Victorian obsession with eugenics comes to mind.

The History of My Shoes is a poet’s eye look at Darwin’s world of ideas and it is simultaneously a book about inhabiting a body that requires hourly adaptations both of mind and of physical practice. This is a narrative that works against method as Darwin once worked against method and the rewards are manifested on page after page. This is a groundbreaking book for those who are interested in the history of ideas and the corresponding history of the human body.

Meet Columnist Stephen Snart

2007-08-11T09:53:00.000-04:00

Stephen Snart is a film critic for The L Magazine and TheCinemaSource.com. He holds a B.A. in Cinema Studies from New York University and is currently pursuing a MA in Contemporary Cinema Cultures at King's College, London. Links to his reviews can be found at fluxingphilosophic.blogspot.com.

Disabilities at the Multiplex: Rocket Science

2007-08-11T09:39:00.000-04:00

Disabilities at the Multiplex
with Stephen Snart

Rocket Science

Starring Reece Daniel Thompson, Anna Kendrick, Nicholas D’Agosto, Vincent Piazza and Denis O’Hare
Written and Directed by Jeffrey Blitz
Distributor: Picturehouse Entertainment
Release Date: August 10 (select cities)
Running Time: 100 Minutes

Quirky coming of age tales are a dime a dozen in the world of American independent cinema, but Rocket Science – the story of a stuttering high school student who decides to join the debate team – is worthy of singling out from the rest of the crowd. Feature film neophyte Reece Daniel Thompson plays the lead role of Hal Hefner, a shy teenager who knows all the answers in his English class but dares not raise his hand because of his debilitating stutter. His visits to the school’s special education teacher – who’s only been trained to deal with hyperactivity – prove largely unfruitful. At lunchtime, no matter how often he rehearses: “I’d like the pizza,” when stared down by the lunch lady he finds himself unable to formulate the words and gets dealt with a congealed piece of unidentifiable fish.

His stutter isn’t any better at home, an area just as unstable and unwelcoming as the high school halls. His negligent, solipsistic mother (Lisbeth Bartlett) drove his exasperated father (Denis O’Hare) out during his early teenage years and his kleptomaniac older brother Earl (Vincent Piazza) is fond of berating Hal at any chance. But Earl’s not completely sinister; his anger is suggested to be an expression of the social torment of high school he is feeling himself.

No doubt inspired by the work of Wes Anderson, the film comes equipped with an anonymous narrator who chimes in from time to time. He sets the stage in the film’s opening scene in which we see bowtie clad motor mouth Ben (Nicholas D’Agosto) effortlessly spewing out a carefully constructed speech at the New Jersey State Debate Challenge. The omniscient narrator clues us in that this seemingly innocuous moment in which the top debater suddenly loses his gift of gab will turn out to be one of cosmic interconnectedness for Hal. Inexplicably silenced, Ben is shamed in front of the whole debating community and slinks off into obscurity.

Ben’s former debate partner and girlfriend, the self-assured Ginny Ryerson (Anna Kendrick), is determined to win the next year’s contest despite the setback and thus ferrets out Hal to be her next partner. She’s undeterred by his severe case of stuttering, convinced he has the right kind of brain for the job.
Rocket Science’s remarkable charm is routed in its ability to combine a light and breezy tone with an acute awareness of the caustic realities of adolescence. The film doesn’t offer any fairy tale endings or unrealistic solutions to problems like marriage crisis, teen angst or speech impediments; instead it embraces the harshness of real world truisms while presenting them as obstacles that can be dealt with, if not necessarily overcome.

The humor of Rocket Science is biting but not cruel. Unlike the nasty Napoleon Dynamite (another Sundance success) which ridiculed its lead character mercilessly because of his implied mental condition, Hal’s disability is never a source of the film’s humor. Sure, Hal is put in a few of predicaments squarely designed by the filmmakers to elicit laughter but the audience is not asked to laugh at Hal because he has a stutter but rather because he is simply a pubescent teenage boy. In contrast, the scenes in which his affliction is most pronounced are filmed with stark sincerity to evoke empathy and not mockery: a preliminary debate scene is filmed from multiple angles while the words that Hal is unable to vocalize materialize behind him on a chalkboard.

Part of the reason Rocket Science succeeds so winningly is the film’s protagonist is genial without being cloy. A large part of this is due to the engaging performance by Thompson, who bears the puppy dog eyes and pronounced nose of Luke Wilson and the nubile charm of Lou Taylor Pucci in Thumbsucker. But not to be unnoticed is writer/director Jeffrey Blitz (director of the acclaimed documentary Spellbound) who carefully constructs the film so that his subject is neither pitied nor valorized. Instead he is regarded as an average teenage boy struggling to find his place in the confusing and treacherous world of adolescence.

(Photo above shows that of a young man, dressed in jacket and tie and holding some papers, standing in front of a classroom. Behind him is a blackboard; there are two students sitting to his right.)

View movie trailer here...

Meet Columnist Laurie Rubin

2007-08-11T09:23:00.000-04:00

Laurie Rubin is a mezzo-soprano who has sung at The Kennedy Center, The White House, and Carnegie Hall. Born blind, Ms. Rubin has always advocated for people with disabilities. She serves as Director of Curriculum in PWdBC' s Summer Institute of The Performing Arts. You can visit her personal web site at http://laurie-rubin.com/.

