Meme Faux-Pas?
Internet sensation George Takei, known for his witty, irreverent posts, was taken by surprise when thousands of his followers expressed outrage at this meme, which he posted with the comment, “She was filled with … the holy spirits.” Even HuffPo and Slate piled on, with headlines like Slate’s, “Too Many Celebrities are Using Social Media to Mock People with Disabilities.”

Finally Uncle George gave in and issued a long, sincere and ultimately endearing apology. “I did not expect the level of offense this meme caused,” wrote Takei. “I had naturally just thought of those movies where the evangelical preacher miraculously cures someone who was disabled. What I’d never really considered before so many fans wrote in is how that portrayal of disabled persons is filled with ignorance and prejudice — two things I never want to promote, even inadvertently.”

We posted the meme and apology on NEW MOBILITY’s Facebook site. What did NM’s followers think?

“I’ve been a quad for 20yrs and I thought it was funny as hell! It’s called a sense of humor folks, look into it!” said Shawna Chaney, to a chorus of “I agree with Shawna.” Dale Gee, though, pointed out, “The reason they took him to task is because some people — and few who follow this page — are the first to point a finger and yell ‘Fraud!’”

What do you think? Is it OK to laugh at people with disabilities or should we be off-limits?

Twitter Intersection
On Aug. 22, New Mobility participated in #DisabilitySolidarity’s historic Twitter event, “Answering the Call: A Conversation on Race, Disability and Accountability.” Here are a few tweets.

#DisabilitySolidarity documented the conversation using the Web app Storify — read it at storify.com/dissolidarity/disabilitysolidarity-1.