Just Don't Underestimate My Brain: The Movement

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Upon first looking at the cover of the video, I knew that it had something to do with athletes that have been labeled as having disabilities. My ignorance would prove to be my doom.  For almost all of the athletes, they didn’t even believe in the word “disability.”  They felt that the word “disability” was a social construct.  At first, I didn’t quite understand what they meant.  I think the best way to explain what the interviewees meant is by looking at a quote that the narrator made at the beginning of the video, “Ability is in the eye of the beholder.”  Disability is therefore a social construct.  These athletes know that they can do anything if they train hard enough and work hard enough, just like anyone else.  To these athletes, they aren’t disabled. They didn’t let any excuse or anyone’s actions prevent them from achieving a certain goal. What I really found interesting about the interviews with the athletes was the amount of heart they had. One girl even went as far to say that she didn’t feel any different from Michael Phelps who had just competed in the Beijing Olympics prior to the Paralympic Games.  In fact, she beat his time in a training session a year before. Tatyana McFadden said she sees her disability as an ability because she can do anything, plus more. She was born paralyzed from the waist down and was abandoned to an orphanage that couldn’t afford wheelchairs, so her “disability” proved to be helpful to being even more able to efficiently practice normal tasks let alone train for the Paralympics.  These are perfect examples of how what some may call a “disability,” isn’t a hindrance to the person who has been labeled as having it.

Tatyana McFadden is a six-time Paralympic Athlete. Click This Image for More!

While watching this documentary, I began to think about the differences between being born with a “disability” and becoming “disabled” due to a tragic accident. Most of the interviewees who were born paralyzed or without a limb say that they never knew anything else. The interviewees who were not born “disabled” shared their story about the way they had become. This made me think about the other types of disabilities that people develop due to growing up in certain conditions or due to a traumatic event. Some of the Paralympic athletes that were interviewed consistently came across adversity in their lives that were both mentally and physically disabling. Three-time Paralympic Athlete, Marlon Shirley, grew up in extremely poor conditions and with traumatizing experiences. He was abandoned by his prostitute mother when he was 3, then lost his foot to a lawn motor accident when he was 5 at a group home, then fortunately adopted at age 9. He then continued his sport training as a hobby which then turned into competitive training in track and winning two gold medals. Before the Beijing Paralympics he suffered from staph infections which lead to many surgeries. When he said “overcoming adversity – is what will define me as a person,” I then understood that disabilities could come from any aspect of life and can hinder a person from achieving their goal, but it is overcoming that adversity, regardless of winning a prize, that defines true achievement.

Marlon Shirley was the 1st Amputee to the 11 second barrier (10.97). Click the Image for More!

After watching the video and thinking of how I would respond to what I learned, I tried my best to avoid clichés.  I didn’t want to talk about how “anything is possible if you put your mind to it.”  But I soon realized that just like the word “disability,” the word “cliché” can somehow change its meaning based on the person describing it.  What I mean by this is that an event, learning experience, or response is only cliché if there is no true underlying heartfelt meaning behind the event.  I feel that even though some may say that “overcoming adversity is the key to achievement” is cliché, after watching this video and hearing stories from these people, I understand that it’s not a cliché response, it’s a heartfelt observation.

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Just D.U.M.B. Contributor William Baskerville, III is currently an international relations major at the University of Southern California.  His current studies include researching the perceptions of race, gender, disability and other social constructs within a variety of different cultures.   William plans to become a U.S. Ambassador.