By kaninchenzero on 3 June, 2010
On 1 June 2010, E. Fuller Torrey MD wrote an op-ed column for the New York Times, “Make Kendra’s Law Permanent.” Dr Torrey is the founder of the Treatment Advocacy Center (TAC), a nonprofit group whose sole purpose is to lobby states for the passage of so-called assisted outpatient treatment (AOT) laws like Kendra’s Law [...]
Posted in blaming, class issues, justice, mental health, news, othering, policy, politics, poverty, representations, social attitudes, violence | Tagged accessibility, mental illness, myths and misconceptions, problematic attitudes, social treatment
By abby jean on 28 May, 2010
Ableist Word Profile is an ongoing FWD/Forward series in which we explore ableism and the way it manifests in language usage. Here’s what this series is about: Examining word origins, the way in which ableism is unconsciously reinforced, the power that language has. Here’s what this series is not about: Telling people which words they [...]
Posted in Ableist Word Profile, blaming, justice, language, mental health, news, policy, politics, representations, shaming, social attitudes | Tagged abby rants
By abby jean on 22 May, 2010
I love looking at pictures of cute animals on the internet. Cats, dogs, monkeys, dolphins, turtles, otters – whatever. And I find that skimming through a few LOLcat macros during the workday can do wonders to perk up my mood or give me a smile before diving back into work. Which is part of why [...]
Posted in activism, For Cereal?, language, media and pop culture, mental health, representations
By Anna on 19 May, 2010
The way I see it, one of two things is true:
1. Jenny McCarthy cured her son of Autism.
2. Evan never had autism in the first place, but may have had another syndrome, or have been developmentally delayed and “caught up”.
In either case, Jenny McCarthy is not currently the mother of an autistic child.
Posted in identity, invisibility, media and pop culture, news, othering, reading list, representations, social attitudes
By s.e. smith on 15 May, 2010
Here in the United States, there’s a depiction of disability that airs on network television every Thursday night, on the Shonda Rimes show Private Practice. Rimes is probably better known for Grey’s Anatomy, a show which has won a lot of accolades1, not least for the ethnic diversity of its cast, but Private Practice is [...]
Posted in media and pop culture, representations | Tagged disabled actors, disabled characters, private practice
By abby jean on 12 May, 2010
People seemed to like the first edition of this series! So here are some more music videos set in psychiatric hospitals! In the last post, all of the videos used the mental hospital setting as a visual demonstration of the depth and intensity of love, depicting institutionalization as a result of loving someone a whole [...]
Posted in media and pop culture, mental health, representations | Tagged music videos
By Staff on 11 May, 2010
Content note: This post is the result of a collaboration between a group of FWD contributors, abby jean, Annaham, Anna, and s.e. smith, which is why it is credited to ‘Staff.’ This is part two in a two part series. What happens when you, as a blogger, delve into pop culture? A lot of unpleasant [...]
Posted in media and pop culture, meta, representations | Tagged art, media critique, social justice, structural issues
By Anna on 7 May, 2010
I’m pretty angry about that. Not offended, Ms Magazine, angry. You see, I’m really tired of “the disabled” being treated like we’re unthinking masses. I’m especially tired of the feminist movement – you know, one that allegedly wants equal rights for all people, including women with disabilities – doing this. It makes me angry because I’m a feminist as well as a woman as well as a person with a disability as well as someone who is not the pawn of anyone, thank you very much.
Posted in activism, anna rants, autonomy, disability activism, feminism, gender, global, history, i'm right here, identity, intersectionality, invisibility, justice, othering, representations, resistance, social attitudes
By Staff on 5 May, 2010
Content note: This post is the result of a collaboration between a group of FWD contributors, abby jean, Annaham, Anna, and s.e. smith, which is why it is credited to ‘Staff.’ This is part one in a two part series. One thing has been clearly established: Something guaranteed to attract absurd amounts of traffic is [...]
Posted in media and pop culture, meta, representations | Tagged art, media critique, structural issues
By abby jean on 5 May, 2010
After reading Anna’s recent post on Janelle Monae’s ‘Tightrope’ video and how it “is a great example of how not to completely screw up representation(s) of disability,” I started remembering other music videos set in psychiatric hospitals. And then I started watching all these music videos! One of the earliest I remember is Melissa Etheridge’s [...]
Posted in media and pop culture, mental health, representations, social attitudes, television | Tagged music videos
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