One Woman Never Takes ´No´ for an Answer as She Fights for Rights of Performers with Disabilities

As the Executive Director of the Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles, Gail Williamson promotes education, public awareness, and acceptance of people with Down syndrome. In her free time, she is also fighting for the rights of performers with Down syndrome and other disabilities. "You can´t take ´no´ as the final answer," Williamson said.

Williamson has often heard the word ´no´ when dealing with casting directors for film and television. Despite hearing the word ´no´, she has helped open the doors for her son and other performers with Down syndrome. Reaching further for change through the DSALA's Heart and Halo Talent Program www.dsala.org/hh_talent.htm and her newly created Down Syndrome in Arts and Media www.DSiAM.org to help locate talent with developmental disabilities. She has witnessed first hand what opportunity can do for a performer´s self-esteem, while influencing public opinion in a positive way. "My son, Blair, was running the 400 meter race in the Special Olympics, when he was asked to appear in a commercial. The commercial was for Procter & Gamble and he had to run over and over again for four hours for 15 seconds of film. In the end, he was so proud. Everybody´s life changed that day. I thought, ´Why shouldn´t more kids do this?´" Williamson explained. "We tried to get an agent but everyone said, ´No.´ We pushed forward, found a photographer to take headshots, and that led us to an agent who said, ´Yes.´"

Williamson wanted more kids to have opportunities to train and perform. "Television and film have the power to change society´s view of people with disabilities. Hollywood is fear driven. I believe casting directors, producers and executives are fearful of suggesting something new and perhaps losing relationships that lead to future work. If every casting director in every television show and film set a goal to cast one 'under five' roll with an actor with a disability we would see a significant change in employment, awareness and the futures of the 56 million Americans who have disabilities. But, that is not happening. Originally, when I started in 1993, for a moment, I thought I would see significant change and advocates would no longer be needed. I really believed it could happen. But, it´s not going to happen in my lifetime. There are too many hurdles. We need to change the medical model to the human model – people with disabilities are humans every day," Williamson stressed.

Two directors who live fearlessly are Peter and Bobby Farrelly. Williamson has worked with the team of brothers on several projects. "Look at the film ´The Ringer.´ Pete and Bobby are leaders of opening the doors to people with disabilities. I got a copy of the script for ´The Ringer´ and I was very impressed. In the final production, in a group of six leads, two had disabilities and all of the athletes seen in that movie are athletes who have competed in the Special Olympics. In their other films, they use performers with disabilities craftily. You might see a character sitting there on screen and they might be disabled or not, but it´s done smoothly," Williamson said. "One of the coolest things they did was audition Bryan Dilbeck, an actor with Cerebral Palsy for the film ´Stuck on You.´ He didn´t get the part, but they hired him as a Production Assistant. When the film moved to Florida, everyone on the cast and crew were asking, 'Where is Bryan?' Films never fly in PAs, instead they´re normally hired on location. But, Pete Farrelly called Bryan and asked him if he wanted to work on the rest of the film. He said, ´Yes.´ Pete flew him to Florida to do the job."

While a nice ending, it´s also rare. Williamson notes the door does not swing open for auditions or production jobs often. "For Blair, he brings so much personality to characters and he learned to act in the moment, but honestly, it´s two or three years between auditions. He gains work from about 70% of those auditions," Williamson said.

Reviewing credits for Blair Williamson seems impressive. His work has been seen on "ER," "Heartland," and "The Guardian." He´s also portrayed a murder victim on "CSI," had a nose job on "Nip/Tuck," and appeared as a janitor in the film "Unknown." But, when you consider that his resume amounts to less than a dozen television and film appearances over the last fifteen years, the work opportunities remain unequal to other minorities who are included in diversity numbers.

"Within the industry, we´re watching more gay and lesbian characters, Hispanic, African American, and yet there is no show that offers a beneficial perception of people with disabilities. We are grateful to GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) for fighting for fair, accurate and inclusive representation. We are following in their footsteps, because they have been able to make great strides in representation. There are studio executive who are gay and lesbian and understand. Comedies such as ´Will & Grace´ win over hearts. But, there are only a few executives who are disabled and when I´ve contacted specific TV shows that are comedies, they have said ´No.´ Why not have a regular performer with a disability on ´The Suite Life of Zack and Cody´ or ´Hannah Montana?´" Williamson asked. "Executives ask, ´How will it work?´ They think viewers won´t connect. They´re looking for money, we´re looking for advocacy and employment, so we have two different agendas. What the studios don't recognize is that there is an un-tapped group of consumers with disabilities and their friends and families who would embrace inclusion in the media."

Controversy also exists within the disabled community. Some disabled communities see themselves as a separate culture. Meanwhile, some people with disabilities complain that making the topic so politically correct is counterproductive and dilutes the message of inclusion. "It would be nice if we would support one another whether someone is deaf, a wheelchair user, an amputee, has Down syndrome or another disability. My goal is to find an organization to help create opportunities for inclusion and participation of every disability. As long as you qualify for state and federal funds, you are disabled. We need to rally the troops and join together through advocacy and awareness. If there was a part for a blind person, it is our responsibility to hold casting directors and producers accountable to the SAG contracts calling for performers with disabilities to be given the opportunity to audition for roles as characters with disabilities. All too often a typical actor is cast without producers even considering an actor with the disability."

Williamson knows change will require a bigger voice. "´Life Goes On,´ starring Chris Burke, an actor with Down syndrome, was not provided on DVD. Why? Warner Brothers said there was no call for it. I sent an e-mail asking if anyone was interested. I received 1,000 e-mails requesting it. I passed those requests onto Warner Brothers and the TV show is now available on DVD," Williamson said. "Meanwhile, many films use inappropriate references. The 2005 version of ´Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,´ the character Mike Teavee refers to winning a golden ticket saying, ´Any retard can do it.´ We asked Warner Brothers to take the line out of the DVD version, and they refused. Then, we´ve experienced the other extreme. In ´Napoleon Dynamite,´ one of the characters tells the other character ´You guys are retarded.´ Fox went so far to manufacture a pen that says the recorded words with a simple click, ´You guys are retarded.' We went to battle with Fox and they pulled the merchandise. Fox is now one of the better studios at understanding."

"Studios have the right to free speech, but we also have right to free speech. It´s a matter of opening dialogue and listening to each other. If we can get the conversation started, we can make progress. When a caller on a radio show suggested the booby prize for a contest was a baby with Down syndrome, I e-mailed the station, its owner and the FCC. After we opened a discussion, I was on their public affairs show the next weekend. This is about education."

Williamson points out that some films have gotten it right. "´Notting Hill´ is a perfect example. There´s a woman in a wheelchair and it wasn´t a big deal, she was just treated like a person. It was less of a stigma. Marlee Matlin was an unknown actress in ´Children of a Lesser God´ and she walked away with an Oscar. 'Notes on a Scandal' had an actor with Down syndrome as the son of Cate Blanchett's character. He wasn't token, he was a part of the family in every family scene," Williamson explained. "We want to issue an invitation to have an intelligent conversation because we want to know: When are we going to see people with disabilities as real people?"

For more information about Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles, Inc., visit www.DSALA.org.

To visit Gail Williamson´s Down Syndrome in arts and Media link to www.DSiAM.org.

For additional information about the Screen Actors Guild Performers with Disabilities Committee link to www.PerformersWithDisabilities.com.