TWO INVITATIONS

2007-08-09T21:10:00.002-04:00

Written By: Laurie Rubin

Before my Bat Mitzvah in 1991, there were several preparations that needed to be made. My mother and I spent a better part of the year making arrangements. We planned the menu with the caterer, we went shopping for the perfect dress, we organized people into tables based on who they knew, who they'd get along with, etc.

Though we spent a majority of our time and energy planning the celebration itself, one of the most significant things for us to do was to create the invitations. This would be the first thing people would see. It would be a glimpse of what was to come, the hard work I had done to learn the prayers and lead a service, my first step into womanhood, and a heck of a party we were going to have afterwards.

We hired a calligrapher who spent lots of time explaining the different invitations and their backgrounds. Once we had settled on one, she began to write out what we wanted printed on the invitation. With tremendous skill and detail, she turned the words into art, and the simple sentence, "You are invited to the Bat Mitzvah of our daughter Laurie Gale" took on a colorful and rich meaning.

It is now 15 years later, and today, I received an interesting phone call from my mother. She informed me that my second cousin was about to be Bar Mitzvahed, and that we were invited to the celebration. The invitation read, "To Lilly Rubin and Guest, Brian Rubin and Guest, and Laurie Rubin". I was taken aback by what I had just heard. My mother had been invited with a guest as she was now divorced and expected to be dating; my older brother was invited with a guest. Yet I, almost 30, was not expected to bring a guest. Oh sure, if I had mentioned I would indeed be bringing a guest to the parents of the Bar Mitzvah, they would have been happy to welcome them. However, the initial assumption that nobody would be attending with me, and that I would simply be joining my other coupled family members was like a glass of ice cold water being splashed on my face.

I now had tangible proof on paper of something I had always suspected, that I as a blind woman I am not seen as a viable mate. My acquaintances and relatives would not think to set me up with their dear friend's single child. Believe you me, I was always happy to be exempt from such an uncomfortable exchange. Being forced on a blind date with an equally unenthusiastic person never appealed to me. My poor brother got such a proposition from friends of my parents several times. Part of me felt invisible knowing I was never thought of as a woman who wanted to have a family and to care for a life partner.

I hear similar stories from other blind people. They often tell me that they have joined some on-line dating websites along with their sighted peers. They tell me they feel like magicians because as soon as the blindness is mentioned, their prospective matches perform the most incredible disappearing acts every time.

"Why is this so?" you may ask. "What is wrong with a blind partner?"

My answer is in between the lines of two invitations. The fancy curlicues of the writing, the satin finish of the paper, the words, "You are invited to our daughter, Laurie Gale's Bat Mitzvah" made me feel my budding womanhood, my growing interest in loving someone, in noticing my own body and mind flourishing. The possibilities in life seemed endless. I also really enjoyed picking out the invitation and deciding its style because though I can't see, my understanding of things that are visual makes me feel creative, and helps me express who I am. It is also the side of me that made me become a jewelry designer, and someone who loves to play with make-up and shop for funky clothes.

Those who know me admired the calligraphy. The people who understand me realize that I and other blind people are great friends, great at our fields of expertise, have a lot to contribute in life, and that we would make great life partners.

As I went through the difficult years of high school, I ran into a lot of people who subscribed to the likes of the invitation I received today where Laurie Rubin, sans guest, was invited to a celebration where it is expected that everyone else would be bringing their significant others. People expect their partners to take care of them physically as well as emotionally. Their image of blindness is of the person they become when they're fumbling in the dark frantically for their glasses. They are not familiar with the blind person who is well seasoned, well traveled, and well adapted.

The juxtaposition of these two invitations carries over into the work place. In a twenty minute interview where the employer is so interested in a person who can best get the job done, all they often see in a blind applicant are the intimidating questions, "How will he use a computer? How will she get to work every day without being able to drive? How will he find his way around the office?"

One lady I know who is a social worker told us about the hard road she traveled when looking for her first social work job. She had gotten incredible grades in college, had gotten glowing recommendations from the people she worked for during her internship, and was really destined for a rewarding career. She said she would never forget her first interview which was very
uncomfortable. Because of her social worker's intuition and talent for putting people at ease, she gently confronted her interviewer as she could tell he had some discomfort with her. At that moment, she said she heard the sound of his leather chair as he readjusted, deciding how he was going to put what was on his mind. After a pause, he said, "I' not sure how you will fit in around here. How will you even find the bathroom?"

So here was this poised young woman, ready for success, and all the prospective employer could see was a blind person. She has since found many wonderful positions, is happily married, and has a teenaged son.

As a jewelry designer, classical singer, and writer who happens to be blind, it is my job to provide people with a multi-faceted image of a blind person. It is my pleasure to educate people one by one as they see me walking independently with my guide dog and do mundane things in my every day life that they would never expect from a blind person. It is my privilege to have been born blind so I can feel the joy of seeing the lights go on in people's heads as they get to know me as a person in my work life and personal life so that I can make things easier for those in my situation who will come after me.

