When Priviledge is Exploitation of the Disabled. Rinse Repeat

Today’s BBC and CNN and many other media outlets ran stories on Lori Laughlin’s daughter and how “apparently contrite” she is and how she blames her privilege for not even being aware of her mistakes.

Everyone is talking about how the sports quota was misused and how money was used to buy seats. There seems to be less outrage over the exploitation of a vulnerable population.

Why is there not more outrage
shame on you talk shows for inviting these people back and giving them visibility
Shame of you mainstream newspapers for highlighting and making newsworthy a carefully orchestrated PR image rebuilding campaign of celebrities, that too in a year where you were working on  touting the 30th anniversary of ADA.

Is this why 150 folks with disabilities crawled up the steps the steps of Capitol Hill in 1990 to get the ADA passed?

Is this the use for disability  accommodations.

It in incredibly hard for real disabled people to get a dx in order to access services.
Accommodations are hard fought for in order to provide equity of access for disabled people. it is a struggle to get even basic accommodations at every level often involving lawsuits.

I’m a psychology student and deeply ashamed of the psychologists who handing out disabled labels to privileged kids so they can exploit disability accommodations.  It's a violation of the disability community.

Shame on anyone who is enabling such people to become social influencers again.

What message are you sending. that its ok to exploit and violate a vulnerable  if you are privileged, because money can buy you a PR firm in case it backfires.

What is the message being sent out, that the disabled community are sitting ducks for exploitation as and when you want?

Coming and saying you was unaware because of your privilege seems like a made up another "privileged" excuse especially when you read the LA times article that talks about the methods used. Students were coached on how to act “slow” so they could get an learning disability dx. Which meant they got extra time for their SAT and ACT tests. 

Did privilege mask the fact that pretending to be slow to get a disability diagnosis is somehow wrong?

Did privilege mask that getting the extra time on tests or that private time seem not quite right?

Its not just exploitation, it feel like a violation of the disability community. it is real damage being done to the disabled community which is trying to so hard to make inroads into acceptance and inclusion.

If a person is really contrite, and wants to not just privilege as an excuse, try to truly understand the other side. Don’t talk the talk, walk the walk.  Koin the peace corps, go work in a real underprivileged area for a few years, without using it as a photo op or a background to your social media. Live like that community, dress like that community, eat like that community and do some good for that community.

You can only become a “somebody" when you become a “nobody" who is really making a  real difference to that community.

Your health is as safe as that of the worst-insured

 Your health is as safe as that of the worst-insured.

Holi@Cal

Holi 2019 @ Cal

3/16: Another March Holi at Cal that was a total Blast

---

Holi 2018 @ Cal

Holi March 2018 at Cal in the Foothill Parking Lot was loud and crazy.
I loved it.

Here's a video of Holi at Cal from a previous year

Celebrating (Dis)abilities in the Workplace

Celebrating (Dis)abilities in the Workplace

https://www.dailycal.org/2019/03/02/celebrating-disabilities-in-the-workplace-disabled-faculty-and-staff-speak-on-challenges-future-steps-for-disability-accommodations-in-employment/

My article for the Daily Cal after a series of interviews with the Disabled Staff and Faculty at UC Berkeley

My third Daily Cal Orientation

My 3rd Daily Cal Orientation.

This semester I join the Weekender Department.

 

The Fabric of Love

The Fabric of Love - A Poem

https://www.dailycal.org/2019/02/15/the-fabric-of-love-a-poem/

Lives Worth Living

 Lecture 1 of my first Disability Studies Class at UC Berkeley with Prof Victor Pineda. 

CYPLAN 120 Community Planning and Public Policy for Disability

We got to see the movie "Lives Worth Living"

Impressions: 

I am thrilled that there were so many front-runners who have eased the path for disabled individuals like me by making ADA possible. The movie was very powerful and moving.

The disability rights movement was inspired by the civil rights and gender equality movements and drew on many of their tactics, especially that of civil disobedience.
The sit-in in the rotunda was a masterful stroke, and more so tying themselves to their wheelchairs and to each other, so as to prevent forcible removal. It is definitely not easy for a cop to lift both a person and a heavy motorized wheelchair. I can imagine that the image of disabled individuals dragging themselves up the steps did not sit well with lawmakers, especially since it was televised and drew the attention of a national audience.


