The Dos and Don’ts of Disability Representation in Media

So... As said, I'm Xian or Xian Horn. I'm going to do a description of myself briefly for those online, and I'll try to do descriptions of the slides as well. I'm a Jewish woman, or Chinese and Jewish woman with cerebral palsy.

I traverse the world with -- right now, black poles. Sometimes shiny ski poles. Today I'm wearing electric blue with animal print, and I'm seated in a white chair. So welcome.

This is going to be a little bit of a 101. But also, you know, I'm assuming everybody is here because they care. And so... I'm also not going -- and I want this to be kind of an Ask Me Anything.

If anything I say isn't clear, or you have any follow-ups, I will let you know that there's a version of this that I'm designing that's four hours long. So... This is going to be kind of a lightning version of what I've been thinking about for more than ten years, as a person with lived experience of disability, that's both been a journalist and had myself featured in articles that either did or did not represent who I was, or did not feel authentic to my experience or what I had said in that.

So this is sort of the inspiration, is realizing that people want to represent disability. I believe that. But they may not know how to do it. Or they don't even realize when they're sort of marginalizing the community they're trying to represent.

So... That's the inspiration. Let's get to the next slide. So here's some of the advocacy that I've done.

And obviously we're at a11y. I've been a member here since at least 2016. So it's an honor for me to support these guys, and for them to support me. It's such a joy.

No, so some of the tech aspects of what I've done -- I've judged an assistive technology competition through AT&T, worked with Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, I've done transportation advocacy, architectural advocacy, any kind of accessibility, really. And so I think we can get to the next slide. And this isn't a perfect dos and don'ts list, but I did a version of this in July and realized that I didn't actually say the dos and don'ts when I did this.

So I wanted it to be clear. And some of this is Captain Obvious. When I say, you know, don't assume that you're better, obviously nobody thinks that they're assuming that they're better. But I'm going to give you an example of a time that that happened to me.

I personally -- and I see a lot of DEI spaces use this term -- "differently abled" -- I personally find it so kid-glove-y, and almost as if... Feeding into the idea that there's something wrong with disability. And so I don't enjoy it. And I was explaining that to somebody.

And they said... And they said... Oh, but... This Paralympian I follow on Instagram uses it all the time.

So it's okay! And I completely understand, and I'm going to say that... These are only... What I'm sharing with you is the pervasive idea among disability advocates.

There are going to be people -- different places in their disability journey -- you will sometimes hear the H word. It's usually people over the age of 55. You will still hear people using all different types of terms for different reasons. You hear "special needs" a lot from parents and educators.

But... I will tell you: Disability advocates and adults tend not to like it. Because everybody has special needs. So it doesn't really tell us anything.

I liked it as an only child. I'll tell you that much. Because I said... Oh, of course I'm special.

But I've come around to realize... You know, obviously as I've done more advocacy, first of all, I think it's just important to own the word "disability". And to see it as empowering. But I have a self-esteem background as well, which wasn't on that list today.

But you know, I do think that... Anyway... So what I'm sharing with you is not going to be everyone's experience. But I do think that it is going to tell you the majority of people that I know -- how they do feel about certain words and things.

And we do have a One Sheet, by the way, that will be available for you. I had it as a QR code. It's not working. But...

You can have... You know, kind of a list of sort of the real no-no words, the kind of... There will always be ones that are kind of specific to different communities. So of course we're never going to get it perfect.

There's always going to be somebody that doesn't feel represented, and that's why you have conversations. And, you know, people ask me all the time: What do I say? What words do I use? And I say: Ask the person in front of you.

And so that seems Captain Obvious. But... You know, I do... I wonder if anyone has questions, as they're looking at this list, before we get to the next one.

You know, I think that for the most part, as long as you're looking at that person in front of you, sort of... As an equal, you probably will get things more correct than... You know, I think with representation, oftentimes the disability community is either put on a pedestal as superhuman, or there's this sort of patronizing thing of putting people below you. Yeah.

I remember being on a New York City street, and a woman -- I had just left the bank. And she's like... You're doing great. And I said: So are you!

And her face fell. And in that moment, what that showed me is... She didn't see herself as my equal. Or me as her equal.

