Vanessa Harris, PE, appeared on WGN Weekend News with Gaynor Hall. The following versions of the interviews are open captioned with American Sign Language. Transcripts of the Evening News and Morning News are below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6pd2ifA84 WGN...
2023 Leaders for a New Chicago
The #FieldFoundation and #MacArthurfoundation announced the #2023LeadersforANewChicago. Five of the ten awardees were interviewed by Sasha-Ann Simons on WBEZ's Reset program. The ten awardees are as follows: Glo Choi, Mark Clements, Amethyst Davis, Carlos Flores,...
Sitting Down with A Maverick for Change in Mexico: Andres Balcazar
Check out our latest blog post on Universal Design practices implemented in Mexico and beyond! This blog written by Vanessa Harris, Sophia Jean, Hongji Feng and Ellie Benton was based on an interview Vanessa Harris conducted with Andres Balcazar. The blog post...
Breaking the Stigma: Elite Athletes Open Up About Mental Health
This guest post was written by Sophia Jean When Gymnastics star and Olympic champion Simone Biles arrived at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, everyone expected her to sweep through the competitions and deliver breathtaking performances. However, the pressure and stress that...
The Prominent Occupation of the Sightless in China
By Hongji Feng CHONGQING, CHINA In the past twenty years of my life, I have never walked into a blind massage parlor - people from countries like the United States probably have never heard of it. A massage given by blind therapists is an actual thing in China, and a...
Judith Heumann and Vanessa Harris-Icon to Icon
> Hi. This is Vanessa Harris with Fun4theDisabled.com. Today, I’m having a conversation with Miss Judith Heumann -- > Hello. >> -- a human rights activist and a true icon. Hi, Judy. >> Hi. So are you, icon to icon. How are you? >> Okay. Judy is...
Black Entertainers with Disabilities
Name Disability Occupation Alice Beard dyslexia author Alicia Keys depression pianist, singer-songwriter Andrae Crouch dyslexia singer Barbara Jordan multiple sclerosis lawyer, educator, politician, civil rights leader Blind Tom Wiggins blind music prodigy, pianist,...
The View From My Chair by Frank Petrie
It is hard to imagine being in other people’s shoes, but it is even harder to imagine being in someone else’s chair. For Frank Petrie, the most common phrase he hears from non-wheelchair users is “I can only imagine.” This expression was the inspiration for “The View...
Being Nice is the Expletive Deleted Way to Go!
#Fun4thedisabled’s Vanessa Harris interviews Suz Ballout, a comedian, actor, and producer, about her struggles with mental health, as well as her Lebonese identity. She also discusses why it is common for comedians to have lived difficult lives....
Bowhead–Innovate or DIE
#Fun4thedisabled interviews Christian Bagg, creator of the Bowhead Reach, a mountain bike for wheelchair users. He discusses his personal journey, and how the Bowhead Reach has allowed him to live his life without restricting his freedom to explore the world the way...
Conversation with Nate Woogen-Comedian and Writer
#Fun4thedisabled’s Vanessa Harris interviews Chicago comedian and writer Nate Woogen, who is involved in Chicago’s Second City and lives with cerebral palsy. They discuss how his disability has affected his life, and in what ways he adapts his comedy....
Conversation with Comedienne Cherise Johnson
Vanessa Harris of #fun4thedisabled interviews comedian and former teacher Cherise Johnson. They talk about invisible disabilities, mental health, and the importance of educating the public on issues related to disability....