Response to John Hockenberrys Moving Violations - Essay Example

Persons with disabilities are portrayed as talented, resilient, and determined people who have to work extra hard to be acknowledged.
The book is a memoir of the success story of John Hockenberry who was paralyzed by a car accident at an age of 19 years, but regardless of the physical limitation, he has led a very successful and remarkable life as a world-traveling journalist traversing through the hills or Iran and Afghanistan as well as navigating through the Middle Eastern terrain stretches of sand in his wheelchair. Despite his disability, he has achieved what many able-bodied journalists have only imagined.

The depiction of the disabled in this book goes contrary to contemporary social expectations and attitudes. This is because disabled people are not given the same opportunities as other people and therefore, they are not expected to amount to something as big as John Hockenberry. Reading this book helped me appreciate the role of wisdom and perseverance in overcoming even the greatest of obstacles. I derive a sense of peace in knowing that even if humanity is greatly flawed with many disappointments, we can always fulfill our dreams and purpose in life and enjoy it.

This book has changed my perception of people with disability. The author portrays a picture of a person who does not give excuses for his disability to evade tasks and therefore, the aspects of disability do not form part of his identity. Instead, he is on the front line when covering the refugee stories in war-torn Kurdish, Iran, and Afghanistan. The most inspiring part is the story he covered in the Gulf war is a steep mountain while clinging to the back of a donkey. His story is that of an extraordinary journalist exceeding the bounds of expectations by venturing into scary situations. Even amid the humor, his stories draw the reader’s sympathy. By being a member of the minority group in society based on his disability, he deeply connects with the dying people in Afghanistan and the dying children in Somalia which looks like his motivation.

Despite the major achievement of people with disability, the book presents a society that still holds reservations about their capabilities. For instance, John recounts experiencing many instances of humiliation when he interacts with people, such as when a flight attendant asks him questions like; ``Have you ever thought about killing yourself?'' and ``Are you able to do it with a woman?''. However, the book successfully represents him as a multidimensional person. Some facets of value represented in this book include valuing differences, expanding relationships, and setting high expectations.

Despite the huge efforts of the civil rights and social movements to fight for the rights of the disabled, society has always played a major role in setting very low expectations for such persons. Read More