In the iconic 1982 film POLTERGEIST, the medium played by Zelda May Rubinstein (who was a little person) chants to the spirits floating down the stairway, “Come into the light! All are welcome! All are welcome!” She created a sense of reality within the Poltergeist films that enhanced their impact. Beyond the films, she was an activist for the differently abled.
Recently, the 2024 Paralympics in Paris emphasized what administrators called the “Inclusion Revolution” for people who are all too often treated as less-than the non-disabled. Little persons as well as giants contributed their skills in various competitions, as did athletes who happened to have impairments such as blindness, cerebral palsy, or missing limbs. Most of the entertainers and commentators used mobility aids. Disabled doesn’t mean without ability…or drive…or achievement. For example, Ali Truwit, the American girl who lost a leg following a May 2023 shark attack overcame her PTSD as she swam to two silver medals in her first ever Paralympic appearance. She broke American records and surpassed her best NCAA competitive swim time from before her attack. With performances such as hers on display, no wonder the stands for the Paralympic events were crowded with family, friends, and cheering fans from many nations. (We can hope the next summer Paralympics in Los Angeles will experience the same enthusiasm and respect.) But did all the Paralympic athletes return home to the acceptance and inclusion they worked so hard to earn? Are our societies making progress in looking beneath obvious differences?
The Greeks began the practice of a dominant hand handshake, saying people had to be wary of anyone who wasn’t a recognized member of their tribe because they needed to be on the lookout for enemies with weapons. Society hasn’t recovered from those ancient fears, even though today we realize we can’t tell from superficial differences whether a person is friend or foe or what the person may do with a weapon. We still choose to focus on race or culture or religion…or any so-called odd physical features…as markers, even though such distinctions prove nothing. Judging from prejudice is faster than taking the time and trouble to find out about the individual. After all, good and evil lurk within.
When we look more closely at some of the groups or individuals the masses try to demonize, we find they’re often more valuable to society than the people demonizing them. They’re certainly not that different. The games—both regular Olympics and Paralympics—demonstrate the way in which outwardly dissimilar people can come together to enjoy each other’s company, competing without war. The games were reinstituted for precisely that goal.
Inclusion requires thought, empathy, and effort. Some lack the mirror neurons to empathize well. But perhaps the challenges the earth faces today require that we stop fussing over superficialities, opposing opinions or methods, and cooperate to use the talents and abilities of all of us to save ourselves. As the memes remind us: we’re all alike in death.
*In a later interview, Ali Truwit explained that the black shapes of underwater camera mountings that glided beneath the competitive swimmers brought back the horror of swimming away from the shark that mutilated her leg. She wept…and swam well to awards, anyway.