Because... Then, you know, anyway... I would think that if she did, she wouldn't have taken that to be anything negative. Or be surprised by that.

So... Anyway... Let's move on to the next one. So we're going to go through some examples at this point.

And this was a very famous example. Did anyone see this? It made the rounds on Twitter and a few other places. And...

I will tell you -- the previous version of this I did mostly for journalists. And so we did a lot of journalism examples. Tonight there's going to be a combination of print, TV clips, and commercials. Just for everyone on the livestream and anyone who can't see it...

What I'm showing is an Economist cover that is... It says Why Biden Should Resign. And it has a walker with the United States of America -- that famous insignia on the front. This made quite a splash, even among people who are not disability advocates.

Because I think even if you're not, there's an ageism component to this.

So I'm curious if anyone wants to share if they like or dislike this. That's another thing. I kind of know how I feel about it, and I will share that with you. But I'm trying not to influence your reaction to it.

So we can have a genuine conversation about it. I found it interesting for a number of reasons. One is... I think, you know, with Biden, a lot of the concern was his sort of mental acuity.

And so I thought it was interesting -- obviously a lot of times walkers are associated with age. But not necessarily. So I thought it was kind of a big leap to make. But I think you're right.

That it was meant to be provocative. And obviously it is a very... Even the title is: Why Biden Must Withdraw. It's not even...

Should he? It's a statement. And I think they tried to make a statement with this visual. I will tell you, I thought it was very interesting, because I wanted to see how people were reacting to it.

And I will say: What I did see for the most part was people saying: Unfollow, unfollow, unfollow, to the Economist. Because people saw it -- if they weren't seeing it as ableism, they were seeing it as ageism. And then one person who didn't have that just said: Brutal. So...

I mean, people were having very strong reactions. Right? You were... I'm going to call on you.

And your name? I'm Jake Hi Jake So the ableist piece... What I'm going to say... It's a clear sign of ableism.

Right? I also... I was thinking about this as I was going on in the last five minutes... I don't think I've ever seen Biden use a walker.

Obviously that is, A, ableist, but B, a very assumptive thing to... Yeah.

But here's another aspect to this, by the way. You know... I think this is true a lot of times in media. That you have this idea too, that there's something iconic about the wheelchair.

There's something iconic about a walker. That connotes disability in a way that invisible disabilities or non-apparent disabilities, I should say, would not be. Right? It's a very...

It's a harder visual to sell. Right? And there have been times in my life where... I was literally approached by one of the most famous art schools in New York City, and asked if I would appear in a wheelchair -- by the way, I do use a wheelchair at the airport.

But -- and at Disney. Or any place where it's really big and there's a lot of walking. Like a museum. But I'm not a wheelchair user.

And they wanted a shot of me doing a 360 wheelie. Which... First of all, is very dangerous. I think even for wheelchair users.

But the fact that they seek me out on Instagram when there are countless wheelchair users they could have approached, you know, was kind of interesting. But they were so focused, it seemed, on this visual of the wheelchair... So there have been times in my life where I almost felt like I wasn't disabled enough for media. And I'm someone that has a very apparent disability.

So I'm sure I'm... That's how I feel. But... The point being that I think there is almost an iconic aspect to this.

Love it or hate it. That I think a lot of press and a lot of media do find it easier to kind of convey disability through these kind of more obvious tropes. Let's... We have a lot more to go through.

And I want to get people home, if they're debating or whatever you're doing. So yes. So I will tell you -- before I was a disability advocate, when I was just a normal Xianie, I remember going to ComiCon, because my cousin had an extra ticket. Never seen Glee in my life.

This was the season 2 episode 1 -- the first episode that they were showing of the season. And this is a very small clip of it. Because we don't have a lot of time. But this is a character...

I don't even know... I think his name is Artie. Okay. I never watched Glee, because of this clip.

So I do apologize for anyone... But this is a character that is played by someone not in a wheelchair. But he's a wheelchair user in this... And this is a fantasy sequence.

He has a crush on somebody. And he's imagining dancing for her or with her. But... Here we go.

