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*In this op-ed, writer Keah Brown, who has cerebral palsy, explains how "13 Reasons Why" and the entertainment industry at large needs to do better when portraying disability. *
When 13 Reasons Why premiered last year, it only took me a day and a half to finish the season. I devoured each episode, waiting to see who got a tape and why. Like others, what I struggled with most was the visual of Hannah's death by suicide. Watching it was triggering and intense for the young girl I once was, who scarred her body too. When you show vulnerable viewers things like these, they have a lasting effect. Still, I dove into season two when it premiered last week, unsure of what to expect.
The show amped up its content warnings and made sure to share the necessary hot lines at the end of each episode, which I appreciated. However, I found myself a little apprehensive with the handling of disability this season. Alex, played by Miles Heizer, survived his attempted suicide from the end of last season and he did so in a way that resulted in the use of a cane and trouble remembering much before his suicide attempt.
I will not claim to know what it’s like to come into disability — I was born with my physical one, at least. The invisible ones would come later, but as a whole I never went through that adjustment period because this is all I have ever known. Still, I understood Alex’s frustration, and his ideas of brokenness and worthlessness as a result of disability, because I once felt them too. It is easy to understand that hurt, and the questions of whether or not being the way that we are is punishment. I can tell you now that disabled people are not punishments, but I did not know that when I was Alex’s age, and I imagine that many others don’t either. While I understand it, that’s also why I left the final episode so disappointed — the characterization of disability in this season played into the same tropes of disabled people hating ourselves and being miserable that are often used on television, and these are tropes that young disabled people may not yet be able to see through.
In part, my frustrations stem from the disability arc and storyline not feeling fully fleshed out. Had we seen Alex reach some sort of resolution or acceptance with his disability, the show’s creators could have sent a powerful message to viewers that disabled people aren't broken — instead, we are whole. ad the show done a better job at showing that disability doesn't have to mean "broken," it could have meant a major cultural shift — one that’s sorely needed in television today.
We are seeing a rise in portrayals of disabled characters on televisions and, while representation is great, it has to be done right. Statistics show that's not exactly the case. According to GLAAD's annual report, disabled characters accounted for 1.8% of all series regulars on network shows in the 2017-2018 season. This increased very slightly from the year prior, when disabled characters accounted for 1.7% of characters on television. The American Community Survey estimated that the rate of people with disabilities in America in 2016 was about 12.8%. According to the 2010 census, about 20% of Americans have a disability.
Of the shows that do portray disability, the characters skew very white, with few disabled characters of color. Many of the actors portraying these characters do not have the same disabilities in real life, which is taking jobs away from disabled actors. And these characters tend to be portrayed just as Alex was — as unhappy, and not whole.
Still, toward the end of the season we do see Alex come to terms with his reality in small ways, and that's at least a small win. He participates in the big school fight with all of the other boys, which isn’t ideal, but it does showcase his willingness to fight back. I also enjoyed the water therapy via bicycle pedaling Alex did with Zach Dempsey, played by Ross Butler, as well as other moments that injected humor into Alex’s journey. (A personal highlight? Zach calling Alex out on his “pity party.”) In the long run, those things help.
In episode five of the new season, during a heart to heart with Zach, Alex feels like he won't ever find a relationship (prior to his getting together with Jessica). He says, after Zach assures him he'll find someone, “Well, let me know when you find her. Maybe she has a friend who is into scrawny and broken.” The line delivery made me laugh if only because I know that fear of being unlovable in my disabled body. I know the fear masked by humor, the pain too loud to quiet. The truth is that disabled people are desired and romantically loved every day. We see this in the show when Alex ends up dating Jessica, played by Alisha Boe, and no matter how it ends, she wasn’t concerned with the opinions of others when she kissed him on their school’s dance floor. When Jessica kisses her ex, Alex's disability wasn't a factor, which was a refreshing change of pace from the portrayal of disability in other shows.
While disability representation on television as a whole isn't great, I have hope for a future where I no longer have to say this: disabled people are people too, and we deserve to have our stories told by us and others with the same respect and care as the able-bodied characters who receive that care and attention without hesitation.
Related: Disabled People Still Aren't Being Cast to Tell Their Own Stories in Hollywood
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