1) Before you brainstorm solutions, STOP & ask a load of questions!

Remember, behavior is always communication. It is a way for kids, teens, and even adults to communicate an unmet need. For those with disabilities that impair their ability to communicate, this may be even more prevalent. Sometimes it’s unconscious and sometimes it’s conscious and a person with a disability can’t communicate it in a more effective way. A good example of this is a toddler meltdown, with our little ones who haven’t yet mastered their language skills. Older children and teens who have language deficits or who struggle labeling their emotions may also have frequent meltdowns. It’s important to reason that there is a WHY behind this behavior. [continue reading…]

When one thinks of the stereotypical high school experience, a few things might come to mind: football games, classes, graduation, cliques, or even first loves. In her short film, AT LAST, director Lorena Gordon explores identity at the most quintessential high school experience of all: prom.

Starring Katie Burton, Zack Gottsagen, and George Lopez, AT LAST tells the story of Lauren, a teenager who reveals her truth during her high school prom. AT LAST speaks to intersectionality of identity, as the film’s protagonist fears rejection and upsetting her Latinx parents if she were to come out. The film does not explicitly discuss Latinx culture or family, but Lauren openly discusses how she feels that coming out challenging to her parents. The pressure she feels as their only child to make them proud and be perfect is a relatable truth that audiences of all identities can connect with. [continue reading…]

Elsa Sjunneson

Elsa is a powerful short film that challenges assumptions regarding individuals who are DeafBlind. The documentary-style film was directed by Cameron S. Mitchell, a RespectAbility Entertainment Lab fellow. The short film is premiering as part of PBS’s American Masters series, a collection of short films originally started in 1986 that celebrates American arts and cultures. Elsa is a part of a series on Helen Keller that aims to spotlight modern DeafBlind role models.

Elsa follows Elsa Sjunneson, a DeafBlind professor and speculative fiction writer who fences and likes wearing vintage dresses. It explores how the reality of being DeafBlind differs from the stereotypes and misconceptions. The film masterfully depicts a successful disabled woman without relying on ableist tropes like the “SuperCrip” or inspiration porn by letting Sjunneson tell her story in her own words.

One of Sjunneson’s opening lines, “I think a lot of people hear the word DeafBlind and they assume that I’m going to be quiet,” sets the stage for a film meant to challenge ableism. The very nature of the film, which is heavily narrated by Sjunneson, contradicts this stereotype. She will not be quiet just because people expect it from her. Sjunneson does not dance around the point, she tackles it head on with an air of confidence that only someone sure of themselves can conjure. This allows the audience to trust her; she is sure of herself, so we should be too. [continue reading…]

Lab alumni Shireen Alihaji (2019), Elisabeth Good (2020), Cashmere Jasmine (2021), Ru Kazi (2019), and Peter Lee (2022) shared their industry experiences and offered advice during the opening session of the 2022 virtual cohort of the RespectAbility Entertainment Lab.

Los Angeles, Aug. 19 – RespectAbility’s Entertainment Lab kicked off its latest 2022 virtual cohort earlier this week, welcoming eighteen individuals and one writing duo, from the United States, Canada, Argentina, and Australia. The Lab’s first session included a panel of recent Lab alumni who shared their industry experiences, offered advice to the participants, and discussed their most recent projects and endeavors.

Peter Lee

Peter Lee, a television writer who just completed the in-person version of the Lab earlier this summer. Lee described how RespectAbility’s guest speakers and industry panels helped him find unique consulting opportunities. “The execs that we met with really understood how valuable our perspectives and experiences are,” said Lee. Lee also shared his hope that the newest cohort make every effort to get to know each other and connect with professionals to build a lasting network. “I felt an immediate connection to everyone. They really understood what it meant to be disabled, and I didn’t realize how meaningful that would be to me.”

Shireen Alihaji

Shireen Alihaji is a filmmaker and alumna of the 2019 Lab. She spoke about how the Lab provided her with the opportunity to share her disability in an empowering way. Her film, Blue Veil, which Alihaji included on her Entertainment Lab application in 2019, is based on a personal narrative and was featured on both The Black List and the Cannes Screenplay List. “I felt like I was in a safe space, and I also learned how to talk about my project,” she shared. “The friendships I gained from this space were amazing and life-changing, some of which turned into collaborations,” Alihaji continued. In addition to her other accolades, Alihaji was selected for the Sundance Institute’s Latine Collab Scholarship this past year. [continue reading…]

There are people in our lives who radiate the warmth and vitality of the sun when we’re in their presence. They are curious about everyone they meet, and they thrive on spreading their wisdom for the good of the world. When you meet one of these treasures, you feel blessed. And when they become your friend, as they do, you accept this gift with gratitude.

