Achieving with Special Needs

With so many new ways of doing things, creating things and getting ideas out into the world it’s no wonder that we have been able to move along this far in regards to technology for the physically disabled. There are conversations popping up that weren’t thought about previously and there are actions being done to help make the world much more accessible and a little less troublesome for people who do have these disabilities. This is something we’re pretty passionate about staying educated on and up-to-date with so why not share that joy?

One of the biggest things I can recall growing up hearing about are stories told about people with disabilities and special needs. Someone always had something to say (or repeated from an older sibling/family member) and it was almost always negative or derogatory. When you get older you start to understand just how wrong that was and how the world is a lot less simple than “this is black” and “this is white.” So here are some common myths that tend to come up in conversations surround people with special needs:

Putting a high-profile actor in a role where they are asked to portray a character with special needs is nothing new and has been taking place for quite some time. What we should be wondering is, why? Why not cast the part to someone who understands every aspect of the role?

A few weeks ago, an intern here at The Achievement Center of Texas put out a blog discussing special needs representation in film. The discussed the portrayal of those with special needs in the medium, as well as the ethical dilemma of an able-bodied actor playing a disabled character. After its release, we got to thinking about representation in in other forms of entertainment; so here we’ll be talking about television.

TED (or technology, entertainment and design) Talks have featured presentations from phenomenal speakers with the brightest minds in many fields including science, philosophy, entertainment, business, philanthropy, art and religion. The nonprofit organization serves as a platform for intellectual individuals to speak freely about their passions, inspiring their audiences. Amongst a plethora of other inspirational speeches, TEDTalks regarding special needs are exceptionally moving as they reveal the gifts hidden behind disabilities, challenging conceptions of normalcy. Here are 10 of the best TedTalks about special needs:

12.6 percent of people in the United States are living with disabilities as of 2015, according to the American Communications survey. That’s over one in eight people. Despite this vast number within the population, individuals with disabilities still face discrimination. However, perhaps not in ways you may be thinking of. Many, if not most, people with disabilities are victims of ableism.

Hugs Cafe is a restaurant located in downtown McKinney, Texas that works to employ adults with special needs. There are few and far between options for employment for this population, and Ruth Thompson, the founder of Hugs Cafe, is doing everything she can to fix that problem. Although Ruth has been interviewed by Upworthy and…

Adults with special needs have few opportunities for advancement once they age out of high school. Currently, there is no university program in Texas designed specifically to educate people with intellectual disabilities. The Executive Director of My Possibilities, Michael Thomas, is trying to change that. My Possibilities is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to…