Disabled children taught ableism by worried parents
The term âdisabled" means ânot ableâ But not able to do what exactly? The definitions of conditions like cerebral palsy are factual, but ânot ableâ to predict individual abilities. People will still make assumptions; and at a young age I learned people have many questions and expect  answers. I internalized shame around the word âdisabledâ because of the  constant comparisons of my abilities being lesser because of something out of  my control.Â
I spent years trying to beat my cerebral palsy due to years of internalized ableism and disenfranchising myself from a community.Â
The origins of internalized ableism can be traced back to the influence  of those assumptions and the expectations placed on the person with  a disability to educate others. Â
Between Finding Nemo (2003) and the sequel Finding Dory (2016), Dory learns to be proud of herself and her short-term memory loss. Her signature line,  âHi, Iâm Dory. I suffer from short-term memory loss.â is given a backstory. The first lines of Finding Dory is her signature phrase followed by âher parents clap and congratulate her. Her father praises Dory, saying, âThatâs exactly what you say,â reinforcing the underlying prejudice that disability is something that causes  suffering (Finding Dory 00:00:57- 00:00:58).Â
âThe didacticism of the charactersâ interaction creates an unsettling parallel for parents who show this film to their children, perhaps in the hopes of teaching them tolerance.â (Klinowski 51)Â
The prejudice Doryâs parents are teaching her is not intentional; they want to keep her safe.Â
They worry about her similarly to the way Marlin worries about Nemo. Dory (in the sequelâs flashbacks) is much younger than Nemo, reinforces that people with mental differences are more vulnerable and less capable than  those with physical disabilities.Â
There are different assumptions. In Finding Nemo, Nemo is called out for looking âfunnyâ and is given a chance to explain  his difference. On the other hand, Dory is told,Â
âThereâs something wrong with you.â
Source
Klinowski, Stacie, "Finding Nemo, Findng Dory, Finding Ourselves: How and Why We Teach Our Children to Think About Disability" (2018). English. 25. https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/honorscollege_eng/25