No laws get passed without the support of lawmakers and in a way it was fortunate that the Kennedy family had a personal stake in the issue along with a few other well-wishing lawmakers. Robert Kennedy was able to end large institutions by exposing the appalling practices at places like Willowbrook in NY. Though he had not intended to, President G.W Bush ended up being a proponent of the movement and declaring, “let the wall of exclusion come tumbling down.”


I liked the movement’s clear message of, “nothing about us without us,” and that the change had to happen “now.” For too long, the non-disabled had decided what was best for the disabled, a very paternalistic attitude. A non-deaf president of Gallaudet University for the deaf was forced to step down, which added momentum to the movement. Incidentally, the director of Disability Services at San Jose City College is deaf.


Early on, the disabled had realized that there was strength in numbers and came together as a community instead of each disability acting for its particular interests. Clearly, as a very large group, their tireless efforts did help get laws passed.


Since the movie laws like IDEA have passed which has addressed both physical and intellectual access. The disability movement which started with physical disabilities grew to include developmental, intellectual and other forms of disabilities.


However, implementation of the law is still lax and societal attitudes have not caught up. I have experienced a pervasive culture of low expectations by special educators and a reluctance to mainstream despite the underlying principles of LRE and FAPE in IDEA. In high scoring districts like those in south bay, the reluctance is also fueled by parents of typical kids who do not want their high-achieving, kid’s education to be distracted by the presence of disabled kids in the classroom. The result is the large numbers or special education classrooms rather than mainstreaming a great majority of those kids. It ends up limiting their opportunities in life.


I have been fortunate that Cal is such an accepting place. I wonder about my life after Cal, would ADA give enough protections or would I be presumed incompetent or an economic burden yet again.

Lives Worth Living

Lecture 1 of my first Disability Studies Class at UC Berkeley with Prof Victor Pineda. 

CYPLAN 120 Community Planning and Public Policy for Disability

We got to see the movie "Lives Worth Living"

Impressions: 

I am thrilled that there were so many front-runners who have eased the path for disabled individuals like me by making ADA possible. The movie was very powerful and moving.

The disability rights movement was inspired by the civil rights and gender equality movements and drew on many of their tactics, especially that of civil disobedience.
The sit-in in the rotunda was a masterful stroke, and more so tying themselves to their wheelchairs and to each other, so as to prevent forcible removal. It is definitely not easy for a cop to lift both a person and a heavy motorized wheelchair. I can imagine that the image of disabled individuals dragging themselves up the steps did not sit well with lawmakers, especially since it was televised and drew the attention of a national audience.


No laws get passed without the support of lawmakers and in a way it was fortunate that the Kennedy family had a personal stake in the issue along with a few other well-wishing lawmakers. Robert Kennedy was able to end large institutions by exposing the appalling practices at places like Willowbrook in NY. Though he had not intended to, President G.W Bush ended up being a proponent of the movement and declaring, “let the wall of exclusion come tumbling down.”


I liked the movement’s clear message of, “nothing about us without us,” and that the change had to happen “now.” For too long, the non-disabled had decided what was best for the disabled, a very paternalistic attitude. A non-deaf president of Gallaudet University for the deaf was forced to step down, which added momentum to the movement. Incidentally, the director of Disability Services at San Jose City College is deaf.


Early on, the disabled had realized that there was strength in numbers and came together as a community instead of each disability acting for its particular interests. Clearly, as a very large group, their tireless efforts did help get laws passed.


Since the movie laws like IDEA have passed which has addressed both physical and intellectual access. The disability movement which started with physical disabilities grew to include developmental, intellectual and other forms of disabilities.


However, implementation of the law is still lax and societal attitudes have not caught up. I have experienced a pervasive culture of low expectations by special educators and a reluctance to mainstream despite the underlying principles of LRE and FAPE in IDEA. In high scoring districts like those in south bay, the reluctance is also fueled by parents of typical kids who do not want their high-achieving, kid’s education to be distracted by the presence of disabled kids in the classroom. The result is the large numbers or special education classrooms rather than mainstreaming a great majority of those kids. It ends up limiting their opportunities in life.


I have been fortunate that Cal is such an accepting place. I wonder about my life after Cal, would ADA give enough protections or would I be presumed incompetent or an economic burden yet again.

