TAPUK TAPUK

Please stop using non-disabled people for roles where it’s specified that they are disabled. Casting these people without the first hand knowledge or experience does not make the character more authentic. Cast those with the disabilities that the specifications require. Don’t focus on appearance, that doesn’t matter.  Search harder. We are out there. We want to be noticed. We want to show others that disabled people have talent. We want to make the story line more authentic. We are talent.

Please caption your videos. It’s not that hard, and you’re giving way more people access to your content just by spending a few extra minutes of your time doing so. However, please don’t think that turning on “automatic captions” is the same as captioning it yourself. This Youtuber, Ren, does a great job of explaining just how unreliable they are.

Wait For It x Deaf West’s Spring Awakening

deaf people are rad Deaf people are amazing HOH people are cool People with Auditory Processing Disorder are spectatular Those who went to deaf schools are great Those who were mainstreamed kick ass Those who sign are awesome Those who prefer to speak are phenomenal Those who do both are stunning Pass the love (And don’t be shy to add to the list)

Beyond the Lights dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood Broken English dir. Zoe R. Cassavetes Bright Star dir. Jane Campion Cairo Time dir. Ruba Nadda Children of a Lesser God dir. Randa Haines Dogfight dir. Nancy Savoca Fill the Void dir. Rama Burshtein The Governess dir. Sandra Goldbacher Lost in Translation dir. Sofia Coppola Mansfield Park dir. Patricia Rozema Mississippi Masala dir. Mira Nair Open Hearts dir. Susanne Bier The Piano dir. Jane Campion Wuthering Heights dir. Andrea Arnold

[Image Description: text states “People be like “It’s accessible!! Wait.. it isn’t? Well at least they tried! What more do you want?” Picture shows a wheel chair ramp leading immediately into a yellow pole.]

(Source: 11 Things You Should Know About Deaf People)

GIF: Becky Harlan/NPR