The Rise of a Disabled Black MAN

Jermaine Williams

WRT 105

A. Rahman Ford took this picture to prove to himself that he is what he is, a black male, and a disabled man. In Linton’s Reassigning Meaning she talks about how many- disabled try there best to pass themselves off as abled because they can. Ford was proud of being a black man, but disappointed and ashamed of his Muscular Dystrophy. His reasons in taking this picture was to put himself out there, to educate the general publis about his struggle, and more for himself, to make known to him that he is disabled and to not be ashamed of it but accept it.

At first glance this image of Ford seems shocking. His face looked as though it was pasted into the image and that wasn’t truly his body. Though after looking further into the image I can see that he is trying to make a statement that he is a man, not only to the audience but himself as well. With out him going into times square and shouting it over a loud speaker it is written on a piece of paper that shouts it for him. The placement of the sheet of paper has great importance, since it covers an area of his body which most would say is the defining feature of being a man. Therefore Ford is not only saying that he is not just known as disabled but is a man, he is also saying that

I don’t need to show my genitals to prove to the audience or himself that he is a man.

That even though the mainstream consensus of what it means to be a man, to provide and protect

Ford had trouble accepting him self as a disabled man and feared that by showing his disability he would be viewed as less of a man. But when his disease progressed and he was unable to work he had no choice but to come to grips with his disability. This is where the picture comes in. He took the picture to show himself that he is disabled trying to shock himself into “This is real,” and it worked. As he was comfortable and proud of his blackness he also became more comfortable in his conscious disabled state.

Currently Ford is going through an expensive stem cell therapy that isn’t practiced anywhere but in Beijing, China. This procedure is costing Ford 50,000, and he’s collecting donations to help him and his family pay for his procedure in order for him to return to being a professor.

As the audience looking at this picture it is powerful enough without having the full background. Though the image does make you want to find out more about why this man has such slim limbs. When knowing the background of the image you realize that

Ford struggled intensely to fully accept his body as part of him. Linton says “Both passing and overcoming take their toll. The loss of community, the anxiety, and the self doubt that inevitably accompany this ambiguous social position and the ambivilous personal state are the enormous cost of declaring disability unacceptable.” Which is completely true in Ford’s case. He went on passing and once he realized he needed to over come his disability he found this procedure and now he is in the process.

The empowerment of a black man is prevalent in Ford’s everyday life but the empowerment of a disabled man with muscular dystrophy only came after the creation of this photo.