From the Today Show, with video:

Ginny and Matt Mooney learned before birth that their son Eliot would be born with a rare genetic syndrome called Trisomy 18.  Doctors told them that if their son lived through childbirth, he would probably not survive more than a few weeks. They decided to document and celebrate their son’s short life, producing a powerful video that has garnered millions of views on Youtube.

Eliot lived 99 days; at his funeral, friends and family released one balloon for each day he lived.

The Mooneys have since had a daughter, Hazel. They say they cherish the time they spent with their son, and that his life has changed them for the better.

More info on Trisomy 18 at the Trisomy 18 Foundation.

From the Asbury Park [NJ] Press, WXIA-TV, Atlanta, with video, WJXX-TV, Jacksonville, FL:

A judge has ruled that a non-verbal 11-year-old boy with autism was physically and verbally abused in his Atlanta area public school classroom. Stefan Ferrari’s mother sewed a hidden electronic microphone into the boy’s shirt after he came home with bruises from knee to hip.

The microphone picked up the sound of a voice threatening the boy with a “be-quiet hit,” followed by thumping noises and wailing. Also included in the audio recording were adults talking about the size of a boyfriend’s penis, conversation about drinking “dirty martinis,” and jokes about Stefan eating pizza taken out of a trashcan. A voice was heard saying, “Sit down, stupid.” (more…)

But few are accessible

From MSNBC with video:

People with disabilities say video games offer them an avenue for making vital community and social connections. Yet game developers generally have been slow to make the games accessible, citing expense, scheduling pressures, and just plain ignorance.

Technology allows gamers with disabilities to “have a community that they build and have meaningful relationships with other people outside their home,” said Nissa Ludwig (above), a top-ranked bass player in “Rock Band.”

“And they continue working on social skills, and they don’t lose the ability to find joy in other people, which I watched my grandparents do as they were shut in,” she said. Ludwig has a progressive metabolic disorder that makes it difficult to walk.

(Photo from MSNBC video)

From MSNBC/NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams with video:

Mike Taibbi with NBC Boston reports on an adaptive dance class for young people with Down syndrome that the Boston Ballet has offered for the past seven years.

Parents and teachers say the program fosters friendships, self-confidence, and “exuberance of movement.”

“They come here and all of us, myself included, we see children. We don’t see Down syndrome, we see children,” said organizer Mickey Cassella of Children’s Hospital Boston

Earlier post here.

From the Southtown Star (Chicago Sun-Times News Group) with video:

A six-minute YouTube video released by the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities features former residents of the Howe Developmental Center alleging abuse at the institution.

A man is shown saying, “They were mean … They beat me up. They beat me up for no reason.” A woman describes being tied up.

“We want to make sure their faces weren’t lost in this and their voices weren’t lost,” Sheila Romano, executive director of the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities, said of current and former Howe residents.

The troubled state institution for 300 people with intellectual disabilities lost its Medicaid certification two years ago, stripping it of nearly $30 million in federal funding. The Illinois Department of Human Services last fall announced it wants to shutter the center and allow residents the choice to use the funding for community-based services. A U.S. Department of Justice investigation is ongoing.

Gov. Pat Quinn has the final say on whether or not Howe closes, and he has yet to reveal his plans.

From Adweek’s Adfreak blog:

Meet Bill Shannon, a freestyle dance artist who is featured in the European “Life Flows Better with Visa” campaign created by Saatchi & Saatchi London. Shannon was born with a degenerative hip condition, and has developed an mesmerizing way of dancing. The video is here.

Here’s what UC Berkeley’s “Artists with Disabilities Oral History Project” has to say about him:

Using customized rocker-bottom crutches and a skateboard, he has created a body of work, rooted in street dance, which he has performed throughout the United States and abroad to significant acclaim. Part social critic, part educator, part rebel, all artist, Bill Shannon continually challenges his audiences to question what they think they know.

Securing your disabled child’s future – AARP Bulletin Today

Family wonders what will happen to their adult son with Down syndrome – AARP Bulletin Today (video)

Passage likely for Nevada autism bill — Las Vegas Sun

New Mexico senate approves autism insurance coverage — AP/MSNBC

Virginia senate rejects autism insurance bill — Richmond Times-Dispatch

Cellphone amplifies sound for hearing impaired, has an emergency button — Wall Street Journal

‘Little people, Big World’ to start fourth season - Vancouver Sun

Disability activists urge quick closing of Chicago-area institution – Chicago Tribune

Panel: Hartford’s special ed program is ‘dysfunctional’ — Hartford Courant

Cheerleaders with disabilities raise funds for national competition — Detroit News