Role of Disability in Society

 

CyPlan 120 Community Planning and Public Policy for Disability

Group Presentation in Wurster Hall
Instructor: Dr Victor Pineda


Reflection: The Role of Disability in Society by Jaeger

The author emphasizes that disability is a social construct, which makes its impact all the more significant. This social construct can be seen in terminology that reflects societal attitudes and changes. Disability is often the master status that defines the individual. I am uniquely Hari who also happens to have Autism. Autism should not be the sum total of who I am.

This master status impacts the way the disabled are treated. It reinforces stereotypes, exclusion, oppression, hostility, feigned concern, over-romanticism, sentimentality, indifference, and marginalization. It presumes incompetence in the workplace or some kind of economic burden on the employer. Even with laws like ADA in place, only 25% of the disabled are employed. The unemployment rate is 70% compared to 5% in the non-disabled population.

An irony is that many typical people are willing to support equal rights for minority groups based on race, gender, sexual orientation etc. Yet there is social distancing when it comes to disability. Disability is seen as distressing with varying levels of reactions depending on the nature of the disability.  

When enough people in a society try to classify a set of people they come up with ways to exclude them socially and legally. Even the founding fathers thought we disabled just needed to be taken care of. The supreme court has time and again, taken a narrow interpretation of disability protection laws even as they have allowed for a broad interpretation in other laws.

The disabled need to be part of the decisions made about them, both individually and as a group. Historically this has not been so. Even media images are guided by non-disabled people. The 7 negative stereotypes about the disabled that continue to perpetuate in the media are -  pitiful and pathetic; supercrip; sinister, evil, and criminal; better off dead; maladjusted and their own worst enemy; burden; and unable to live a successful life.

The world is built to cater to the needs of the abled perspective. They have no idea of the everyday challenges of the disabled in trying to navigate this environment. The social perspective sees disability as the result of an unsuitable environment, a kind of Disablism. Hence the need for social justice. If the environment is changed through laws and social norms, the disability lessens.

The idea of access is both physical and intellectual. Physical access is the architectural access along with a dose of dignity. A wheelchair user should not have to use a separate ramp or elevator at the back of the building. The spatial aspects of enablement in Pineda’s article could well be fulfilled by the planned cities envisioned by Le Corbusier which Alexander is so critical of in his article. On the flip side, the compartmentalized nature of a tree city could end up with some inadvertent segregation as well.

Intellectual access requires clarity and organization in the way information is presented. Education and Information is power in a democracy and the disabled need equal access to it. They need equal opportunity to understand the content.  Technology itself is both a blessing and a problem. It’s hard to keep up with changing technology and the smaller screen sizes do make things more challenging.

Disability is growing and a worldwide issue. The author cites the number at 550 million, only 15% disabled at birth. Ironically the US is the country that provides most rights. Some countries even restrict access. Australia has turned away immigrant families who have disabled kids. The parents were welcome but not the disabled kid.

Though we have made progress in disability laws, the implementation is lax. For example,  a core principle of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is that a student should be removed from general education only if his disability is so severe as to impact his educational needs. Yet time and again my school district refused to mainstream me. Their nod to compliance with the law was to allow me in the same playground as other children during recess. Somehow by magical osmosis, I was supposed to pick up skills from them.

As a disabled individual, I am thrilled that we have laws. But unless social attitudes shift, we are not going to see meaningful change. At the end of the day, all of us, whether abled or disabled, have a common goal, to be a meaningful and productive member of society.

Disability in Society

A presentation for my Community Planning and Public Policy for Disabilities Class in Wurster Hall.

Reflection: The Role of Disability in Society by Jaeger

The author emphasizes that disability is a social construct, which makes its impact all the more significant. This social construct can be seen in terminology that reflects societal attitudes and changes. Disability is often the master status that defines the individual. I am uniquely Hari who also happens to have Autism. Autism should not be the sum total of who I am.

This master status impacts the way the disabled are treated. It reinforces stereotypes, exclusion, oppression, hostility, feigned concern, over-romanticism, sentimentality, indifference, and marginalization. It presumes incompetence in the workplace or some kind of economic burden on the employer. Even with laws like ADA in place, only 25% of the disabled are employed. The unemployment rate is 70% compared to 5% in the non-disabled population.

