Los Angeles, Sept. 23 – Disability is deeply underrepresented in many industries including entertainment and media, where numbers dwindle far below the 20% participation that would truly reflect the world as it is. Regardless, TV and film have a power to incite social change, drawing in underrepresented creatives as they work to craft a better world. For many, this leaves them with two jobs – to excel at their art and to fight for access for themselves and their communities.

RespectAbility Summer Lab participants recently had the opportunity to speak to experts in the field with lifetimes of experience interfacing their art and advocacy: Leah Meyerhoff, a screenwriter, director, and Founder of Film Fatales; Marci Phillips, VP of Casting at ABC Entertainment; Megan Townsend, Director of Entertainment Research and Analysis at GLAAD; Noriko Louison, Senior Manager of Research and Curriculum at 9Story Media Group; and Victor Pineda, filmmaker and President of World Enabled, and one of RespectAbility’s own Board Members. [continue reading…]

Washington, D.C., Sept. 20 – September is National Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Awareness Month. More than 358,000 people live with SCI in the United States, and according to the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, there are 17,810 new cases each year. Even before the pandemic, only 27 percent of people with SCI were employed 10 years after injury. Yet, some individuals with SCIs are working to change this – from policy to public opinion.

In the area of public policy, Rep. James Langevin paves the way for the disability community in Congress while Randall Duchesneau is making a difference at the US Access Board. Jim Sinocchi works to create more inclusive employment opportunities at JP Morgan Chase and Vincenzo Piscopo works to create change as president of United Spinal. Each is paving the way toward meaningful progress on behalf of people not only with SCIs, but also a wide range of disabilities. [continue reading…]

Ian Malesiewski

Los Angeles, Sept. 20 – Ian Malesiewski, who lives with a Spinal Cord Injury, was a Public Policy and Employment Fellow in RespectAbility’s National Leadership Program for Winter and Spring 2021, and he is now off to use his multidimensional academic background with his applied policy change experience to make spheres of influence in politics more inclusive for people with disabilities.

Malesiewski was awarded a full academic scholarship to the University of Miami, where he is majoring in neuroscience and triple minoring in chemistry, public health, and philosophy. His work with disability advocacy shifted his professional aspirations from a traditional med-school route, to one of law. RespectAbility exposed Malesiewski to the impact he can have through policy change, as he worked directly on the accessibility of the 2020 presidential election and relaunching America’s Workforce Act. In his law career, Malesiewski plans on prioritizing the employment gap of people with disabilities and expanding Medicaid and Medicare benefit programs. [continue reading…]

Krista Ramirez-Villatoro

Los Angeles, Sept 19 – For my family, the 15th of September has historically been spent in my parents’ backyard commemorating my father’s birthday with a “churrasco.” In my family, the 15th is not be confused with the 14th, which is what is actually on my father’s birth certificate, because his father was too drunk on the day his son was born to remember if he had arrived that day or the day before.

On this day only, my father goes by the nickname of independencio, because on the same day 2,385 miles away, Guatemala is celebrating their independence from the Spanish empire. The streets are covered in white and blue, and the emergency rooms are full to the brim with injuries from the sheer amount of illegal fireworks. Runners make their way on the cobblestone streets of Antigua lighting the Independence Torches. I, however, have never experienced this in person. [continue reading…]

“We have to be more Mexican than the Mexicans and more American than the Americans, both at the same time! It’s exhausting!” – Abraham Quintanilla, Selena, 1997

Alejandra Tristan

Austin, Texas, Sept 19 – Being raised as a first generation American, I always was taught to be proud of where I came from and know our culture from Mexico. The richness of having a community, a family full of Tia’s, Tio’s, Abuelos, neighbors that became family. That beauty that comes with being Hispanic and from such a vibrant and bright culture. What isn’t really taught is how to communicate about disabilities of all kinds; mental, physical, visible, and nonvisible.

When my diagnosis of a physical disability came into play, there was a cultural outlook on not only myself but my family about how I was the pobrecita (poor thing) of the family. With those cultural elements of being proud of being Mexican and American, I was taught from a young age to be proud of being from two communities. However, no one really teaches you to be proud of being disabled and that it’s okay to ask for help for one’s needs. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, Sept. 17 – As a part of RespectAbility’s 2021 Summer Lab, participants spoke with several members of the Nickelodeon Digital Studios team to learn about the inner workings of the company’s video production and casting processes. Nickelodeon prides itself in creating content for children that is diverse and inclusive. The team spoke excitedly about their projects and videos that include children who have both visible and nonvisible disabilities.

Marc Cantone, Sr. Director, Preschool Digital Content, and Skylar Apter, Supervising Producer, Editorial & Development, at Nickelodeon Digital Studios, outlined how their department works. Much of their work is in coordination with shows found on Nick Jr, including Blue’s Clues & You! and Blaze and the Monster Machines. For example, this YouTube video featuring Blaze also features young disabled athletes. Released after this conversation with Lab participants, RespectAbility team members consulted on this video. [continue reading…]

Nicole Olarsch

I had not been familiar with Sukkot growing up, as my family did not celebrate and we did not live anywhere near a Synagogue. So the first time I experienced Sukkot was during my undergraduate experience at Hillel. Our assistant director at the time had offered me the task of drawing the Etrog and Lulav as decorations for the Sukkah. While a small task, I was delighted to finally be a part of creating a joyous experience for others. Decorating the Sukkah and enjoying many laughs and meals are experiences that I will forever cherish. [continue reading…]

Joshua Steinberg

Some of the fondest memories I have of Judaism growing up are going to the synagogue to help my father and other members of the community build the Sukkah. I got to spend time with my father and my friends while doing it. As I shared last year, with my disabilities, it took me a long time to feel comfortable in my own skin, and my Shul [synagogue] played a major role in helping me to come out of my shell.

Sukkot, the Jewish harvest festival, commemorates the years that the Jews spent wandering the desert, suffering many hardships while building a generation spiritually ready to enter the land of Israel. We celebrate how God protected our people and helped deliver us to the promised land. Sukkah (plural Sukkot) translates roughly to hut, or booth. During Sukkot, we are meant to live in these Sukkahs with roofs made of branches and leaves. We live in these huts, exposed to the world, to remind us that the greatest true security and protection we have comes from God. The holes in the roof also allow us to see up to the heavens. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, Sept. 16 – Several members of the ViacomCBS family, including representatives from MTV, Paramount Pictures and Showtime, recently joined the RespectAbility Summer Lab to speak on community impact within an entertainment studio setting. Matthew Sinsheimer, Director of Corporate and Digital Communications at Showtime (a subsidiary network operating under the ViacomCBS umbrella); Adam Robinson, VP of Corporate Social Responsibility at ViacomCBS; Daylee Baker, Manager of Social Impact at MTV Entertainment Group; Erin Jordan, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility at Paramount Pictures; and Andrew Machles, VP of Public Affairs & Viewer Services at Nickelodeon took part in this important conversation. [continue reading…]