Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (2020) Movie Review
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution is a documentary produced by Michelle and Barack Obama. It shows the story of a group of disabled individuals who band together to fight for change. The documentary begins with an introduction to how some of the main players in this story met. A place called Camp Jened is where many of these individuals connected for the first time. Camp Jened was founded in 1951 as a summer camp for young people with disabilities. It was located in the Catskills and featured all the things you would find at a summer camp: swimming, baseball games, jam sessions, and general hanging out. It was the first place many of these young people felt seen, heard, and understood.
At Camp Jened we are introduced to the main drivers of the movie including Judy Heumann, James Lebrecht, Lionel Je’Woodyard, and Denise Sherer Jacobson. We see these individuals as young teenagers exploring life and trying to come to terms with being seen as “ not normal” by society. The documentary focuses largely on the 1970’s when the country was in upheaval from the civil rights movement and the Vietnam war. Directors Nicole Newnham and James Lebrecht make sure to weave the backdrop of the time into the story.
After Camp Jened, the campers go their separate ways until the mid 1970’s when the campers reunite to fight for the growing disability rights movement. In 1977, Heumann leads a sit-in at the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare offices. The film spends a large amount of time on this demonstration that lasted for nearly a month. There is some political drama involving Joseph Califano and even former President Nixon makes an appearance courtesy of archival footage. The broader civil rights movement was discussed but the focus is on the group that originated at Camp Jened.
The film is an inside look at the fight waged for equal rights for those with disabilities. The documentary avoids common pitfalls of being too on the nose with their message and the subtlety works quite nicely here. You get to know each of the campers as individuals and witness where their lives take them. There is a very nice personal connection with each person that is interviewed.
There’s also the larger picture which helps to describe the scope of the issue at hand and how far we’ve come since the 1970’s. There’s a little snippet at the end that makes sure to emphasize how far our society still has to go in terms of equal rights for those with disabilities. Crip Camp highlights an important movement that helped achieve some monumental changes for those living with disabilities. In doing so it offers hope that change really can happen, even if it’s slower than you’d like.
Film or Movie: Movie
You’ll like this movie if:
1. You like documentaries
2. You want to learn about the equal rights movement of those living with disabilities
3. You want to revel in the power of the human connection