Preparing the invitations for my Bat Mitzvah that I would send out to the guests was full of that same creative energy I want to send out to the world in expressing myself as an individual who is so much more than blind. With more invitations like mine being sent out, I think we will see fewer and fewer of the kind I received today.

While on the phone, my mom and I had a good laugh as we do over many little things in life. She pointed out how ironic it is the two unattached people, my mother and brother, were invited with guests, and that I who am living with my life partner was invited without a guest. The most important thing in life is to be able to laugh at something like this invitation, to have a wonderful sense of humor about yourself, and to enjoy life with all the stuff it brings you.

Disabilities at the Multiplex : You Kill Me

2007-08-06T17:46:00.000-04:00

Disabilities at the Multiplex
with Stephen Snart

You Kill Me

Low-budget late June limited release You Kill Me is the latest offering in the line of “hitman facing a personal crisis” movies - a breed of comedy-drama-action films that create a character with an occupation as intangible and foreign as contract killer and saddle him with more relatable problems like moral angst or divorce. Recently, two very effective comedies – The Matador and The Whole Nine Yards – mined this territory with great results, one through sensitivity and the other through hilarity (Meanwhile in the world of television, The Sopranos reigns supreme). John Dahl’s You Kill Me is somewhat different from the aforementioned titles in that coming to terms with the act of murder is not the film’s central crisis. Instead, the contract killing element has surprisingly little to do with the film, making way for an unexpectedly heartfelt look at a different human disease: alcoholism.

Acting legend Ben Kingsley plays Frank Falenczyk, the alcoholic hitman at the center of the narrative. Early in the film, Frank gets too drunk during an assignment and passes out, allowing an important target to slip past him unharmed. The local gangsters he works for (led by Phillip Baker Hall) ship him out to San Francisco under the strict orders to detoxify before going back to work. He attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings begrudgingly and is loath to give himself up to the group hug dynamic of tearful attestations and respectful attention but after a few meetings he begins to lower his protective shield.

At the behest of his sweet-natured AA sponsor, Tom (a natural role for the affable Luke Wilson), Frank eventually musters the courage to take the podium and introduce himself to the group. He speaks with startling honesty, divulging his identity as an assassin without a moment’s hesitation. During this lynchpin scene, Frank informs his fellow AA members that all he’s ever been good at is killing people. Alcohol has always been a part of his life, he explains, it didn’t used to get in the way of his work but lately it has rendered him unable to perform. With solemn introspectiveness, he proclaims that the only way he can go back to killing people is if he can give up drinking. He doesn’t like the AA meetings but if that’s what can get him to stop, that’s what he’ll have to do.

The screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (The Chronicles of Narnia) has an acute awareness about the realities of trying to quit an addiction; the AA scenes pack such a wallop that the scribes surely must have attended meetings themselves. In one scene, Tom tells Frank with insightful simplicity, “You just have to realize, bars are no longer an option.” Some of the early group scenes come off somewhat parodic which is regrettable, but as the film progresses, a clear respect for Frank’s quest to stay on the wagon makes itself evident. Kingsley, whose accent is as ambiguous as the film’s dark humor, has the gravitas to pull off the stirringly effective AA scenes in a way that few living actors can accomplish.

Unfortunately, when the film strays from the subject of alcohol, it often falters, zigzagging in all directions the way a drunk might stumble home from a bar. While Markus and McFeely exhibit a clear knowledge of alcoholism, they know far less about the business aspect of organized crime. Thus, the film’s plot continually gets in the way of the character’s quest for redemption. The needlessly complex and yet inherently empty scenes concerning rival Buffalo crime syndicates adds nothing to the film other than some logical inconsistencies. A stakeout scene in a quiet house has neither the wit nor the tension of an episode of The Sopranos.

But the undeniable fact of the matter is that the film is ultimately a strong look at the effects of alcohol. It has the power to be both a harbinger for those just embarking down that road and also a motivational tool for those seeking help. As opposed to the bleak fatalism of Mike Figgis’ Leaving Las Vegas, You Kill Me offers a hopeful tale of unlikely redemption.

This Week in Sports

2007-08-06T17:40:00.000-04:00

Written By: Jamie Lazaroff
Edited By: Bob Lazzari

The sports world can be strange in the summer; sometimes it's slow and at other times there can be lots of news. This is one summer where there SURELY has been a lot happening.

*Finally, some good news in sports. Baseball's Hall of Fame inducted two of the greats of the recent era. Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken, Jr. played with the same teams throughout their entire careers. Mr. Gwynn won an amazing eight batting titles with the San Diego Padres. My best Tony Gwynn moment was at the 1999 All-Star Game in Boston when Ted Williams made an appearance and, in the middle of a slew of All-Stars congregating on the field, there are Ted and Tony sharing a special moment. Then Ted asked for Tony’s help to throw out the first pitch. I cried that night; yes, I remember it like it was yesterday. My best Cal Ripken Jr. moment was the night he broke Lou Gehrig’s consecutive games streak at 2,131. Again, I cried and remember it very well. For Ripken to play 2,632 consecutive games with one team, the Baltimore Orioles, is just unbelievable/.

