United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD/COSP10), ABILITY Corps and ABILITY Magazine hosted a panel titled: Unconscious Bias, Perceptions and Non-inclusion.
Panelists consisted of:
Maya Sabatello, LLB, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Bioethics, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University; a faculty member at Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights; and the co-director of Columbia University’s Precision Medicine: Ethics, Politics, and Culture project. Maya has interdisciplinary training in law, political science, medical ethics, and research on the ethical, legal and social implications of genetics. Her work focuses on the impact of scientific technologies, particularly reproduction and genomic data, on policy, equality, and social inclusion; and on disability rights. She currently investigates the uses of psychiatric genetics and next-generation sequencing in judicial and pediatrics settings.
“I once was told a cure for MS was a million miles away,
so I thought I would just go get it and bring it back.
– Longhaulpaul
Paul Pelland’s mission is to document riding a million miles with MS, for MS. His hope is that by sharing his unique story he will inspire others who are facing tough challenges navigate through life’s road, while also raising awareness and funds as he continues Chasing The Cure.
Christina Cannarella, is the founder of Mother Road Entertainment, an all-inclusive multimedia company focused on creating content and opportunities representing people of all abilities. She is currently working on The Johnny Hatch Project- a documentary that is currently in production with an educational outreach component using art and story-telling to bring inclusive opportunities in school settings.
ABILITY Corps and Christina have joined forces with Find Your Calling (FYC) Workshops: Inclusive workshops providing teens and adults of all abilities to learn more about career opportunities in certain industry sectors such as Television/Film and Fashion.
Lia Martirosyan, Co-Founder of ABILITY Corps, introduces and screens a brief clip of a historic film produced in 1978, years before the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Yet the title of this Oscar Nominated film is A Different Approach (ADA). This was Michael Keaton’s first film and has many stars from that era. The ADA can be described as a comedy-musical designed to encourage and promote the accurate portrayal and employment of people with disabilities. It was targeted to the entertainment industry, and was used to “break the ice” to “hire the handicapped”. Never widely distributed.
Chet Cooper (Moderator) – Chet is the Editor-in-Chief of ABILITY Magazine. Chet lead this diverse panel of educators, content producers, and game changers. Chet’s background includes building the first job board for job seekers with disabilities, the first volunteer home builders with disabilities program and the creation of one of the top 50 on-line magazines in the world.
