The Campaign for Disability Employment (CDE) announced the launch of its second nationwide video contest on Tuesday. The competition invites submissions built around the organization’s “What can YOU do?” campaign to educate the public about the value people with disabilities bring to the workforce.
Both individual and groups of filmmakers can submit videos of 1-3 minutes in length in three categories: General, Youth, and Employment, with the overarching theme being the diverse skills and talents of people with disabilities and why including them in the workplace is beneficial to all employees. In the CDE press release, project director Tracie Saab says:
Our video contest is an opportunity for filmmakers of all ages to convey positive messages about the value people with disabilities add to the workforce and to help viewers re-think their negative assumptions about people with disabilities in the workforce.
Over 130 videos were submitted when the CDE ran its last video contest in 2009. The entrants competed in a single category based around the “What can YOU do?” theme. The winning submission and the two honorable mentions for that contest were all graphics-based and incorporated the accessible sound, and visual prompts. Blake Watson’s first-place video, “Meet Sue,” took a less-is-more approach, using a series of simple sentences typed out to illustrate the many facets that make Sue a whole human being:
The CDE is a collaboration of several organizational partners with the mission of advocating for a diverse workforce and is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). The website provides several ways businesses and individuals can promote awareness and education about employing people with disabilities, including a toolkit for facilitating a discussion within a workplace, articles to drop into company newsletters, and hosting a “What can YOU do?” event.
Part of CDE’s outreach has been a series of public service announcements (PSAs) featuring people with disabilities talking about their job responsibilities with statements that begin with “I can.” The website features each PSA participant on a web page with a short bio that rounds out their capabilities. In the case of Michael Saulter, a disability that impacts his ability to read and write did not deter his ambition to become a landscaper and carpenter:
… [H]e has had to develop different ways to make sure he understands his customers’ needs. He says even though he works with his hands, comprehension and communication skills are an important part of the job.
The submission deadline for this year’s contest is March 30, 2012. Details about each category can be found on the video contest page of the What Can You Do? website. So grab a camera and a friend, and be part of the movement toward increasing awareness and opportunities for people with disabilities in the workforce.
Image by jsawkins, used under its Creative Commons license.