[NFBF-L] Hobin email FW: Oscar-nominated Feeling Character. It also has ableist and racist messages.

[Brian Norton]

Hello Marilyn and other NFBF Deaf Blind board members                                              ,
This was interesting email I received from Hobin last week. You may wish to post on Diversity list.
Talk Sunday,
Brian
Brian Edward Norton
National Federation of the Blind of Florida
NFBF Greater Daytona Beach President
NFBF Deaf Blind Division President
386.871.3359
brian.edward.norton at outlook.com<mailto:brian.edward.norton at outlook.com>
Apostle Paul:
We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.
since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal
2 Corinthians 4:18


From: Haben Girma <contact at habengirma.com<mailto:contact at habengirma.com>>
Sent: Friday, April 23, 2021 10:44 AM
To: brian.edward.norton at outlook.com<mailto:brian.edward.norton at outlook.com>
Subject: Oscar-nominated Feeling Through has a Deafblind Character. It also has ableist and racist messages.


Dear Friends,

I normally don't follow the Oscars, but this year's nominations include a short film with a Deafblind character. Depictions of underrepresented groups in movies influence how the mainstream public treats us. Feeling Through features a Black teen taking advantage of a Deafblind man, perpetuating the dangerous "Black criminals" stereotype.

The portrayal of deafblindness also advances harmful stereotypes. How the Deafblind character travels with a cane, shops, and manages money does not represent Deafblind people. The New York Times mistakenly praised the film for being "a window into the largely unknown world of deaf-blindness," which saddens me. Celebrating Feeling Through adds to the discrimination facing disabled people at work, school, and the community.

Most film critics miss the racism and ableism in Feeling Through, so I created my own film review with a disability justice perspective.
[Video: Oscar-nominated film Feeling Through Exploits Deafblind People]<https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FEjX_-H8AS9Y&data=04%7C01%7C%7Ca517fcfb991241ac625008d90b6be47a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637553380283771986%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=PnEy4j73HeL9MWJTtaPXV%2BVx5xTye3vsiW0KRO1Z%2BuI%3D&reserved=0>

You can use Feeling Through to teach people to catch racist and ableist messages, skills all of us dedicated to human rights should have.

One last thing. Some film critics claim Feeling Through is the first film to cast a Deafblind actor in a leading role, but that's incorrect. The 1919 film Deliverance featured Helen Keller cast as herself in that film about her life. Let's continue to remember Helen Keller.

Best,
Haben

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Haben Girma

Human Rights Lawyer, Author, Speaker

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Haben Girma
405 El Camino Real
# 209
Menlo Park, CA 94025

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