The most formidable barrier facing individuals with disabilities, is often found in the behavior of others. If a person considers another individual to be 'deviant' than what he/she considers to be the 'norm,' that person will treat the 'other' often times negatively, including ignoring or otherwise discounting the other person's existence.
Such behavior may be due to a lack of understanding or knowledge about what disabilities are and what it means to have one. Awareness programming, a goal of RDS, is one method to address these negative perceptions regarding individuals with disabilities by providing information that hopefully fills in the blanks for others unfamiliar with the disability experience.
Individuals with disabilities, too, may have specific misperceptions as to what it means to have a disability. RDS attempts to provide disabled students with relevant information so they continue to acquire the knowledge to negotiate their place in society successfully.
The links at left will provide information directed towards educating others about people with disabilities, with an emphasis on disability as part of the human condition, not deviant from it. Below are efforts conducted for Spring 2009 to increase awareness of disability issues.
Josh Blue, a winner of the Last Comic Standing program, is a comedian who knows that living with a disability can be a 'laughing' matter! According to his website, he "uses his incredible sense of humor and likeability to defy stereotypes and encourage others to overcome their preconceived notions about people who are considerd 'disabled.'" He will be performing on campus
When: Wednesday, October 21, 2009 Time: 6:30 pm Where: Lory Student Center Theater
Don't know who Josh Blue is? Check this YouTube short: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbMg1dLYqg8
Keith Wann, a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) comedian, is coming to CSU. "Watching Two Worlds Collide" features humorous stories about growing up with Deaf parents in a hearing world. Performed in American Sign Language, there will be a voice interpreter provided. Co-sponsored by RDS, American Sign Language Club at CSU, Diversity and Justice Progams, and ASAP. FREE to the public.
When: Friday, March 27 at 6:00 pm. Where: Lory Student Center Theater.
Check Keith Wann out on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2nX41KvnNY or at www.keithwann.com
Eli Clare, author of Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation, will be on campus April 6 and 7. Co-sponsored by RDS, Committee for Disabled Student Accessibility, GLBT Resource Center, and Campus Activities.
Eli will be presenting "Listening to the Freaks," a multi-media lecture and discussion that explores what the freak shows can teach us about resistance and exploitation, pride and shame. Through story-telling, poetry, and analysis, race, disability, imperialism, and queerness are woven together into narratives of pride and witness.
When: Monday, April 6 at 7:00 - 8:30 pm. Where: Cherokee Park, Lory Student Center.
Eli will be doing a reading from either of his two books (Exile and The Marrow's Telling: Words in Motion) with a booksigning to follow.
When: Tuesday, April 7 at 12:00 - 1:00 pm Where: Virginia Dale, Lory Student Center
Eli will also be facilitating a storytelling workshop "Stories in Motion: Listening to the Marrow," exploring what stories tell us about embodied experiences of race, disability, violence, class, gender identity, and sexuality.
When: Tuesday, April 7 at 5:30 - 7:30 pm Where: Cherokee Park, Lory Student Center
For more information on Eli Clare, visit: http://eliclare.com/books/