An irony is that many typical people are willing to support equal rights for minority groups based on race, gender, sexual orientation etc. Yet there is social distancing when it comes to disability. Disability is seen as distressing with varying levels of reactions depending on the nature of the disability.

When enough people in a society try to classify a set of people they come up with ways to exclude them socially and legally. Even the founding fathers thought we disabled just needed to be taken care of. The supreme court has time and again, taken a narrow interpretation of disability protection laws even as they have allowed for a broad interpretation in other laws.

The disabled need to be part of the decisions made about them, both individually and as a group. Historically this has not been so. Even media images are guided by non-disabled people. The 7 negative stereotypes about the disabled that continue to perpetuate in the media are - pitiful and pathetic; supercrip; sinister, evil, and criminal; better off dead; maladjusted and their own worst enemy; burden; and unable to live a successful life.

The world is built to cater to the needs of the abled perspective. They have no idea of the everyday challenges of the disabled in trying to navigate this environment. The social perspective sees disability as the result of an unsuitable environment, a kind of Disablism. Hence the need for social justice. If the environment is changed through laws and social norms, the disability lessens.

The idea of access is both physical and intellectual. Physical access is the architectural access along with a dose of dignity. A wheelchair user should not have to use a separate ramp or elevator at the back of the building. The spatial aspects of enablement in Pineda’s article could well be fulfilled by the planned cities envisioned by Le Corbusier which Alexander is so critical of in his article. On the flip side, the compartmentalized nature of a tree city could end up with some inadvertent segregation as well.

Intellectual access requires clarity and organization in the way information is presented. Education and Information is power in a democracy and the disabled need equal access to it. They need equal opportunity to understand the content. Technology itself is both a blessing and a problem. It’s hard to keep up with changing technology and the smaller screen sizes do make things more challenging.

Disability is growing and a worldwide issue. The author cites the number at 550 million, only 15% disabled at birth. Ironically the US is the country that provides most rights. Some countries even restrict access. Australia has turned away immigrant families who have disabled kids. The parents were welcome but not the disabled kid.


Though we have made progress in disability laws, the implementation is lax. For example, a core principle of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is that a student should be removed from general education only if his disability is so severe as to impact his educational needs. Yet time and again my school district refused to mainstream me. Their nod to compliance with the law was to allow me in the same playground as other children during recess. Somehow by magical osmosis, I was supposed to pick up skills from them.


As a disabled individual, I am thrilled that we have laws. But unless social attitudes shift, we are not going to see meaningful change. At the end of the day, all of us, whether abled or disabled, have a common goal, to be a meaningful and productive member of society.

Father of my Children - Film Review

https://www.dailycal.org/2019/01/31/father-of-my-children-hansen-love/

My Film Review for the Daily Cal. 

'Father of my Children' explores nuances of fatherhood, familial obligation

The entire series by the film maker was aired at the BAMPFA in Jan.

The Daily Cal got pre-screening invites.

The Kid who would be King - Film Review

The Kid Who Would be King: [Film Review]

https://www.dailycal.org/2019/01/26/the-kid-who-would-be-king-offers-humor-moral-lessons-is-a-movie-preteens-will-enjoy/

Saw the pre-screening for this movie "The Kid Who Would Be King" on Jan 19 though the article came out on Jan 22 in the Daily Cal.

Rode the BART to SF.  It felt really cool to sit in a specially reserved row meant just for journalists at AMC Metreon 16 in downtown SF.

Overhead this from 2 journalists who were chatting next to me. "I'm here only because it's a Joe Cornish movie. Otherwise, I'm not that interested in covering a kid's movie"

Save the Redwoods League - Local Event

Save The Redwoods League [Local Book Event Launch]

https://www.dailycal.org/2019/01/22/save-the-redwoods-league-book-launch-event/

A local event that I covered. The launch of a new book on redwood conservation.

It was an Edgar Allan Poe kind of night - a thunderstorm was going on. Hard to even locate the bookstore in the pouring rain.

The place was packed nevertheless.  The room was milling with people around a table loaded with snacks. Another table nearby served wine. Only after the eating and drinking was done did the talk begin.

The result of the joint effort by Save the Redwoods League and Heyday was this remarkable book on coast redwoods. I learned so much.