[Glee Cast: Safety Dance ft Kevin McHale [Artie Abrams]] And a lot of people think he's the best dancer in the show, in a wheelchair. Well, I'm hearing audible sighs and groans. So I would love to hear from those people first. Why are you groaning?

I think I might know why. But I don't want to... Hi. This is Jennifer.

Everyone's cheering and happy and it's very upbeat. When he's dancing. And then his face and the sort of tone and just the way the camera angle even is... Just is...

Oh, now we're sad. It's... Very upsetting. Yeah.

Yeah. I found out later that this episode was directed by Joss Whedon, who is not one of my favorite people. So I wasn't that surprised, after I figured that out. No.

Yeah. Exactly. I mean... I think...

I wasn't even a disability advocate at the time. But I just couldn't believe... I felt like maybe they put it in for a few reasons. Maybe to justify why they hired someone without a disability to play that character.

But... The idea that somebody in a wheelchair would have to desire to dance, or... When he's thinking about his crush, the only way that he can woo her is out of the wheelchair... I found rather repugnant.

So that was one of the reasons why outside of this episode, I don't think I've seen... Oh, the Britney episode. I did see the Britney episode. But outside of the Britney episode, I have not seen another episode of Glee.

Because I was like... That's enough for me. Personally, that was enough to put me off of it for... Well, 'til now.

Any other thoughts? And questions?

Okay. I see a hand. Hi, I'm Flip. Hi, Mirabai!

I think there's like been a difference in the way that representation has rolled out across different disab ility classes, and so maybe that sort of… Keep in mind this was 2011, too. Yeah, I forgot to mention that. We should also say this was a while ago.

Yeah. Yeah. But even that's not that long ago, right? Like John Wick 2, I think, had a hearing actor playing a deaf actor, and that was probably like 2016 or something.

So, yeah. But like, it feels like, I don't know. That's just one of those things where it's like, uh. Yeah.

Yeah. More progress in some places, less in others. Right. And they did hire a character called Becky, who had Down syndrome, for later episodes.

We could debate how well she, you know, was represented. But again, I haven't seen it, so I'm not going to comment on that stuff. But yeah. Other thoughts before we move on?

Because again, we have a lot of examples to go through, but also would love to hear, you know, does anyone think that this is good? How do you? Yeah, I again, I'm trying not to influence you, but I think this is one that I had a very strong reaction to. So it is hard.

So... I assume everyone here knows Nike. Do we all know Nike? Okay.

So this is Justin Gallegos. And I have a feeling these videos aren't going to play either. So I may need you again, Ben. But Justin Gallegos was the first runner with CP to get a contract with Nike.

And they decided to film... Announcing that they surprised him -- to announce it.

Oh, here we go.[Video starts] Justin Gallegos suffers from cerebral palsy.

So I think we can also skip to the end on this one, when he's receiving the contract. Yeah. You can go a little further. Like maybe 2/3.

Yeah. Very overcome with emotion when they hear this announcement. And then he’s running away. And this is a genuine moment.

I think we can cut it here. Thank you for being flexible. [Video ends] I'd love some first reactions to it. Oh, you definitely raised your hand for that one.

Oh, thanks. Hi. Can you say your name again? Sorry.

Yeah. Katie. My hackles went up when they said that "he suffers from cerebral palsy". I'm newer to the accessibility space, but I know that's a big no-no.

So... Yeah. And so if you saw in the dos and don'ts, I have "avoid loaded language". I would consider "suffers from" or "battles" -- that's loaded language.

Where you're making a big assumption with the descriptors there. Yeah.

And they did get called out for it as well, by quite a few people. And it's interesting, because Forbes came to me, and they asked me to write something. And I think they thought I was going to write this glowing wonderful... Well...

And that's not what happened. And we can send out the resource guide I have, where I have a whole article. I had a lot to say about this. And it had nothing to do with Justin Gallegos.

I think he's absolutely wonderful. And that's why I felt like he was robbed, in a sense, of... For me, actually... Before I get into my opinion, I want to hear from at least one more person.

Hello. Hi, Gabriel. My name is Gabriel. Nice to meet you.

Hi. It gave very much so the... Like... The hopecore like...