*I’m a big soccer fan, so when David Beckham signed with Major League Soccer and the Los Angeles Galaxy, I was very excited at first. The more MLS talked about him changing the fate of American soccer, the more I came to believe that it will not happen that way. Don't get me wrong: David Beckham is still a great player. But Americans like to play soccer and not watch it; one player will not change this. I don’t think Beckham should have played in his first game, an exhibition. He had a knee injury and could have caused much more damage.

*On a sad note, one of the great sportscasters of our generation passed away this week, Bill Flemming. He reported on everything from NASCAR to barrel jumping for ABC’s Wide World of Sports. His death reminded me how much I miss Wide World. One favorite memory was watching the show and remembering what was on that day-- the Grand National for England and the Baja 1000. Some kids idolize sports stars; my idol happens to be Jim McKay from Wide World and I've always wanted to be just like him. Yes, those were the good old days.

*I can understand the PGA tour's thinking when they added the FedEx cup points competition. However, I don’t think it is working. The points system can only work if all the golfers play the same number of events. I do hope that most of the top 144 players play in the playoff; I'm positive the tour can make this thing work much better next year.

*This week’s spotlight is on a father and son team from Massachusetts, Dick and Rick Hoyt. You see, Rick was born in 1962 with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck which cut off oxygen to his brain. But in 1972, his first words (using a special computer) was “Go Bruins”. Yes, Rick was a sports fan, but he wanted to compete, too, and he did in 1977--competing in a five-mile benefit run for a paralyzed lacrosse player with his dad pushing him in his wheelchair. That night, Rick told his dad that he just didn’t feel handicapped when we were competing. Down the road, in 1981, they entered the Boston Marathon and finished in the top quarter of the field. After 4 years of marathons, "Team Hoyt" attempted their first triathlon; no, not just any triathlon but the Ironman in Hawaii--a grueling race. I saw the TV coverage of the Ironman; let me just say I cried again due to the emotion/success involved. Each time they completed it, I was touched the very same way. What a great story of a father's love for a son and of the true meaning of inclusion. Please go to http://www.teamhoyt.com/ and learn more about this unbelievable story. As Rick said: “The message of "Team Hoyt" is that everybody should be included in everyday life”. Yes, that's truly a message for everyone to live by.

That’s my take; I’d like to hear yours.

Jamie Lazaroff

Webmaster Needed

2007-08-02T14:20:00.001-04:00

[with]tv is looking for a volunteer to help us maintain our website and blog. The ideal candidate must be proficient in the use of HTML-based editing software and FTP protocol and will be responsible for:

*Editing the website on an ongoing basis as requested by [with]tv management
*The maintenance of our blog, including:

Collecting articles from bi-weekly columnists
Proofreading the articles and fixing grammatical and spelling errors
Posting articles to the blog
Posting messages and updates from [with]tv’s management to the blog
Monitoring user comments for appropriateness and deleting any inappropriate entries that may appear

*Administering user e-mail accounts for [with]tv’s leadership on our server (setting up accounts, resetting passwords when asked, forwarding instructions to new users, etc.).
*Assisting with special projects related to the web site as they come up and time allows

Candidates may apply to:
Anna Pakman
VP Business Development
[with]tv
apakman@with-tv.com

The Cookie Incident

2007-08-01T11:15:00.000-04:00

Written By: Laurie Rubin

Two years ago, I met with a job placement counselor at an organization for the blind in New York City to see what resources are out there for someone like me looking for a disabilities advocacy position in addition to my singing. He advised me to join a group called the Go-to-Work Club which is made up of people like myself looking for all kinds of positions who meet with employers to talk about interview techniques and what they look for in candidates for various jobs. This also was somewhat of a networking opportunity.

This job counselor who happens to be sighted got us some very informative and interesting meetings with the HR departments at universities, big companies in the financial district, and Independent Living Centers for people with disabilities. I learned a lot from the Go-to-Work Club meetings, was thoroughly impressed and inspired by the quality of visually impaired people in the group, and really received a lot of helpful information during our meetings with various employers.

One experience however stands out like the proverbial sore thumb.This particular meeting was with the director of the Human Resources Department at the very blind organization that was providing such resources as job counseling and the go-to-work club itself, so naturally, this would be the most helpful one of all right? Surely an HR person here would be well versed in all things blindness, correct?.

Well, the awakening I was about to have was as rude and cold as the blustery December day we'd all be walking out in after the meeting.Like all the other people who had hosted our meetings, the HR person had very kindly arranged for us to have some refreshments during her presentation, an assortment of cookies, soda, and water. Our placement counselor casually mentioned that such goodies were provided for us, but that we should wait to start eating until our presenter was there. He didn't tell us where the cookies and soda were, so naturally the people with sight in the room had the advantage.

Then, our presenter came in and before she so much as introduced herself, she grabbed a cookie. She began the meeting, had us all introduce ourselves, and began with a list of do's and don'ts for how we were to conduct ourselves in an interview. She said,"Now this is all from my own experience, and I can tell you what we look for and what puts an interviewer off."

She continued to munch and munch as she droned on through her list of topics. My stomach growled audibly as I thought of how our sighted presenter had the delicious mouth watering cookie in her hand. I began to daydream about cookie flavors, wondering what sort of assortment lay in front of us without us totally blind people knowing. Were their oatmeal raisin? Perhaps white chocolate macadamia? Were they chewy in consistency or very crispy? Were they the size of a Chip's Ahoy, or were they like a Mrs. Fields Cookie? Ah Mrs. Fields, that's something I haven't had since childhood.

