An interesting site about persons with disabilities.

As I pointed out in my last post, my focus for my final project is on the representation of persons with disabilities in literature. During my research on the topic I came across an interesting site called Easter Seals Disability Services. What first caught my attention was that above their list of children's books depicting characters with disabilities, they had a list of book characteristics to look at in deciding what determined a quality representation of persons with disabilities within literature. One of the main qualities was person first representation and also to show that although there are similarities between persons with and without disabilities it is important to not leave out where there are differences. It is also important not to portray characters with disabilities as deserving pity but it is also important not to identify them as heroes by glorifying their ability to carry out everyday activities. One thing to look for in book depicting characters with disabilities is to make sure there are positive representations and that what persons with disabilities can AND cannot do are represented in a positive way. I found this site very beneficial as I was critiquing my books for my final project. I think one thing that jumped out to me was depicting the differences between persons with and without disabilities. I guess I don't know why I wouldn't have thought that this concept wasn't crucial to books about persons with disabilities because in order to accurate portray the characters you have to talk about the differences. I can see now why it may be offensive to see persons with disabilities depicted as the same as everyone else because it can seem as if the disabilities is trying to be covered up. I continued browsing the site and I found many different resources that would be beneficial for others to check out. There was a section on myths about persons with disabilities and also resources for parents and teachers. I think a site like this is creates a place where persons with disabilities can grasp that cultural aspect of their lives and it is a place that shows them in a positive light to those without that cultural connection. It makes me a little more at ease to know that there are sites like this available for the entire world to see.