Oh, he couldn't have done this. Like, it's so beautiful. That like... We're giving this opportunity, because like...

When it's like... He's existing and chasing his dreams, and... It doesn't need... It's the "looked down upon" thing.

Like... Right. Back to what we were talking about. But here's the other thing.

This guy's a runner. He's fast. And everything about this ad is so slow, and kind of weepy, and... And it's real!

I'm not trying to take away from the fact that obviously they filmed a real moment. But for me, when I think of Nike, I think of sweat and like... You know, sports bra, and superhuman! Fine.

You know? Like... But I just felt like he didn't get the usual Nike swag treatment with this ad. So that was how I felt about it.

And I wrote about it. Hi. I'm Rachel. To go off of what Gabriel was saying, it felt very much like...

Nike was portraying themselves as like a savior complex. Which I, like, really didn't like. Like... What you were saying, Gabriel.

They could not have done this without us, Nike. We are so good for doing this. It just felt very... Pat themselves on the back.

Yeah. And almost like they wanted to tear jerk. We have another hand here. I'm Nora.

I'm curious if the contract had weight to it. Like... If he's being compensated in the way non-disabled athletes are. If he's getting the sneakers and the outfits, or if this was just to use him for good media.

Yeah. By the way, they had other ads with him that had a totally different energy, after this. So maybe they got the memo. So I do want to be fair to them.

And part of why we're going to part two, which I might have to get you to Google... Is... It's the Willem Dafoe... Has anyone been watching the Paralympics or the Olympics at all?

This played a lot. It's Willem Dafoe, I think is narrating it. And we could talk about... Yeah.

I just wanted to compare it. Because I actually think that to me... This is the one, I'm only going to play about 30 seconds of it The second half...

Now, the messaging here... Can you guys hear this? I think I'm better than everyone else. I want to take what's yours and never give it back.

What's mine is mine and what's yours is mine. We could have a whole different discussion about this. Am I a bad person? Tell me.

Am I?

Does this make me a bad person?

Tell me. Now, we could have a whole discussion about how much therapy Willem Dafoe's character needs in this. And maybe how healthy it is to be an Olympian, emotionally. But...

What I... I actually... Let's hear from you guys. It's hard for me to hold back, but I will.

For the moment. I would love to hear any thoughts about this commercial. You're nodding. Gabriel?

Oh, and maybe we'll get... Hello? Yeah. I'm Other Gabriel.

Oh, hey. Gabriel Number Two. Or... Number One?

Well, as compared to the other ad, this one feels like... Everyone is on the same emotional level. There's no slow heart strings being pulled by the music. Right.

And in the framing -- in the framing -- all the athletes are in the movement, doing their sport, or just after a win. So this one feels more level. Right. And...

Yeah. And I think it's important to note that I realized, even just last night, that I don't want to see this thing only happen during the Paralympics. Because that's where I've been seeing almost equal billing in these ads, or more Paralympians being featured in a TJ Maxx ad, for example, recently. And why do we have to wait every four years for that to happen?

But I thought that this was much more kind of what I had in mind, when I was talking about the Nike swag factor. I think you definitely see it in sort of equal measure here. And I think that's the reason why, is what you said. Gabriel.

The Other Gabriel. Would you like to add to that? Hello, again. It's Gabriel.

Hi! I think what I noticed was all of the slower panning shots and slow-mo and the most time... It was all seemingly able bodied people. And then we got clips in the end, when they were doing like...

As many different sports categories as they could. Just the time imbalance of screening is what I noticed from that. Oh, that is true. Although I do think toward the end it was sort of flipping back and forth.

Which I did like. But I agree with you. There could be more. There could always be more.

We like that. Okay. So next slide...So we're going to look for Jessica Long, Toyota.

We found a baby girl for your adoption. But there are some things you need to know. She's in Siberia. And she was born with a rare condition.

Her legs will need to be amputated. I know this is difficult to hear. Her life... It won't be easy.

Mrs. Long? It might not be easy, but it'll be amazing.

I can't wait to meet her.

We believe there's hope and strength in all of us. Toyota. Proud partner of Team USA. So that was 2021, as you may have seen.

I would love some first reactions here. The wonderful audience. Thank you... You've been great participators.

