Past Events Archives - Page 19 of 27

Headshots of Sophie Kim, Shaylee Mansfield, Erica Spates, Lachi and Bethany Johnson. Text: Inclusion in Children and Family Content: Representation of Women and Girls with Disabilities

Inclusion in Children and Family Content: Representation of Women and Girls with Disabilities

With one-in-five people having a disability in the U.S. today, the lack of representation – just 3.1 percent on screen and even less in children’s television (less than one percent) – means that millions of people are unable to see themselves in media today. RespectAbility has been honored to play a part in changing this, including consulting on an array of films and TV shows, including the Netflix series The Healing Powers of Dude and The Disney Channel’s Bunk’D.

We discussed the importance of inclusion in children and family media with:

Sophie Kim, Actress, The Healing Powers of Dude
Shaylee Mansfield, Actress, Disney+ film Noelle, The Disney Channel TV show Bunk’D and upcoming Netflix feature film Feel the Beat
Erica Spates, Executive Producer and Writer, The Healing Powers of Dude
Lachi, Award-Nominated Recording Artist and Voice-Over Actress
Moderated by Debbie Fink, Director of Community Outreach and Impact, RespectAbility
Q&A facilitated by Lauren Appelbaum, Vice President, Communications, RespectAbility

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Headshots of Rachel Kalban, Krista Tucker, Nava Silton and Diana Romero. Text: Inclusion in Preschool Media: Importance of Disability Representation

Inclusion in Preschool Media: Importance of Disability Representation

Examples of Best Practice in Disability Inclusion in Preschool Content

Read webinar transcript

With one-in-five people having a disability in the U.S. today, the lack of representation – just 3.1 percent on screen and even less in children’s television (less than one percent) – means that millions of people are unable to see themselves in media today. In the first part of a two-part series examining representation in children’s media, we take a look at preschool content – and examples of best practice.

How are studios and production companies are taking concrete steps to further inclusion? We discussed the importance of disability inclusion in preschool media with:

Rachel Kalban, Vice President, Research and Curriculum at 9 Story Media Group
Diana Romero, Award-Winning Filmmaker and RespectAbility L.A. Lab 2020 Participant
Nava R. Silton, Ph.D., Developmental Psychologist who has worked at Nickelodeon, Sesame Workshop and Mediakidz
Krista Tucker, Series Developer, Co-Producer and Story Editor, Disney Junior’s Fancy Nancy
Moderated by Lauren Appelbaum, Vice President, Communications, RespectAbility

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Headshots of Harold Foxx, James Ian, Diana Elizabeth Jordan, Tatiana Lee, Natasha Ofili, Lachi and Janet LaBreck. Text: Ensuring Authentic Representation of Black Disabled People in Entertainment

Ensuring Authentic Representation of Black Disabled People in the Entertainment Industry

Read webinar transcript
Watch webinar recording on YouTube with open captions and ASL interpreter

The protests taking place across America have illuminated the impact of racism on society. We must use this moment to recognize the pain of Black Americans and work together on fostering an environment of empathy and understanding. RespectAbility is committed to supporting our partners who are working tirelessly to dismantle systematic and structural racism to ensure that every citizen has an opportunity to move the country forward and live out their true potential.

Authentic representation of marginalized populations on screen is vitally important as what people view on screen influences how they act in real-life. Therefore we invite you to learn from Black individuals with disabilities who are working to change this perception in the entertainment industry. [continue reading…]

Headshots of Bill Cawley and Tatiana Lee. Text: Virtual Gathering for People Who Use Wheelchairs.

COVID-19 Disability Community Gathering: People Who Use Wheelchairs

In Partnership With The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation

This townhall-style gathering for people who use wheelchairs was facilitated by Tatiana Lee, Hollywood Inclusionist at RespectAbility and Bill Cawley, Director, Peer & Family Support Program at the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.

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Headshots of Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, Ollie Cantos, Page Gardner and Stan Greenberg. Text: Poll Briefing: People with Disabilities & COVID-19, SNAP, Voter Access & More

Poll Briefing: People with Disabilities & COVID-19, SNAP, Voter Access and More

Read the webinar transcript
Download the accessible PowerPoint
[continue reading…]

Webinar: Disability Portrayals on Screen Hit a Landmark High

Presented in Partnership with The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media

The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media’s CEO Madeline Di Nonno discussed new groundbreaking findings of characters with disabilities from this year’s See Jane 2020 Report. [continue reading…]