Disability isn’t scary
24th February 2009 at 21:18
Nine official complaints have been submitted to the BBC about Cerrie Burnell, a CBeebies presenter who was born with only one hand. Apparently she's just too scary for their children!
Just think about that for a moment. I cannot believe that this sort of ignorance and prejudice against disabled people still exists, so blatantly and unashamedly, in 2009.
The BBC's response is pleasingly simple:
BBC spokesperson[Cerrie] was appointed because she was the best person for the job. We see no reason for her to try to hide her disability and are surprised that in 2009 this should even be raised as an issue.
Another part of this story is that viewers have accused the BBC of "positive discrimination" and "trying to score points" by employing a disabled presenter. So often when disabled people appear on screen, viewers assume that they are there purely because they are disabled. Surely they are there to play the part of ‘man in wheelchair' or to provide the ‘voice of the disabled community'. It couldn't possibly be because the person is simply a good actor; or a person with a valuable contribution to make, completely unrelated to disability, could it?
Rather than drafting their whingeing letters of complaint, wouldn't parents' time be better spent explaining to their children why Cerrie looks a little different to other people? It's perfectly possible to explain differences between people without ‘getting all heavy'. Or how about this for an idea: actually ask the children what they think.
Young children are learning machines, constantly watching and listening and exploring and wondering. Their minds are as open and as tolerant as they ever will be. Young children are not bound by the fears and prejudices of their parents and, to them, disability is just another curious part of the gigantic (and exciting) world in which they find themselves.
Who is it that's really scared here? I bet it's not the kids.