This is Gabriel again. Yeah. Hi, Gabriel Number Two. On an unrelated note -- I did like the shot where she goes under the water and the crowd grows each time.

That was pretty cool. That's interesting. This is one on the schmaltzy side. But this one feels like it's about the person's story, and she's swimming through her own life story.

As opposed to in the other one... The person is doing their own thing and they're being given a gift by the company. So... This does feel different.

Yeah. Thanks for sharing. Any other thoughts? Oh.

Hello. In the back. My name is Aurelia. Good evening.

Oh, and should we do a description for anyone that couldn't see what was in that ad? If any of us want to do a description of the commercial. I realized I didn't do that for this one. But basically...

Olympian -- or Paralympian Jessica Long is sort of swimming through aspects of her life, memories of her life. Go for it. Go for it. I just realized that we want to give context to the audience.

My thought here is that... I don't have any disabilities. And to ask me what I think about how I feel about this... I feel like...

I should be asking someone that is in that community. And how dare I say that's unjust... How would I know? I don't walk in those shoes.

I can be an ally and an advocate. Right. Now... You're everybody's dream.

That you're not assuming anything. And you're leaving it to us. Which unfortunately -- and fortunately -- you know, it happens in different measure. So thank you for saying that.

But you're still allowed to have a reaction also. I mean, my reaction... I've seen this before. I'm a crier.

I cried. But yeah. No, I thought was a great story. And...

Being in America, where I don't look like most of the other people in everything that I do -- school, work, church -- I think it's important when you can see people that look like you. It really is important for someone that is not mainstream, to see that. You know. Whether it's...

However they're different from what the mainstream is. Right. I mean, I can tell you, growing up as an only child, half Asian, Jewish, and traversing the world with two big... You know...

Very obvious ski poles... I never expected to be represented on TV. Honestly. I never expected to see myself, unless it was me.

It was so niche. All those representations. I've seen over time... What it has meant to other Asian women on poles -- maybe not ski poles.

But they have other assistive devices. They reach out to me and say... I started my own business because you did it. Absolutely, I think that is so key.

I do want to say to you that my reaction... And it was important for me, in doing this, that we didn't just have good examples and bad examples. For me, this is a kind of... Meh example.

And here's why. I personally found it weird that she was swimming in this murky water.And yes, she's a swimmer. But it seemed a little dark to me, visually. She obviously involved the mom, which is sweet.

And part of her story. They told them that this is what happened to her. I was a little on the fence about this one. I mean...

I don't think... Obviously it's not just about whether it's cancelable or not. I was kind of like... Okay.

But I thought they could do better. Just because I would rather have heard that story from her or from her parents, rather than this whole reenactment, personally. But I deliberately put this there because I didn't necessarily think of it as a good or bad example for me, personally. But I will tell you, when I did this in July, and we had a panel, there were a couple of people on the panel who loved it and a couple of people who didn't.

And I think that's okay. And that's one of the reasons why I wanted to include it. Okay. I thought was important that obviously this is a11y.

You know. Tech focus. So I thought it would be cool to have two different tech examples here. My name is Grover.

Ian. I'm Taylor. My name is Owen and I'm nine and a half years old. So Owen was born with a rare genetic disorder called Escobar Syndrome.

He's had 33 surgeries to date. I love video games. My friends. My family.

And again video games. It's his way of interacting with his friends when he can't physically otherwise do it. What I like about the Adaptive Controller is now everyone can play. And you would just say...

Oh, that's that button, that's that button, that's that button -- perfect. One of the biggest fears early on is: How would Owen be viewed by the other kids? He's not different when he plays. No matter how your body is, or how fast you are, you can play.

It's a really good thing to have in this world.

Thoughts? Hello. I'm Jake. These are all tear jerkers.

I thought... One of the first things that came to my mind was... That it was pretty empowering, I would say. I'm very interested in if people didn't love this one...

I have to be honest... I kind of liked it. And again, the empowerment, the cheering, there was obviously talk of disabilities. That was a pretty -- there was a pretty clear message.

I think hearing from parents is a solid POV. Not sure how educated those parents were. But I do think that personal aspect to it was pretty important.

