Recommended Citation
Elizabeth Pendo, Identifying (With) Disability: Using Film to Teach Employment Discrimination, 58 St. Louis U. L.J. 143 (2013), https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/faculty-articles/967
Document Type
Article
Abstract
On the first day of class, I tell my Disability Law students that my objective is simple-I want to change the way they see the world. Teaching, writing, and working in disability rights has done that for me, and I want to continue to share that experience with my students. Integrating film into the classroom is one way to invite that change. When used properly, film can enhance coverage and discussion of substantive legal concepts and important policy issues surrounding employment of people with disabilities. That result is especially important to my objective, because employment and other issues critical to the lives of people with disabilities often go unnoticed and unaddressed by people without disabilities.
As many have noted, despite the prohibitions against discrimination in the workplace contained in the America. One reason for this outcome might be that the enactment of the ADA has done a good job at decreasing physical barriers but has not done enough to change discriminatory attitudes towards disabilities. Building on a prior article about using film to teach health law, this Essay is intended to share my experience using the film Philadelphia as a method of enhancing coverage and discussion of the employment provisions of the ADA and to provide an opportunity for recognition of, and identification with, the experiences of people with disabilities.