LETTERS: My daughter and I recently watched the 2016 Japanese animated drama film, The Silent Voice.
The story centres around Shoko Nishimiya, a deaf elementary school pupil who becomes the target of bullying by fellow pupil Shoya Ishida and his friends.
When the bullying is discovered, Shoya is framed as the sole perpetrator, leading to he being ostracised and bullied as well. Years later, he sets himself on a path to redemption.
Suffice to say that my daughter and I cried so hard that we vowed never to treat people with disabilities, especially the deaf, as less deserving of respect than any other human being.
We firmly believe that disabled people deserve opportunities, love, friendship, family and rights that any human being on this planet is entitled to.
However, as I reflected on the movie, I realised that understanding and awareness of disabilities are still lacking.
Many people lack experience or knowledge on how to deal with people with disabilities and don't understand the challenges that disabled people face.
This can lead to misconceptions and stereotypes about what disabled people can and cannot do.
Additionally, fear and discomfort can cause some people to feel uneasy or afraid when interacting with someone who has a disability, leading to avoidance or, in some cases, discrimination.
Sadly, some quarters of society view disability as a sign of weakness or inferiority.
The lack of accessibility can also create barriers for people with disabilities in accessing education, employment and other opportunities, leading to further discrimination.
However, I have noticed that in recent years, there has been a greater effort to include characters with disabilities in popular media such as movies, TV shows and books. While this is a positive development, the number of disabled characters in popular culture is still inadequate.
A recent study by Netflix revealed that despite 27 per cent of the United States population being identified as disabled, only 1.1 per cent of all characters in Netflix films and series had a disability.
This lack of representation should be addressed, especially given the influence that popular culture has on our behaviour in real life. We believe that disability-related characters should not be a rare occurrence in popular culture.
Production companies have the power to include disabled people in a variety of realistic portrayals, which can help eradicate the negative stereotypes associated with interacting with people who have disabilities.
Promoting greater understanding and acceptance in societies around the world for people with disabilities can be achieved through positive representation in popular media.
SITI HAJAR ABD AZIZ
Senior lecturer, Faculty of Communication and Media Studies, Universiti Teknologi Mara, Melaka
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times