Hi. It's Jennifer. I really connect with music. In all of these.

And it really bothers me when the music is trying to draw your emotion. And it isn't about just... When it feels manipulative. Yes, thank you.

That's exactly it. And this felt just kind of neutral. It was just pleasant. And it wasn't trying to do that.

It was just telling a story. And if it impacts you emotionally, it's about what you're hearing from the kids and the parents. Yeah. Yeah.

Thank you for sharing. Any other thoughts? Oh, hi. Hi.

Katie. So...

I liked it. That was Microsoft? So... I feel like Microsoft was showing that thing with universal design where if you can't give someone the exact same experience with that tool, you can give them something as similar as possible.

So I feel like they were showing that. Which I thought was really nice. Thank you for sharing. I have a small comment.

But you know -- We want this. This is Thomas. I think one of the things... There's no such thing as small comments.

Interesting in the video is that the product itself exists as one thing that you buy. It has a price point. But... Slightly in that video, you do see one of the children using like a joystick.

Like, an additional joystick. That was just an interesting thing from working with Sam Berman, on my team at my company, to look into the details of the product. That actually to make the product work, for specific abilities, it has to have additional things purchased. So not really taking away from the idea of the video, but it is sort of -- how do you describe that?

And actually, when you're promoting a product, or promoting a product that is universal design, but it requires maybe additional buttons that cost hundreds of dollars more... It is complicated. So I really applaud the idea. But then there is some other things behind that for actually making that solution function.

Well, I'm so happy you said that. Because I would not have thought of that. Obviously not in... You know...

Product sales. So I didn't register that. But I think you're helping kind of tee up... I will say that I'm...

This is another one where it's good... But... One of the moments that stuck out to me is: The father says... He's not different when he plays.

But because there was probably more to that conversation, my first question is: Well, what's wrong with being different? So that was... Like, I loved the controller. This was a Super Bowl ad.

It was a big hit for them. You know. And I think it was almost a slam dunk. For me, I probably would have loved to...

When I think of video games, it's sort of similar to... I think things are fast and... This was more cutesy. They went more cutesy.

Because it's kids. And I loved hearing from the kids. But I actually would have loved to only hear from the kids. I actually thought that the father...

I mean, of course it makes sense. The parents are the ones buying the controller. And the parents are the ones that bring this into their home and make things accessible for their kids. So you know...

But I just felt in that little thing... It's almost perfect. But I definitely... I thought...

Why not make it as competitive and fun as you would any other video game commercial? Where I feel like it would be more edgy, generally. I would think that... Anyway.

But that's just, again, me being nitpicky, maybe. But... Since this is my presentation, I get to tell you what I think. All right.

Anyway... Moving on to the next one. I'm what's called a CODA.

My parents were both born Deaf.

I was not. When people in the Hearing world learn that about me, they always want to know more.

You go out with your hand. I've always had one foot in the Deaf world and one in the Hearing world. I translated a lot for my parents. It made us closer.

Now that it's been over a year since we've seen each other in person, communication is more important than ever. Especially with this guy. It's their first time being grandparents, so they don't want to miss a single moment.

And I don't either. We can't wait for you to meet her. Since we don't have a ton of time, I'll say... I put this in there to show...

And also tech to tech -- that you can do heartwarming without being schmaltzy. I think this is great, in terms of storytelling. I think it is very touching. And I think it's as perfect of an ad as I've seen.

For me, personally. And so... Bravo to Google. And since we have two more clips, I think we're just going to skip one of the two.

But I will describe it for you guys. Okay? All right. So we're going to skip the really bad example, where...

You know this one. Do you want to play like ten seconds of it?

No. We don't have to. We don't have to. I can just...

Should I just say what happens? All right. So spoiler -- spoiler -- spoiler, because we don't have time. This is a World Down Syndrome Day ad, done by a Down Syndrome organization.

Where they basically... They have Olivia Wilde, for some reason. Enacting all the things that this girl with Down Syndrome would like to do. It's just...

Olivia Wilde instead. So... I'm kind of glad we're skipping it, actually. To be honest.

All right. So now, eight years later, the same organization got some memos. Got it together. And I think did much better.

