Spotlight: Derrick Coleman

Arizona Cardinals fullback Derrick Coleman, who is 28 years old, lost his hearing at age three. He was bullied during his childhood and didn't have access to resources that would be helpful for a deaf person. However, he began playing football in middle school. In 2012, Coleman became the National Football League's third deaf player when he joined the Minnesota Vikings. Since then, he played in more than 55 games with three NFL teams. He played for the Seattle Seahawks when they won the Super Bowl in 2014. Despite his hearing impairment, Coleman understands what people say by reading lips and is learning sign language. Last month, he spoke to students at the Phoenix Day School for the Deaf, sharing with them inspirational words of wisdom. For more information, go to http://ktar.com/story/2327987/cardinals-derrick-coleman-overcomes-hearing-loss-to-live-out-dream/.

Derrick Coleman

(image via Wikimedia Commons)

UN Releases Its First Disability Report

On the International Day of Persons with Disabilities two weeks ago, the United Nations (UN) released its first flagship report on disability and development. The report describes disadvantages these individuals encounter as well as good practices that have led to an increase in inclusion. Some people with handicaps still face stigma and discrimination and do not receive needed treatment for illnesses, which lead to a shorter life span. However, improvements are being made in certain parts of the world. There are one billion people with disabilities on Earth, according to Secretary-General António Guterres from Portugal. His hope is we can work together to create a better world for these individuals. To read the UN disability and development report, go to
https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/wp-content/uploads/sites/15/2018/12/UN-Flagship-Report-Disability.pdf.

The United Nations logo

(image via Wikimedia Commons)

George H. W. Bush: Remembering a Champion for People with Disabilities

Last week, the nation mourned George H. W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States. One of his greatest accomplishments as president was signing the Americans with Disabilities Act into law on July 26, 1990, an event four years in the making. In 1986, Bush (who was vice president under Ronald Reagan at the time) and his wife Barbara read an early draft of the ADA before he met with the National Council on Disability. The proposal, which he supported, was meaningful to him because he had a daughter who died of leukemia at age three and a son who had a learning disability that included difficulty reading. Bush himself had to use a wheelchair in the last years of his life because he had a form of Parkinson's disease. The disability community, myself included, is forever grateful to him. For more information, go to https://psmag.com/social-justice/how-george-h-w-bush-proved-himself-to-the-disability-rights-community.

George H. W. Bush (middle) signing the ADA

(image via US National Archives)

Spotlight: Jake Olson

Despite being blind, Jake Olson recently completed his fourth season as the University of Southern California (USC) football team's long snapper. His left eye was surgically removed when he was ten months old due to retinoblastoma. Olson had cancer in his right eye eight times before it was removed at age 12 in 2009. Before that surgery, his wish was to see the USC football team in person one more time. He watched their team practice after receiving an invitation from the head coach Pete Carroll, now the Seattle Seahawks head coach.

Even though he lost his sight, Olson wanted to play football, so he focused on becoming a long snapper for his high school's team. Two years later after joining USC's football team, he played in his first college game and helped the kicker score an extra point. Olson's teammates helped him by clapping so he'd know the distance of the snap and tapping his leg when it was time for him to snap the football. Olson, a motivational speaker and author of two books, received the 2018 Walter Camp Football Foundation's Award of Perseverance on November 21. Three days later, he took the USC football field for the last time, accompanied by his father and guide dog Quebec. For more details on this story, go to http://www.ksro.com/2018/11/30/blind-usc-senior-walks-the-football-field-for-the-last-time-as-a-trojan/.

Jake Olson

(image via CBS Sports)