These two things crossed my inbox on the same day.
Latest Data Follows Historic Trends
Despite years of bargaining with producers to include the hiring of performers with a disability in Casting Data Reports, this protected category continues to be left out. Fifty-six million Americans — 20% of the U.S. population — have a disability. Despite being the largest minority group in the country, people with disabilities remain virtually invisible in entertainment media.
Glee Cast to receive award for Diversity
The cast of the quirky Fox musical comedy will receive the organization’s 2009 award for favorite new diverse ensemble cast in November, according to Reuters. The series, which focuses on a less-than-cool high school glee club, mixes jocks and cheerleaders with a boy in a wheelchair (Kevin McHale), a geeky girl (Lea Michele), a gay student (Chris Colfer), an Asian goth (Jenna Ushkowitz) and an overweight African-American girl (Amber Riley).
Of course they are.
yeah. I’ve pretty much gone right off Glee I’m afraid.
.-= belledame222´s last blog .."The flip side of this charming worldview…" =-.
Yup, Glee’s so diverse! They gay boy’s feminine and obsessed with fashion, the Asian girl is quiet and shy, and the black girl is a sassy diva! So many different personalities!
…whaddya mean, playing into stereotypes?
And of course, the first link doesn’t mention that on the rare occasion PWD ARE seen in mainstream media, they’re side characters who won’t get much focus until their Very Special Episode about disability (like Artie’s VSE coming up in Glee) or they’re there to be ‘inspirational’ or to be miraculously cured.
Sigh.
.-= calixti´s last blog ..Fat, health, invisible disability, and the intersection thereof. =-.
I hope “Glee” turns it around… with at least three contract characters w/ disabilities, I feel like there’s still time to give them personalities, stories, complexity on par w/ what they’ve given the gay and “pushy” jewish characters… and they need to get rid of the fracked-up ableist jokes, of course.
.-= Tim Jones-Yelvington´s last blog ..I’m Here for Your Entertainment =-.
What?!! I guess this really does go to show that the tokenistic kind of representation “Glee” provides really does win points with the mainstream media, without actually making any effort to creat three-dimensional, non-stereotypical representations of PoC, LGBT folks, and PWD. Urgh.
.-= Sarah´s last blog ..Missing in Causation Talk: Actual Autistics =-.