This is the one that we will end on. And we can always talk about this offline, if you guys want to... Hey, bartender. You assume that I cannot drink a Margarita.

So you don't serve me a Margarita, so I don't drink a Margarita. Your assumption becomes reality. Parents, you assume I can't live on my own so you don't encourage me to live on my own so I don't live on my own. Coach, you assume I can't hit harder so you don't train me to hit harder so I don't hit harder.

Teacher, you assume I can't learn Shakespeare, so you don't teach me Shakespeare. Old McDonald had a farm. So I don't learn Shakespeare. EIEIO.

But hey... If all your assumptions become reality... Then assume I can drink a Margarita. So you serve me a Margarita.

So I drink a Margarita. Assume that I can live on my own. So I live on my own. Assume that I can hit harder.

So I hit harder. Assume that I can learn Shakespeare. So... What fools these mortals be.

I learn fucking Shakespeare! You assume I can't swear, right? Assume that I can do that job. That I can go to parties.

That I can have sex. That I can be on stage. Assume that I can. So maybe I will.

By the way, fun fact -- I met her last night. I was like...

You were in my presentation! And you're real! She was the host last night. She MC'ed the entire event.

So take that. Yeah. Do you think we should go over five, so we can get some reactions? Is that okay?

Is everyone okay with that? Okay. So... Thoughts.

Feelings. My name is Gaymarie. Don't try to look that up. I loved it.

I think, because it was so in your face, and I think sometimes... There's a fear. Yeah. I'm new to the accessibility space.

Just for disclosure. But I have worked in populations forever, as long as I can remember. And I know there's a nervousness. Like...

Some people... It's like you kill it with kindness. So... Right?

So they're just... They don't do anything at all. Right? They're afraid.

So they don't do anything. And I found with our clients, a lot of the times, I start there. Because... There's a fear to engage even in the space.

That they're going to screw up. Or they're going to get sued. Or the brand is going to get tweeted. Or canceled.

So the answer sometimes unfortunately is to do nothing at all. So I mean... I remember this coming on the television. I was with my 16-year-old son.

And I leapt off the couch. First of all, I love that girl. Like, I want to be that girl. You know?

She's like... So kick ass. It's crazy. But I think sometimes it's needed, sometimes...

We pussy foot around things. And we try... So I think some of these ads -- I would love to see the creative briefs. To understand what they were thinking.

Because I don't think they were... Nobody wants to get canceled. Nobody wants not to... I would love to see the creative briefs -- correct.

I would really love to -- what you're doing is so important. But this one, I literally leapt off my couch and then I Googled it. And I have it. But...

Did you fangirl? Because I mean...

It was... Like... This girl! She was very nice about it, but yeah.

I think the first one I saw didn't say the sex part. And I YouTubed it with my 16-year-old, 17-year-old boy. And he's looking at me like... I'm like...

That's up to you, what you think about that part. But that was hilarious. Yeah. No.

And... I mean, to your point, this is exactly why I created this. I don't know if you could call it a curriculum. But why I want to do workshops like this.

Is that I feel like people want to do it. They don't know how. They're afraid to get canceled. They're afraid to say the wrong thing.

And I want to say that there's more to this. We have a QR code, I think we have all the ads there. But the first link is a QR code, with a One Sheet that gives you Words to use, Words not to use, Why we like them. So you can look at some of the resources that we have for you.

But my hope is obviously: You can't solve, you know, this kind of issue in one hour. But I wanted to at least create something that... You know, gets people thinking. Any other thoughts before we say goodbye?

Or questions? It's Aurelia again. Thank you for what the last commenter said about being canceled. Because like it or not, we are in a society where there are businesses.

And that is a real fear. I worked in advertising for a long time. We made a lot of missteps. It wasn't the cancel culture time.

It was 15 years ago. So we would just get dinged, or the FDA would ding us. But I think something like this dialogue... It's the only way.

You know, we all have to keep learning. Everybody has their... Something that they would like to present to the world. And I think this is just great, to just start talking about it.

Because there is a fear. I've made so many mistakes in meetings at work. Like... Pronouns.

Everything. I've made every mistake you could possibly make. Socially. But I'm here to learn.

