Paul K. Longmore critiques this week’s column by Roy Peter Clark of the Poynter Institute about media coverage of the recent Florida wheelchair dumping case. Clark had written that coverage of the case had not been sufficiently analytical, leading readers to conclude that “the disabled are too vulnerable to be criticized.”

Longmore, professor of history at San Francisco State University, is the author of “Why I Burned My Book and Other Essays on Disability,” and co-editor of “The New Disability History: American Perspectives.” His response:

Roy Peter Clark does not need to conjecture about abuse and violence against people with disabilities. It is widespread and well documented.

That a “much admired” law-enforcement officer would engage in such vicious mistreatment of a disabled man evidences the extent to which violence against disabled people is given license. That violence is appalling enough.

What is additionally disturbing in this instance is the way in which Clark explains it away. It is utterly irrelevant that the disabled man who was assaulted by this officer was not more seriously injured and was thus able to appear on the Today show. Nor is it pertinent that he comes across as unsympathetic.

It is also objectionable that Clark suggests that the news media should have questioned the ability of this man and others who are quadriplegic to drive safely.

In fact, quadriplegic drivers have better driving records in general than nondisabled drivers. If this individual were driving while intoxicated, that would not excuse the police officer’s violence against him.

Finally and most disturbing, instead of examining how this attack reflects the deep-seated and reflexive hostility toward people with disabilities embedded in our culture, Clark inverts the social reality of this incident to make the perpetrator the victim and the disabled man virtually the cause of the violence against him.

In fact, what has been missing from news media coverage of this incident is critical analysis of the way in which it reflects pervasive devaluation and contempt of people with disabilities. We don’t need vaunted media spokespersons for people with disabilities who trivialize and excuse oppression.

At last count, there were 18 comments about Clark’s column on the Poynter site.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 20th, 2008 at 8:37 pm and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, criminal justice, media, violence, wheelchair. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post