Disability and Ableism in My Hero Academia

My Hero character with light eminating from him

by Michael Meinberg

The following contains spoilers for the show.

My Hero Academia is a new anime about a group of superheroes in training. Like most anime in its genre, known in Japan as shonen, it is action packed, filled with supernatural elements, and aimed at young men. One way that My Hero Academia stands out from its peers is the way it allows its characters to express their emotions in an open and direct fashion. This facet is what drew my attention to the show, and what continues to hold my attention.

Read moreDisability and Ableism in My Hero Academia

Symmetra Needs to Stay Accessible for Disabled Gamers

Symmetra's new teleporters

by Erin Hawley

Overwatch is my favorite video game – I play it every day. What initially drew me to the game was its accessibility, and how every skill level is considered – from people who have trouble aiming, to expert first-person shooters. Overwatch originally prided itself as having a hero for everyone, but the development team is slowly deviating from that mission statement. When I first started playing, I was a D.Va main, a tank hero who can shoot and dive into people. There wasn’t a lot to think about or mechanics to manage with her; aiming was involved, but she was more about mobility and blocking with her defense matrix.

Read moreSymmetra Needs to Stay Accessible for Disabled Gamers

Writing While Disabled: The Damage of Ableism

screenshot of wordpress with the text writing while disabled in blue

by Erin Hawley

“Are people telling me this thing I wrote is good because it’s actually good, or are they praising it because they have such low expectations of me?”

Being a writer is hard. I’m a perfectionist, which makes me dislike everything I produce. I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing, as my perfectionism makes me a decent writer and an even better editor.

But as a disabled writer, I question other people’s reactions to my work. The opening quote is something I ask myself every time I share my writing with others.

Read moreWriting While Disabled: The Damage of Ableism

Accessible Game Components: UberStax

Close up of an instruction manual for a game card holder

by Erin Hawley

When playing tabletop games, I can’t hold up cards or display my game tokens in an accessible way. I often rely on card holders or self-made player screens. Being a disabled gamer means you come up with your own hacks to make the hobby work for you. In my search for more accessible player aids, I came across UberStax, a component holder that is completely modular to fit your needs. Imagine those scrabble tile boards, except taller and sturdier, and in a variety of colors.

Read moreAccessible Game Components: UberStax

Game Developers Conference: A Wheelchair User’s Experience

Cherry in their wheelchair in front of a map display for a game

Guest blogger: Cherry Rae

I recently attended my first Game Developers Conference, which was as intense as everyone who went to GDC promised me. It was also a successful and positive experience for me! However, I encountered some physical accessibility barriers.

I have fierce impostor syndrome and didn’t think I would be half as busy as I ended up being, but I experienced much more of the conference than I thought I would. I was invited to attend as a speaker on a panel discussing the current state of accessibility in games and where we see it going in the future. They also afforded me the opportunity to give the final presentation of the day-long Games Accessibility Conference that runs on the Monday of GDC.

The moment I said yes, I tried to figure out how accessible things would be. Aside from travel being difficult, as an autistic wheelchair user with very limited energy, it’s important that I plan and know what to expect in a busy and intimidating environment.

Read moreGame Developers Conference: A Wheelchair User’s Experience

Disabled Gamers Need A Way Out of Button Mashing

Two main characters from the A Way Out game, white men in prison clothes

by Erin Hawley 

Button mashing simulates physically difficult situations, making the gamer press a button quickly until a task is complete – which, admittedly, is kind of fun as a disabled person who can’t even lift a phone off the table. It has the potential to be exciting if implemented in an accessible way, but it’s rare to come across button mashing that I can complete myself. Due to Muscular Dystrophy, I don’t have the strength or stamina needed for this mechanic, and I often rely on someone else to do those parts of a game for me. It can completely ruin an otherwise fantastic gaming experience, like when you’re constantly fighting off zombies in Telltale’s The Walking Dead: Michonne, for example.

Read moreDisabled Gamers Need A Way Out of Button Mashing

Eye Win – Windows 10 Update to Improve Eye Tracking for Disabled Gamers

blue launchpad with Windows background

Guest blogger: April

Gaming with a disability can sometimes pose problems for a PC gamer. With many games requiring the use of multiple input devices at once, such as a keyboard and mouse simultaneously, sometimes games become difficult or completely unplayable to folks without certain motor skills. Fortunately, Microsoft is living up to their word and improving the Ease-of-Access options in Windows 10. A new Windows update releasing this month will include support for eye tracking. According to Microsoft’s support page, Ease of Access (found under the control panel) will allow you to control your PC with only your eye movements and the help of hardware by Tobii.

Read moreEye Win – Windows 10 Update to Improve Eye Tracking for Disabled Gamers

When Accessibility isn’t Accessible

A black and white door with a red universal symbol of disability on it

by Erin Hawley

Society often frames accessibility as something abled people do to make the world easier to navigate for disabled folks, whether it’s an ambulatory contractor building a ramp at a restaurant, or a hearing employee putting captions on their organization’s videos. But the reality is that disabled people are also making their spaces and creations accessible to other disabled individuals. This is powerful because we know best the importance of having true inclusivity for community spaces, both online and off. The problem is, sometimes, making things accessible is not within our abilities.

Read moreWhen Accessibility isn’t Accessible

Disability, Intersex Identity, and Transgender Identity in The Orville’s About a Girl

Bortus and his partner walking down a hallway, a baby in his arms. They look like Klingons

Guest blogger: Joy Michael Ellison.

In case you missed it – or were trying to avoid it – The Orville is a new thinly-veiled Star Trek spoof created by (and starring) Seth MacFarlane. Yes, the creator of Family Guy is writing sci-fi.  At first, I thought the show was what I feared: it’s a little like your least favorite fan boy tried to write satire, but ended up spilling beer and heterosexuality everywhere.  However, somewhere between the dick jokes (and there are a lot of dick jokes), MacFarlane decided to follow in Gene Rodenberry’s footsteps.  In its third episode About a Girl, The Orville does what sci-fi does best: think through contemporary social issues.  About a Girl provides commentary on intersex surgeries. The only problem is, MacFarlane doesn’t seem to know that’s what he’s doing.

Red alert: I’m about to boldly spoil this episode.

Read moreDisability, Intersex Identity, and Transgender Identity in The Orville’s About a Girl

De-institutionalization and Cripping in Breathe, Directed by Andy Serkis

A white man in an old-fashioned wheelchair is outside, abled people surround him, smiling

Guest blogger: Aimee Louw is a freelance journalist, writer, consultant, filmmaker, and radio host living in Canada. Her blog centers on accessibility, crip life, sex, and media.

Based on a true story, Breathe covers the adult life of Robin Cavendish, a man who contracted polio in post-World War II England, when requiring a ventilator to breathe meant across the board institutional living and immobility. The story follows Cavendish’s journey from active and horny young man, to newly-disabled, depressed institutionalized patient, to disability advocate/ innovator. There is a large focus on the triumph of love prevailing over despair with his wife, Diana. As the trailers began, I popped some painkillers, and I settled in with my non-institutionalized boyfriend, J.

The film opens in an idyllic English countryside, with voracious young men playing cricket. The main character, played by Andrew Garfield, ogles with other young men at a pretty lady, Diana, played by Claire Foy. The swells of orchestral music that accompany the displays of Robin’s physical prowess forebode trouble looming for this strapping young man.

Read moreDe-institutionalization and Cripping in Breathe, Directed by Andy Serkis