And I think if we all approach it with that, and just have a dialogue, it will get better. Yeah. And I think the thing that's difficult to measure is people's intentions. I think if your intentions are good...

You know, allyship is not about never making mistakes. It's... Okay. Once I get the feedback, how do I respond?

Am I defensive? Or do I actually work toward trying to understand? Do I hear you out? And make changes?

You know, and that's why I did the side by side with Nike. Obviously they kind of... You know... I think unintentionally...

And I think in Nike's defense, they contracted out that particular video. But that was the video they used to announce it. So anyway... The point is that I think all we can do is try.

And unfortunately, sometimes if you try and you really haven't done your research, you can get canceled. And this is why I wanted to do this. Is that I wanted to give you guys a framework, so that we have something to work with, as far as knowing what to do and not to do. Because that's what I see.

I see a lot of people kind of walking on eggshells. Not knowing what to do. Even if they want to do something. And as somebody that would like to just see more empowered representation out there, I want to demystify all of this.

So that we can get somewhere. And feel... And that people feel comfortable trying and putting themselves out there. I know it's a tightrope walk.

But... I think it's really important that we do what we can. So... Thank you for being allies.

And for what you're doing. And even showing up is a form of allyship. So... Especially on a debate night...

We were debating something very different.

You just made my life. That's wonderful. That's enough for me. Okay.

We're done. Okay. But also... I'm going to make sure that Thomas gives everybody my information.

If there's something you're working on that you're not quite sure, you want to do a sensitivity read, or you want to see how it's going -- and it shouldn't just be me. I'm happy to give you my village of people. We'll be your bouncers. We'll be your body guards.

And help you through it. But thank you for being here, and so active and present. And thank you to everyone online. Were there any questions?

Yes. So I want to first say that this is a strength to Xian Horn as a presenter and engagement manager. That in the nine-plus years of doing this meet-up, I would definitely say this is the most participatory discussion we've had at this event. And this is like the strength of Xian, for like...

Hosting something that's actually engaging. And interesting. So... Honestly, thank you so much.

And also, thank you all so much for being inclusive. I think tonight we only have time to take one question from online, because we engaged so much in the room. But I wanted to take one question from online. So I thought this question was great.

This is... The way this is -- from someone on YouTube -- the way I acquired my disability has been a lot in the news lately and is freaking people out. FYI, childhood encephalitis. What might be some ways that I can give an alternative to the doomsday narratives or the rarity and exoticism wrongly associated with it?

It can be scary, but a lot of the coverage really annoys me. Well, actually... That is exactly why I'm so proud to be a Forbes contributor, and have a platform. And why I recommend when I speak to the disability community that...

We shouldn't just be written about. And it shouldn't just... And I think... You know, when I think about how I started, I pitched the Dove campaign, asking them to include people with disabilities in their advertising.

They passed on it twice. But that video went viral. Because people understood what it was about. And I think at the time I was focused on what messages the beauty industry was giving us.

And so... I promise this is too... So to their question, I think it's so important, as a person with a lived experience, to tell your own story, and to create your own narrative. So what I would do is...

I don't know if it's YouTube or TikTok or whatever you have... Blog... Being able to -- obviously we don't all have the Forbes platform. But being able to say: Hey, listen.

There's been a lot... And say what you're saying to us... In a form that other people can see it, so that it's coming from you -- nobody is going to tell your story like you do. And that is why you're annoyed right now.

And I get it. So I think it's so important that we have more disabled journalists, more disabled media professionals, and so my advice to you is to become a creator. And share your story. Because that's the only way you're going to combat it, is by telling your truth, the way you want to tell it.

It is a great question. And actually, I want to say to that person -- if you want to reach out to me, to brainstorm ways that you can share your experience and not have it co-opted by someone else... I would be so happy to support you. Great question.

Yeah. Thank you. And we had so many more. But we have to wrap today!

Send them to me. So everyone else that had questions on the livestream or here -- we'll have a little time here in the space. But Xian Horn is very reachable. Yes, I'm accessible!

She's accessible! Okay. So we want to close. First let's give a huge round of applause for Xian Horn.

Thank you for coming.