Only the strong survive

There are many stories in mass media of people over coming obstacles, and most of them are heart warming and motivating. What I have realized in the past couple of weeks is that there is a lack of movies, stories, or any type of representation in media that display a disabled person adjusting to their different life styles, especially without a negative attitude about certain adjustments. I would like to see the media focus more on positivity involving characters with disabilities. I can only think of three movies of the top of my head, and I would like to see more stories about people with disabilities in a positive, encouraging, and motivating way. Something I see even less of is women with disabilities. Those are almost non-existing. An observation that I have made with the very few movies of people with disabilities that I’ve seen is that they are portrayed with less masculinity. An Example of this is “Radio” where they pick on him all the time and needs the coach’s help to defend himself, or in the movie “Remember the Titans”, where there was a scene after one of the players was involved in a car accident and was paralyzed. In the hospital he was crying and looked helpless, and hopeless. The film never showed any positive scenes during his state as a paraplegic.

On “Good Morning America”, their studio aired a piece on Kevin Everett, a former football player for the Buffalo Bills. On the first play of the game he made a tackle that caused him to be paralyzed. He lay on the field motionless. He heard his teammates yelling at him to get up so he made an effort, but he just could not move. The ambulance had to come down to tend to him, while his teammates gathered in prayer. Once the ambulance took him to the hospital, it was there where doctors told his family that he would never walk again. This information brought heartbreak to Kevin’s family. For Kevin, seeing his family sad hurt him more than the whole accident itself. Good Morning America spent time with Kevin from when he first was admitted into the hospital through rehabilitation. It was in the rehabilitation where the miracle happened. Kevin began to have some feelings in his toes and fingers. Kevin is a very strong person, mentally and physically. He pushed everyday to improve his health. He worked hard each day, and was motivated by the idea to prove every body wrong. After a month, Kevin made his first step. Today he is walking, when people doubted him. Through this experience Kevin has made motivational speeches and has even written a book titled, “Standing Tall”. This makes a person think to never lose hope, and be determined every day. Even if it’s not looking like you are going to walk, don’t feel bad for yourself. Find things that will bring you joy and execute. I hope there are more films and stories like these that bring more positive light to disabilities because I feel that they can be enlightening.

This story brought tears to my eyes because it showed how strong a person can be even as a disabled individual. It showed toughness and resilience. The story focused more on the positives and as you watch the “YouTube” clip, you notice that it omits much of the negative details. It focuses more on overcoming the struggles. I would also like to see more movies or stories about people accepting who they are such as “Murderball”, because each individual is beautiful in their own way.

I got the clip off of "youtube" under Kevin Everett