LS 10: On the Same Page by Aileen Liu (Fall 2023, Junior)
LS 10 is a class on the disabled rights movement. It started at Crip Camp where disabled teenagers got to feel like normal teenagers. Some of them went to UC Berkeley and they started the Disabled Rights Movement. UC Berkeley's Moffit Library has "The Cave" which is a learning center for disabled students. UC Berkeley's current Clark Kerr Campus used to be the former California School for the Blind and the Deaf. Before the movement, they didn't have accessible parking or elevators to reach the second floor. Only through the protests and the movements do we have accessible resources for disabled people.
We as a society tend to view disabled people more on the disabled aspect and less on the people's part. They end up becoming a different group of people due to their disability. I also realized the importance of the word disabled. Disabled means you cannot do a certain action such as going up the flight of stairs to the second floor. However, if you can remove that disability by having an elevator then it doesn't feel fair to call them disabled anymore because they can go to the 2nd floor like everyone. That was the goal of the movement. Disability extends to more than just physical and mental disability. One of my International friends is from Japan. He talked about how he had difficulty in class because he didn't understand English as well. In that context, he was disabled due to a lack of English proficiency.
I am also disabled. I used to joke around that I'm socially disabled. The reality is, that's true. Compared to others I can't communicate effectively with others due to trauma, lack of experience, and being in a new environment. One day I hope to overcome this disability.
Another small idea is about empathy vs sympathy. Sympathy is when you feel bad for somebody. Empathy is when you understand what somebody's going through. The movie was trying to achieve empathy among the viewers by helping us understand the struggles and achievements of the disabled rights group.
