National Disability Employment Awareness Month

September 25, 2020

New Day Filmmaker Reid Davenport is sitting at a desk with his hands on a keyboard in a video editing room. He faces three video monitors and has a small smile on his face. — New Day Filmmaker Reid Davenport in the editing room.

This October is the United States’ 75th observance of National Disability Employment Awareness Month, a time to celebrate the contributions of people with disabilities and likewise to learn about issues facing those with disabilities.

The observance coincides with the 30th anniversary of the passage of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life. New Day celebrates these important milestones by highlighting films made by disabled filmmakers.

Signed in 1990, The American with Disabilities Act promised equality for people with disabilities. In his film Ramped Up, Reid Davenport (who has cerebral palsy), shows us a different story. Ramped Up follows the unwavering efforts of Robert Kalani and Lee Ky. A retired firefighter, Kalani has pursued 60 lawsuits against businesses who violate the ADA. Ky, a donut shop owner who operates her business from her wheelchair, battles lawsuits brought upon her business because of the ADA. These two perspectives bring to light the major pitfalls of the law and the gaps in accessibility in the United States, despite having this important legislation.

In this black and white photo, two men sit on a bench and smile at each other. On the left, actor Shane Fistell holds an open notebook on his lap and a pen in one hand. He lays his head on the shoulder of the famous physician Oliver Sacks. Dr. Sacks has a thick, white beard. He looks downward, wears a camera around his neck, and holds a white shopping bag. — *Twitch and Shout*

Laurel Chiten takes us on an intimate and personal journey into the world of Tourette syndrome in her hour-long documentary, Twitch and Shout. An estimated 100,000 individuals suffer from severe symptoms of this largely misunderstood and stigmatized disability, which manifests in a range of involuntary movements, vocalizations and compulsions. Having a mild case of Tourette syndrome herself, Chiten communicates the perspective and depth of feeling that makes this film both unsettling and uplifting.

Rodney Evans knows what it is like to be an artist losing his vision. In his memorable documentary, Vision Portraits, Evans chronicles the creative paths of four blind and visually impaired artists including: a photographer, a dancer, a writer, and Evans himself. A meditation on blindness and creativity, the film explores the possibilities, career choices, and adaptations for people with new-found visual disabilities.

In this dated photo from the seventies, a young girl wearing a striped shirt and red shorts looks up at the camera and gently smiles. She has a heart and a flower painted on her cheek. To her right is an old-fashioned roller skate with thick, black wheels. — *Read Me Differently*

Read Me Differently, a film by Sarah Entine, tells the filmmaker’s own story against a backdrop of three generations of her family’s undiagnosed learning disabilities. Entine shows the strain of misunderstood learning differences and their impact on family dynamics as family members explore what it means to live with dyslexia, ADHD, and processing differences.

Explore and enjoy all of New Day’s selection of disability-related films.