Continuing our Reclaiming The Word Crip series, we list a few modern TV shows and films that embrace the word “crip” in its titles and represent the disability community as positive, powerful, determined change-makers.
Crip Camp
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution is a Netflix Original documentary, which tells the story of everyday disabled teenagers in the 1970s who congregated at a summer camp and went on to make history by creating the disability rights movement.
The film is a funny and heart-warming tale. It begins with footage from 1971 of disabled campers and councillors arriving at Camp Jened, a ramshackle camp “for the handicapped”, in the Catskill Mountains, New York state.
The campers have a variety of disabilities including spinal bifida, cerebral palsy, polio, blind, deaf and learning disabilities.
Being there enables them to take part in everyday experiences – sports, cooking, social gatherings, smoking and make-out sessions – that the outside world in the 70s didn’t allow.
At the end of camp, they find it hard to go home where they are either isolated, discriminated against or institutionalised.
This is what led to the campaign for disabled people’s civil rights. The film follows the 20 years of protests and negotiations with the US government that followed until the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was finally created.
Crip on a Trip
Crip on a Trip is a 2006 Channel 4 short film with an intimate observation of disability. Eighteen-year-old Dominic Hyams has brittle bones – but that’s not going to stand in the way of a European adventure with his non-disabled mates.
The documentary follows Dom and his friends on their travels across Europe, where they encounter some accessibility barriers, near-fatal accidents and the emotional toll of Dom having his mates support him with his personal care – such as toileting, washing and dressing. Their adventures together give them important life skills and independence. Plus, Dom’s friends have a greater understanding of his disability and the physical impact it has on his life.
This film helps break the taboos around disability and shows that people can live the life they want to lead no matter their impairments. It has also been part of the PSHE and the citizenship curriculum in secondary schools, teaching students about disability, diversity and inclusion.
Dom went on to study Management at university, became the founder of Tiny Man Digital and is currently Client Director at Purple Goat Agency.
CripTales
CripTales is a BBC series of powerful, dramatic monologues, showcasing disabled actors, writers and directors. The six-part series of fictional monologues is based on factual research and the lived experience of disabled people spanning British history since 1970. Funny, inventive, dramatic and sexy, each monologue places disabled voices, absent from TV drama for so long, at the centre of the stage.
The series includes Mat Fraser, Liz Carr, Ruth Madeley, Robert Softley Gale, Jackie Hagan and Carly Houston.
CripTales is currently not available on BBC iPlayer but you can watch a clip of Liz Carr in the above video.
Can you suggest any other TV shows and films with “crip” or “cripple” in its title? Let us know in the comments box or on social media.
Don’t forget to check out part one and two of our Reclaiming The Word Crip series – Disability Organisations Using Crip With Pride and 10 Works Of Disability Literature Taking Back Power On Crip.
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