Suddenly, my daydreams were interrupted.

"And don't forget folks," she said with her mouth full of cookie,"That you should never, absolutely never eat or drink anything while being interviewed."

Her pearls of wisdom got me thinking. Did she realize what mixed signals she was sending us? Did she somehow surmise that our blindness would prevent us from hearing her munching away? Did she not stop to think that the absence of a cookie in front of me or some of the other totally blind people in the room meant that we had no idea where they were, what kinds of cookies there were to choose from, or if it was appropriate to take one? My curiosity got the better of me, and I had to point out this cookie discrepancy to her.

But how?

Finally, a window of opportunity for me to do so presented itself. The presenter acknowledged my guide dog and that he was eating crumbs. Even though I knew perfectly well where those crumbs were coming from, I asked in the sweetest most innocent voice I could muster, "What crumbs." The lady seeming unperturbed, said, "Oh the crumbs from the cookies we're eating." Again, knowing perfectly well what cookies she was referring to, but to make clear that of course a blind person would not automatically know what she was talking about.

I asked, "What cookies."

She said, "Oh, there are cookies in here." Incredulously she added, "What is it, do you want one? Are you hungry?"

Suddenly, my heart started beating so hard and fast I was sure everyone in the room could hear it. I was hot with rage, a rage that had suddenly and unexpectedly filled me for such a minor infraction and a benign sense of cluelessness. The idea of this was like a hot poker in my side though, that people working at a blind organization would be this insensitive, that unaware of the consumers it is serving.

I thought back to our other meetings with presenters who are not accustomed to working with blind people, such as those at the financial companies, and it was they who graciously welcomed us, showing us where the refreshments were before we sat down."

Can't I just want a cookie? Do I need to be some underfed, inept, strange Neanderthal for asking about cookies in a room that others can see? Can't a girl know where cookies are without being given the third degree?" my insides shouted.

So I stewed and stewed over this in the meeting, feeling that the anger inside me might soon overflow into caustic words that would burn every bridge that might have been built for me in this group for networking. To add insult to insult, the woman continued to chew and chew on what seemed to be the bottomless plate of cookies as she was talking, not even giving us the respect to treat us like dignified job seekers.

After the meeting, the counselor told us that before we go, we should have cookies as there happened to be some left. Then, unafraid of what they would think, I asked what kinds of cookies there were, and I asked for two nice big delicious cookies, one sugar, and one chocolate chip. I also heard others in the room who were totally blind asking about the cookies, what kinds, if they could have one.

I realize that posture when you're trying to network for a job is everything. Even though nobody would think anything of it if a sighted person discretely took a cookie or two or three, we who can't see are suddenly rude or ravenous if we ask for the same right of our sighted counterparts. Perhaps it was my low blood sugar, perhaps it was the weather's getting increasingly colder, perhaps it was this minor infraction adding fuel to the fire of anger I felt about how already difficult it was for blind people to find jobs that sent me into a silent frenzy, but whatever the case might have been, there is a happy ending to the story. I not only got two delicious cookies after the meeting, but I was the last one to leave the room as I had something to ask the counselor. One last lonely cookie was waiting to be eaten, which then found a home in my stomach.

Travel Programs at [with]tv

2007-07-30T17:45:00.000-04:00

Written by: Dr. Scott Rains

Welcome to Travel Programs at [with]tv

Travel transforms.

The anticipation of adventure and discovery can make a simple change of place into a memory that lasts a lifetime. Good travel agents know that. As important as it is to flawlessly plan itineraries and to provide tickets they know that what they sell are dreams.

Photos, videos, postcards, and souvenirs outlive the experience. They can have an almost magical effect of reinvoking the memories and feelings of another place & time. At [with]tv we intend to produce written and visual materials that help you plan, take, and remember trips that change your life.

There is a saying, “If you don’t know where you are going, you won’t know when you arrive!”

Travel planning is key – and we will unlock some secrets of the experts. Destination previews ignite the imagination – and we will light a bonfire to get you dreaming. Reports from those who have been there make it real – and we will talk to both tourists and locals on site.

In the end, the transformation of travel may be the reinvigoration to head back home and live life more fully. It may be a new insight into the way the world works – or doesn’t. It may be an opening to a new culture or a new lifestyle.

We hope that [with]tv can be one tool for transformation that you keep coming back to!

This Week in Sports

2007-07-30T17:41:00.000-04:00

Written By: Jamie Lazaroff
Edited By: Bob Lazzari

Hello, my name is Jamie Lazaroff and welcome to my first sports column. I'm a HUGE sports fan who happens to have a disability. I like all sports and truly have very strong opinions regarding most of them. My column will not focus solely on sports participants with disabilities; I will also offer my views about the various sports issues of the week. However, I will spotlight one disabled individual each week in this column.

Where do I even START this week? We have the NBA referee betting scandal and QB Michael Vick being indicted on federal charges regarding his role in a dog-fighting ring. We also have Barry Bonds' ongoing pursuit of the all-time home run record and whether or not Hank Aaron and/or commissioner Bud Selig should be in attendance. Finally, there is the Tour de France doping scandal on the sports page.

