etandrew: Visual Pathetic Appeal (Revised)

Disability on Prezi

My visual pathetic appeal addresses the enduring fight for equality and civil rights in the United States of America—and specifically how this fight is experienced by the disabled. The main claim in the piece is that disabled persons are a minority group that we should not discriminate against, but should seek to provide the same civil rights as all others. The goal of the presentation is to cause viewers to consider how they view and treat disabled people and to persuade them to have a change of attitude toward this minority group.

The presentation begins with an image of a collection of words such as “equality” and “discrimination” which introduces the viewer to the setting of this presentation: it will discuss issues related to basic rights we hold dear as Americans. The first three images are of disabled persons, each looking very happy, innocent, and content. These images are meant to invoke some sense of pity and empathy in the viewer. After seeing these images, the viewer should be have some sensitivity toward and awareness of a group people with whom it is only natural to sympathize and desire to defend.

After the last image in this group, a picture of a boy with down-syndrome, the scene shifts downward to two picture of battered children with down-syndrome, both of whom are victims of discriminatory violence and hate crimes. Because of the pity invoked by the previous images, these violent pictures would intensify this pity even to the point of inspiring feelings of indignation.

Then, the presentation continues to fall downward and arrives at a summative picture that describes the nature of this treatment of the disabled that was just witnessed by the viewer. The picture shows someone kicking out someone from a wheelchair. The bitter simplicity of this image and the distasteful thought it implies would create further indignation and discomfort in the viewer.

After the viewer has reached this point of dissatisfaction and frustration, the presentation points upward toward a picture of Martin Luther King Jr. He is clearly actively involved in some form of advocacy and the viewer feels inspiration, excitement, and joy at the thought of such a hero rectifying the wrongs being committed against disabled individuals. The need is apparent: we need to fight for the civil rights of these individuals just as men like Martin Luther King fought for those of other minorities. Their struggle is identified with that of others who have sought equality and civil rights, leading the viewer to feel some sense of empowerment and dignity at the thought of spreading these values to other groups who have similar needs.

The images that follow seek to make this conceptual thought more practical. Images of accessibility signs, aids, and the Special Olympics all serve to produce a sense of hope in the viewer. The viewer sees that there are practical ways to bring these sought-after civil rights to the disabled community; these images offer a reassuring sense of fulfillment to the viewer that change is indeed possible in the way we view and treat the disabled, and the benefits are inestimable.

The presentation then lifts even higher, arriving at a famous picture of soldiers at Iwo Jima, a symbol of our national struggle for values such as liberty and equality. The viewer is led to see the significance of providing these values for disabled individuals as they are enjoyed by other Americans and the ongoing battle it will take to get there

The statement that follows sums up this dynamic by stating that the battle for equality lives on. But, it doesn’t stop there. It goes on to ask the viewer on which side he or she falls. The presentation has shown two sides to the battle and now these sides are brought to the personal experience of the viewer. The viewer is left with the thought that he or she is not exempt from the struggle but is a participant in it, whether positively or negatively. The basic interpretation for the viewer is that since they have seen and felt the needs of this struggling group, and believe certain values should be guaranteed to Americans, that their attitude change can impact the fight for better or for worse. Their feelings of pity cause them to care about the issue and the following feelings of indignation and hope show them two responses. They then are associated with this distinction and will likely choose to associate themselves with the positive emotions and thereby be left with an attitudinal shift in favor of the civil rights of the disabled community.

Photo credits (images marked with * accessed March 31, 2011; images marked with ** accessed April 5, 2011):

**Opening image: http://iannoon.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/equality-bill1.jpg

*Boy in wheelchair: http://pediatricwheelchair.org/wp-content/uploads/wheelchair_kids.jpg

*Blind children: http://www.scsdb.k12.sc.us/academic/blindSing-s.gif

*First down-syndrome boy: http://www.filteredsoundtraining.net/media/Boy%20WIth%20Downs%20Syndrome%20in%20FST.jpg

**First battered disabled person: http://www.lauraandwagner.com/resources/HateCrimes.jpg

**Second battered disabled person: http://feministactivism.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/violence-against-disabled.jpg?w=285&h=155

**Foot kicking disabled person:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__DmvpLJBcJg/S2Q5TxREB-I/AAAAAAAAAH8/JIWuW8uSjRI/s320/disabled.jpg

*Martin Luther King Jr.: http://cdn.babble.com/famecrawler/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/martin-luther-king2.jpg

**Wheelchair and arrow: http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/04/14/article-1265858-09205F7A000005DC-879_468x262.jpg

**Woman helping disabled children: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_T96e44yPIsA/TB2JjV2J8VI/AAAAAAAACSY/lc_utnakwis/s1600/20donovan-span-articleLarge-v2.jpg