Barbara Newman

Barbara Newman was someone in my life who was such a gift. We met in 2015 when Barb received the Henri Nouwen Award (renamed in 2021 as the Reimagining Spirituality Leadership Award) given by the Religion and Spirituality Network of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Barb was an icon in Christian inclusive education including curriculum design, individual support and universal design for worship and education. She was a pioneer at the Christian Learning Center, which changed its name to All Belong just a few years ago. Barb was in such demand as a keynote speaker, engaging her audiences within seconds. Barb was profound and passionate as she pursued her life’s calling so that all people with disabilities would feel a sense of belonging in faith community life-like anyone else.

Barb and I struck up an easy friendship and talked about our respective theologies and religious practices supported disability and mental health inclusion. When I wrote my book, “From Longing to Belonging: A Practical Guide to Including People with Disabilities and Mental Health Conditions in Your Faith Community,” I sought Barb’s guidance and wisdom. [continue reading…]

As we enter the end of summer (I know–it’s here!), those of us who work in education are turning our attention towards our classroom communities.

How do we create inclusive Jewish education communities? At Jewish Learning Venture, our Whole Community Inclusion initiative approaches inclusion holistically, engaging all stakeholders including the educators, the families, clergy and synagogue leaders and of course, the students themselves. We’ve implemented a number of successful programs to support inclusion, including: [continue reading…]

Gabriella Helkowski

Being mentored as a student with a disability and mentoring students with disabilities has changed my life. I have always been the student with the learning disabilities and the one being helped when I struggled with various schoolwork and activities. I always wanted to have the same experiences as my classmates and mentors helped me be included. As a mentor to students with disabilities, I was able to help others be included, too.

In second grade, my classmates and I had to read an autobiography dressed up as our historical figure. Mine was Helen Keller. Parents came and watched our 3-minute talks. I was so anxious as I struggled to read and speak clearly during my presentation. My learning support teacher, Mrs. Lindenfelser, made sure that I would be able to be part of this important second grade event. Every day she set aside time to read with me —as painful as it was—and ensured that I understood. At the end of the book, we wrote and practiced what I was going to say about Helen Keller. That day I felt equal to my peers, a feeling that I had not felt before. [continue reading…]

After two years of studying Hebrew, Jewish history, rituals, Torah, and Haftorah readings, the day I yearned for had finally arrived. I was invited to go to the bima (the raised platform in the synagogue from which the Torah is read and services led) to read the Torah for the first time…as an adult Bar Mitzvah. I got up from the pew and walked with the solemnity of a monarch, all regal. My kippah (the cap worn to fulfill the customary requirement that the head be covered) was my crown, my yad was my scepter, and my tallit (a fringed garment worn as a prayer shawl) was my coronation mantle.

“Queen Elizabeth, eat your heart out!”

When I got to the bima, the scroll was opened. I placed the tip of the yad on the passage. I did more than just read. I chanted every word like a Greek poet. I radiated. As I returned to my pew, people from both sides of the aisle stretched out their hands. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, Aug. 15 – To continue to ensure accessibility for disabled entertainment professionals, the RespectAbility Entertainment Lab will host a virtual cohort this year, building on the success of a virtual format begun during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eighteen individuals and one writing duo, from the United States, Canada, Argentina, and Australia, will participate in semiweekly meetings, presentations, and discussions throughout August and September with industry professionals and executives from partner studios, nonprofits, and production companies. In addition, they will have opportunities to workshop their materials for feedback from other cohort members.

RespectAbility, a diverse, disability-led nonprofit that works to create systemic change in how society views and values people with disabilities, piloted the Lab in 2019 in Los Angeles. The Lab went virtual in 2020 and 2021 before holding an in-person cohort in Los Angeles in June and July of this year. The virtual format in prior years proved so invaluable to participants and the entertainment industry that RespectAbility decided to continue its successful virtual Lab program. [continue reading…]