*The referee betting scandal is a black eye to a once-proud NBA, but this is not surprising. I can clearly see how the games can be fixed. In fact, we have had game-fixing scandals in college basketball for years; Boston College had one just a few years ago. I have attended many high school, college, and pro women's games over the years and seeing them up close gives me the impression that it can be VERY easy to fix a game. What surprises me is how long it took for this to affect the NBA, but with many younger players in the league right now (along with big money), this was bound to happen.

*The Michael Vick saga is very sad. I'm not the biggest animal lover but I do have a soft side for dogs. I think the Atlanta Falcons and the NFL did the right thing keeping Vick away from training camp. At this point, I don't think he should be allowed to play any football this season; his trial may get underway during the season and it would prove to be a major distraction to the team and the league in general.

*As far as Bonds is concerned, he has not been indicted by the grand jury yet. Whether you like him or not (I don't), Bonds should be respected for breaking one of sports most hallowed records; I think Bud Selig--not necessarily Aaron-- should be there to see him break it. In this country, you ARE innocent until proven guilty and the jury is still out on if he used steroids or not. All we have to go on at this point are two books--one written by a former teammate.

*I'm not even touching the Tour de France; it just has too many problems. I don't think cycling can be fixed. But it is a difficult sport and it's hard to believe that these athletes can cycle for days in mountains without having something foreign in their bodies. The human body is not built to take the physical punishment of two or three weeks on a bicycle.

*As I stated in the beginning, I'd like to spotlight one athlete with a disability each week. This week, the spotlight is on Oscar Pistorius--a double amputee, track and field world record-holder from South Africa. You see, he's been in the news because he has a dream: he wishes to run the 400 meters in the Olympics at Beijing next year. As a double amputee, his running prosthetics are j-shaped, carbon fiber blades. The problem here is that the world governing body believes that his curved, tapered prosthetics give him an unfair advantage over the competition. But in Oscar's first race against very able-bodied athletes, Oscar was well off the pace in wet conditions. Currently, he IS cooperating with the IAAF on future research. I believe Oscar can get better and compete with the world's best. I'm not sure if his prosthetics give him an advantage or not, but I will let you know the research findings in the fall.

That is my take, I'd like to hear yours.

Jamie Lazaroff

Arc of Connecticut Offers Support

2007-07-30T17:11:00.000-04:00

We are pleased to announce that on Monday, July 23, the Arc of Connecticut joined our list of supporters. Visit their website at www.arcct.com to find out more about the great work that they do.

Equal Opportunities

2007-07-30T17:07:00.000-04:00

I have been working with families who have a child with either a visual problem or other anomaly for more than 20 years. Now that the population I began working with is entering the work force, I am finding that I receive calls on a regular basis about how difficult it is to find employment. I am sure that most people know the statistic that 80% of people who are visually impaired are unemployed. It is my opinion that this statistic is based on fear on the part of employers. While they may be aware of the Americans with Disabilities Act, they find a reason not to hire or even to interview the person.

When I am asked to counsel someone who comes to me with their frustration, my first inclination is to tell the future employer only information related to their qualifications for the job. They will find out on the interview about the challenges or potential accommodations that may be needed. I completely support the efforts of the founders of PWDBC and [with]tv to establish an organized effort to educate the public to this loss of tremendous talent. Most of the individuals I have had the pleasure to spend time with throughout my career have so much to offer in ways that many of us could never understand. I join you in supporting this wonderful endeavor.

Nancy Mansfield, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Institute for Families
Counselor & Ombudsman, Retinoblastoma Center
Patient Advocate, Maternal Fetal Institute
Childrens Hospital Los Angeles
Assistant Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology
Keck School of Medicine
University of Southern California

Stories Ignored

2007-07-30T17:04:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, the news had highlighted and then dropped some important stories that "had legs" in terms of television viewers not especially interested in disability issues and, more importantly from the perspective of our community, had even "better legs" and needed to be put in the spotlight where they could be discussed, debated, and covered with the attention deserving when considering their impact on society at large.

These were, to mention just two, the discovery of an Iraqi Orphanage where adolescent boys with "special needs" - media does not even know what to call us they are so used to excluding us from their lives, how could they know? These boys with mixed disabilities, largely cognitive and developmental, were found in the most squalid conditions possible. This should come as no shock to us in the community. TV did what it does - makes a splash - throws whatever attention on a subject that will benefit the media source and then moves on.

The other story was the "immunity deals" worked out with the two nurses in LA in the Katrina debacle - I prefer that word to disaster, because while this was an event of Nature, the murder of these men and women with disabilities and the deaths of others occurred not through the wishes of anyone's God, but rather the callousness of society, and our exclusion of people with disabilities in the human race.

[with]tv would have been on these stories from day one and would have not only advanced the cause through dialogue and discussion but would have garnered audience, industry admiration and advertising dollars all employing people with disabilities and without disabilities in the process. Think of the role models for youngsters with Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, the teenagers with spinal cord injuries and veterans returning from military service with acquired physical, emotional, and cognitive disabilities.

