Autism is a World

I really enjoyed watching the movie Autism is a World, about Sue Rubin, a 26 year old woman who has autism and is able to descriptively communicate what it is like to have autism, how she felt growing up, and what has been most helpful for her. 

I am currently in the MSU elementary education program, but I am greatly considering getting my masters degree in special education. This movie was just one more thing to motivate me to do so: I could not help but be overwhelmed with emotion, pride, and happiness for Sue as she excelled in college, and for the many people with disabilities that she inspired at her conference. 

Here is a related article that I came across the other day in the waiting room at the doctor's office:  (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/oct/20/parents-push-for-autism-coverage/)

As far as this article goes in relation to the documentary,  Autism is a World, it seemed that Sue Rubin received a lot of funding and help from the government so that she could afford the 24 hour help she needed. This article really makes it clear how difficult it must be for families that cannot receive the kind of help that Sue gets to help their children. I know that if I were in their situation as a parent of a child with autism without sufficient funding to best help my child, I would be beyond frustrated! I think it is important to think about all of these things now so that I can be prepared for whatever the future holds for me. 

Blindness

When Cheryl showed us the trailer for the movie Blindness, I was rather intrigued. At first, I thought the movie looked really good. The first minute or so of the trailer looked very interesting. It did seem controversial, but I still really thought it looked good. It made me think about what it would be like if I went blind overnight. As the trailer continued, though, my opinion changed. People in the movie who become blind are shown as being quarantined and animalistic. I was pretty appalled that this could be acceptable for a big screen movie. I did a little reading up on the issue and found that, as Cheryl had described, blind people of America do not approve of this movie, nor would I expect them to. I think it is disturbing that a big screen movie like this with so many popular actors is out that makes a particular population of people - in this case, blind people - feel like they have to defend themselves as human beings. "Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: ...We are not helpless children or immoral, degenerate monsters; we are teachers, lawyers, mechanics, plumbers, computer programmers, and social workers." (http://www.nfb.org/nfb/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=368)

Perhaps people involved in mainstream media should act more as leaders, models and people to look up to, rather than instigate controversy that harms many citizens of our country.