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Down Syndrome NSW
Level 6/410 Church St, North Parramatta
9am-5pm Monday - Thursday
T: 9841 444


Friday, 29 May 2015

Weekend reading and viewing: 30th - 31st May 2015


Three Years Apart, Two Hearts Together: A Report Card of Siblings with Special Needs 
Kelle Hampton, Enjoying the Small Things, 28th March 2015
“Hold Dash,” she says, skipping to the couch where she climbs into her spot — the same spot she’s sat to hold him since his pink wrinkled feet were stained with ink from his birth certificate prints. She pulls a pillow under her left arm to prop his head up – as if he needs it – extends her arms and waits, beaming with such big sister pride, you’d expect a swaddled newborn to be handed to her followed by camera clicks and flashes. Instead, skinny toddler legs awkwardly dangle as I attempt to cradle and transfer Dash — all 37 inches of him–into the space on her lap without a kick to her face. He smiles and plays along; he knows the drill. 
“Oh, look at the baby,” I coo, tucking a blanket under Dash’s chin while Nella pats his legs and snuggles him close. They both giggle, realizing this is a bit silly now, but no doubt enjoying the charade — him, for the attention; her, for the chance to be the biggest, the nurturer, the one he looks up to ...
When a Stranger Pointed Out What I’d Been Missing About My Daughter’s Disability
April Charisse, The Mighty, 27th May 2015
When my daughter was a toddler and should have been walking, making eye contact, and babbling, I got looks from people. Their eyes said they felt sorry for me. They had pity for her. I hated it... 
.. and that day I learned something — I needed to show others how joyful and appreciative of life we are. I needed to show by example that my daughter is a treasure. Her spirit is amazing ...
Just Having More Disabled People on TV Is Not Enough
Simon Stevens, HuffPost The Blog, 25th May 2015

Television and literature is full of disabled characters, although we may not obviously relate to them as disabled people, and includes people like Captain Hook, Tiny Tim, Ironside, many James Bond villains and the list goes on. The problem with these characters is that their impairment is used as symbolism for traits like helplessness and vengeance. They reinforce the notion disability is either something to pity, or a reason to dislike the world and take revenge, especially in terms of being a supervillain ...

Boy with autism and mother spared from deportation after Immigration Minister Peter Dutton intervenes
David Chen, ABC News, 25th May 2015
A young boy who was at risk of being deported back to the Philippines because he is autistic will be allowed to stay in Australia with his mother ...
David Perry on Twitter, 27th May 2015
Read the tweets from the bottom up. Link to New York Times interview here,



The toy industry shuts out children with disabilities. We want to change that
Rebecca Atkinson, The Guardian, 18th May 2015
The public response to the Toy Like Me campaign’s inspiring new dolls has been huge. But the business’s big players have yet to meet our challenge...
Finland's disabled punk band didn't win Eurovision. They won more than that
Markus Kuokkanen, Global Post, 23rd May 2015
... The four middle-aged men in PKN have Down syndrome, Williams syndrome and other intellectual disabilities. They’ve built a solid fan base in the Finnish punk scene and have toured as far as Austin’s South by Southwest festival in 2013. 
But they're not just loved by punks. The Finnish public overwhelmingly voted for PKN to represent their country at Eurovision ...
... it raises a question I ponder time and again: how can we celebrate and admire kindness in a way that avoids treating certain people like props in society’s quest to feel warm and fuzzy? ...

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