It is time for us to accept, learn and teach that disabilities mean money. That money means empowerment. It will happen when we are all make room for each other just like in a good game of "musical chairs" where as chairs are taken away the participants must accommodate each other on a shrinking space.

Howard Renensland, CEO

One More Step

2007-07-30T11:31:00.000-04:00

Ms. Kathy Slater and Ms. Liddy Karter, both integral parts of The CT Technology Council and the Innovation Pipeline Accelerator to which we belong, have put us in contact with some key CT based law firms with an eye toward entering into an agreement with one to serve as our Corporate Legal Counsel. This will be one more brick in our own yellow brick road that is starting in CT, not KS, but will take us all "Over the Rainbow"!

National Organizations Support [with]tv

2007-07-30T11:20:00.000-04:00

The following organizations have expressed their support for this project:

The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD)
Ms. M. Doreen Croser, Exec. Director
AAIDD is the professional association run by and for professionals who support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and has a constituency of over 60,000 with a core of 4,500 members.

The American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR)
Ms. Renee L. Pietrangelo, CEO
ANCOR is a national network of over 835 providers offering quality supports to more than 385,000 people with disabilities and their families.
http://ancor.org

The Arc of the United States (The Arc)
Ms. Sue Swenson, Executive Director
The Arc of the United States advocates for the rights and full participation of all children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
http://www.thearc.org

The Arc of Connecticut (The Arc/CT)
Dawn Lazaroff, President
Peg Dinotti, Executive Director
http://www.arcct.org

The Connecticut Parent Advocacy Center (CPAC)
Nancy Prescott, Executive Director
The Connecticut Parent Advocacy Center is a nonprofit organization offering information and support to CT families of children with any disability or chronic illness, birth to 26.

The Council on Quality and Leadership (CQL)
James F. Gardner, Ph.D., President and CEO
CQL plays an international leadership role in the definition, measurement, and improvement of the quality of life for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and people with mental illness impacting directly on the lives of over 50,000 people.

Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE)
Chester Finn, National Chairman
SABE's mission is to ensure that people with disabilities are treated as equals, that they are given the same decisions, choices, rights, responsibilities, and chances to speak up in order to empower themselves.
http://sabe.org

The Association of Self Advocates of North Carolina (ASANC)
Karen Moyes Stallings, Executive Director
ASANC is a state-wide organization advocating for the rights of people with disabilities in work, recreation and the community. They have an active membership of 1,200 members and their families.

Planet of The Blind
http://kuusisto.typepad.com/planet_of_the_blind/2007/05/

We have a growing number of families and individuals that we will be listing soon as well. Clearly it is imperative that you all sign on ASAP and enlist your places of employment and all manner of friends, families, etc. to do so as well. I urge you to take the time to do so. It is one small way in which you can do something that will help drive [with]tv toward eventual success.

Supporting Our Efforts

2007-07-30T11:17:00.000-04:00

Today marks the appearance on the [with]tv web site and blog of our "Support Letter." While this may indeed pale in comparison to the day the Americans With Disabilities Act was enacted, it has its own importance. While someone famous once said, "all comparisons are odious," there is one striking similarity here worth noting!. The ONLY reason the ADA became the law of the land (we will not go into how it was received or how enforced) was because of the tireless and relentless energies of a large number of people doing small and great things to make it so. This was one occasion when it was good to "fixate" on something. Here is a second.

I am firmly convinced that when [with]tv successfully culminates with an operational television and web broadcasting channel, we will overnight alter, for the better, the lives of all people with disabilities in the world now and forever. We will also be able to document and publicize the heroic public and private efforts of those who came before us to forge out a community-wide agenda and personal empowerment. We will change overnight the global perception and opportunity for all people with disabilities by employment in arguably the most highly regarded and "in demand" industry out there - "Show Business".

Imagine Mary Tyler Moore in a wheelchair, Brian Williams using American Sign Language (ASL), a blind Tony Soprano, and a desperate housewife with developmental disabilities! We have them on the drawing board and in development. We need you now though. What do we need you to do? We need you to sign and publicize our Support Letter as much as you can. If Mitch, Anna, and I can go into meetings with potential investors and advertisers and show them a list of individuals, families, organizations and businesses numbering in the millions (there are no reasons we cannot), their heads will snap and they will cover their ears at the loud ringing of cash registers resounding in their heads.

It is up to me and you - each and every one of us -- to make this happen for ourselves, our friends, our children, for those who came before and who will come after. No hand outs, no requests for inclusion, no seminars on "hiring the handicapped," "employing the disabled," just good old blood, sweat and tears. This we can do, because we have done so before. Let's go to work my friends.

Howard Renensland, Founder and CEO of [with]tv

Part 3 - [with]tv - an important role model for countries all around the world

2007-07-30T11:15:00.000-04:00

Written by: Anna Bergholtz, a Swedish freelance journalist, motivational speaker and the first blind film critic of Sweden.
E-mail: Anna@annasvision.se
Web Page (soon to be in English): http://www.annasvision.se/

Part 3

When I was sighted I had the same curiosity for persons being blind like a lot of people have for me today. I would not be surprised if I acted as if they came from another planet - the same way people can treat me now. For sure, no one does like that to be mean. I would say it is normal when you do not know anything about it. That’s why [with]tv is so important.

