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8/6/25 - Disability and the arts

Andrew Pulrang

Andrew Pulrang

— 4 min read
Small, square white on blue wheelchair symbol sign on a tall pole, with woods in the background
Small, square white on blue wheelchair symbol sign on a tall pole, with woods in the background

Good afternoon!


I've spent most of the last couple of days managing repairs and redecorations in my apartment. I hired someone to do the physical work, which made me nervous but worked out well. It's the first major revamp of my "space" since I moved here in 2008. And getting help to do it was long overdue. You would think that having disabilities all of my life would make me used to getting help to do things I can't do for myself that most people do on their own. But advocating for other disabled people's support services doesn't necessarily mean I'm totally comfortable doing it.

I've been saving these art-themed articles for a few days now. They remind me of how much I have neglected disability culture recently.

Also, please have a look at the Take Action section below. There are two new alerts there. And if you haven't noticed yet, Ghost has just offered a new newsletter layout, and I've adopted it for Disability Thinking Weekday. I like it better. Let me know what you think!

Wednesday Links
Wednesday Links

City centre turned into 'floating' art display

Rosie Eaton and Oprah Flash, BBC - August 1, 2025

"Called "This is me, This is us", the display has been created entirely by disabled and neurodivergent artists and, using a QR code, viewers can see a number of sculptures and paintings ... The works can be seen until 31 October on Broadgate Square in the city."

I'm still not sure what this art exhibit is like. It might be an instance where the cliché phrase, "I guess you had to be there" might really be true. Maybe that's a good thing, not a flaw. We as disabled people are given more than enough substitute, partial, pseudo-experiences. Real ones that are fully accessible but require us to be present to us on multiple levels and sensory channels are important.

WHY THE “DISABILITY IN FILM” SHOWCASE ON TURNER CLASSIC MOVIES MATTERS

Lawrence Carter-Long, ReelAbilities - July 10, 2025

"The evening features a carefully curated selection of films that, with the benefit of time, dare to ask not just who gets seen in cinema, but how those stories are told, who gets to tell them, and actually discuss why these things matter."

I've fallen way behind in seeing films that include disability themes, disabled characters, and disabled actors – something I actually studied and did research on in graduate school. I missed the evening itself. But I'll see if I can watch some of the movies profiled here. What are your favorite, or least favorite disability films?

Disability Media Dispatch: Can a Medical Drama Be Disability-Competent? "The Pitt" Tries.

Emily Ladau, Words I Wheel By - August 2, 2025

"Further, as a disabled woman with a deep well of medical trauma, I often struggle to watch medical shows because disability is sensationalized or tragic, something to be fixed or cured, merely a plot device—but it didn’t feel that way on The Pitt. And because Brandon is a therapist, he loathes media that, as he put it to me, depicts unethical mental health care as typical without being self-critical of why it’s problematic—but The Pitt was generally very aware of itself."

I'm behind with disability on TV, too. Most of the examples I want to cite on the subject, good and bad, are 20 years old or more. Mickey Abbot on Seinfeld and Dr. Kerry Weaver on ER just aren't cutting edge anymore. Maybe I should start my update with The Pitt. What do you think about state of disability on TV today?

Take Action
Take Action
Urgent: We Must Act to Save the Protection and Advocacy Network with the National Disability Rights Network
Urgent: We Must Act to Save the Protection and Advocacy Network with the National Disability Rights Network
Tell Congress: Protect Disability Services & Fund Our Future! with The Arc
Tell Congress: Protect Disability Services & Fund Our Future! with The Arc
National Action for Wheelchair Repair Reform with the United Spinal Association
National Action for Wheelchair Repair Reform with the United Spinal Association
Take Action for Safer Accessible Parking & More Economical Paratransit with the United Spinal Association
Take Action for Safer Accessible Parking & More Economical Paratransit with the United Spinal Association
Comment, Subscribe & Support
Comment, Subscribe & Support

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