Here are four films that our community organiser recommends watching during Disability History Month.
Disability History Month is a time to reflect on the stories, voices, and experiences of people with disabilities and films are a great way to do that. Here are four films that our community organiser recommends watching during Disability History Month.
CRIP CAMP: A Disability Revolution
Crip Camp is an award-winning documentary chronicling the disability rights movement in the United States. The film tells the story of Camp Jened, “a camp for disabled people run by hippies” which became an accidental breeding ground for future leaders of the civil rights movement. This camp served as a respite for disabled people. For many of the young people who attended, it was their first experience of individualism and freedom. The film shows how the campers, like anyone else their age, were just young people seeking acceptance, freedom….and sex.
IS ANYBODY OUT THERE
Is Anybody Out There is a personal documentary by Ella Glendining, which chronicles her search for others who share her rare disability. In her search for those with similar disabilities as her, Glendining challenges the discrimination she faces and examines identity and the importance of community. The movie explores what it means to be disabled and how many of the challenges people with disabilities face, especially those around self-acceptance and identity, are caused by ableism.
EAT YOUR CATFISH
Eat Your Catfish is a documentary by Noah Arjomand that chronicles the final years of his mother battling Lou Gehrig’s Disease, ALS. It is filmed from the perspective of his mother revealing her strength, wit, struggles with paralysis, and fight for autonomy. It explores the complex family dynamic that can emerge when someone becomes disabled.
CODA
CODA tells the story of Ruby, the only hearing member of her deaf family. She finds herself torn between her dreams of attending musical school and her role as her family’s interpreter and employee of their fishing business. The movie explores how disabilities affect all members of a family and not just those with the disability and the burden of responsibility children and siblings of those with disabilities often take on.