Everyone knows the power of media. It reaches us all. The more we learn, the less strange we feel about things. That is why I believe [with]tv can lead to disabled people becoming a natural part of society. Having a disability will be something we will all accept and will no longer be a big issue, as it often is today.

Sweden is often influenced by the States, certainly when it comes to media. It is the same for other countries around Europe. We are all small countries that do not always have the strength, resources and courage to try something new. [with]tv is definitely a bold step forward. I am sure it will be a good role model for others. When small countries like Sweden see that it works, they might follow. My hope is that we all can cooperate and that one day we will have [with]tv all over the world.

I encourage everyone to support PWdBC and [with]tv. It does not matter if you are a private person, an organization, a company or a whole community. They need all the support they can get. The more you support them now, the faster we will be all able to reach this important goal.

Part 2 - [with]tv - an important role model for countries all around the world.

2007-07-30T11:11:00.000-04:00

Written by: Anna Bergholtz, a Swedish freelance journalist, motivational speaker and the first blind film critic of Sweden.
E-mail: Anna@annasvision.se
Web Page (soon to be in English): http://www.annasvision.se/

Part 2

Our show became a success. We got rewarded as the best running TV show that year. I was very proud and happy, but mostly full of hope. I thought it was just a matter of time before we were going to be seen again; that people with disabilities were going to become a part of TV like everyone else. And that we where going to run TV shows - not only about disabilities, but also about news, weather, culture and other issues. Now it is 2007, and I am almost ready giving up my hope about things changing.

A first step to mainstream, the TV people told us. It was obviously just words. I was shocked when one of the bosses explained that the audience would not be ready for a change in other shows. Ready to see a program leader, newsreader or a reporter with disabilities. According to him, people would not listen to what we have to say. They would instead focus on the Braille reading, the spastic movements, or weird looking eyes. It is understandable that everything is new in the beginning, but nothing will ever become different if you do not try. If I remember right, there was even a time in the history of Television when women where not welcome – which can be hard to believe today.

This is the main reason I feel so strongly for [with]tv and PWdBC. I hope that people with disabilities will one day be a part of broadcasting in a normal way. I am used to people watching me, but I am sure that will change if we are seen more on TV. People will see that we are like everyone else. Mothers, children, consumers, actors, husbands, sportsmen, politicians - that we are so much more then just our disability.

(To be continued)

Part 1 - [with]tv - an important role model for countries all around the world

2007-07-30T11:03:00.000-04:00

Written by: Anna Bergholtz, a Swedish freelance journalist, motivational speaker and the first blind film critic of Sweden.
E-mail: Anna@annasvision.se
Web Page (soon to be in English): http://www.annasvision.se/

Part 1

Already existing toilets had to be rebuilt to become accessible for people using wheelchairs. For persons being visually impaired the computer-system did not work. For the blind to find their way around, a tactile tape was glued to the floors. Braille was also put on coffee-machines and in elevators. And for some, certain places in the building were completely inaccessible.

This was the situation when I went to work for Swedish Television in 2004. To me, it became pretty clear. People like me, journalists with disabilities, where far away from being common workers there. A person that was, was not to be seen, either behind or in front of the camera.

Three years later, you probably wonder if things changed. Unfortunately, I have to say not. The only reason for us with disabilities working there at that particular point was this new TV show. Swedish Television needed us since the program was about disabilities. Many people within Swedish Television said that this was the first step for things to become different. This was the start of mainstreaming disabled people. For the first time in Swedish history we had a person in wheelchair leading the TV show. And it was also, without a doubt, the only time that many people with disabilities worked there at the same time. And I am not exaggerating when I say I felt like a UFO.

(To be continued)

Welcome

2007-07-30T10:38:00.000-04:00

Dear Friend,

On August 13, 1984 my life was wonderfully transformed. My daughter Victoria, a person with disabilities was born. At first this meant fighting for her physical survival and then fighting against her exclusion from opportunities her friends without disabilities enjoyed. Victoria and I fought for her access to playgrounds, pre-school, and kindergarten through high school. We fought for her access to worship, recreation, and socialization. We carried on topost-secondary inclusion at a fine university. Then came “the real world” and the forces excluding her there were the most formidable yet.

Our experiences of the past 22 years have crystallized my thinking. I believe the single most debilitating factor limiting people with disabilities is not their disability, but their image in mainstream media. When profiled, they remain objects of extreme pity or extreme inspiration. This image is not one of their choosing. As long as others define you, you do not exist.

As I write this letter, there is no mainstream television channel in the world addressing the needs of and targeting people with disabilities as viewers, consumers and participants. I resolve to change that by creating [with]tv, an inclusive media outlet that defines all people by their talents and the quality of their stories, rather than by disability; a place where Victoria and everyone else can work in a universally designed workplace with a welcoming, inclusive workforce.

People with disabilities have a global need for access to information, employment, artistic expression and control of their image. Furthermore, the need extends beyond people with disabilities. The disability community is a grossly underutilized source of market-share for companies, making a win-win solution for individuals, society, and business.

People with disabilities welcome you to the world of [with]tv, a television channel of, by, and for people with disabilities…and everyone else! We invite you to learn more about our business and our stories.

Sincerely,

Howard Renensland
President & Founder