Gianino, Matthew

Portella, Joy

English

UNH Scholars' Repository

University of New HampshireUniversity of New Hampshire Scholars' RepositoryMedia Relations Administrative Offices8-6-2008Film "Including Samuel" To Support Iraqi DisabilityRights MovementMatthew GianinoUNH Institute on DisabilityJoy PortellaMercy CorpsFollow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/newsThis News Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Administrative Offices at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It hasbeen accepted for inclusion in Media Relations by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For moreinformation, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.Recommended CitationGianino, Matthew and Portella, Joy, "Film "Including Samuel" To Support Iraqi Disability Rights Movement" (2008). UNH Today.497.https://scholars.unh.edu/news/497Film "Including Samuel" to Support Iraqi Disability Rights Movementhttp://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2008/aug/mg6samuel.cfm.html[9/12/2016 11:16:21 AM]www.mercycorps.org">UNH Media RelationsFilm "Including Samuel" To Support Iraqi DisabilityRights MovementMedia Contact:  Matthew Gianino (603) 862-2300UNH Institute on Disability / UCED Joy Portella (206) 437-7885Mercy CorpsAugust 6, 2008DURHAM, N.H. - The award-winning documentary film "Including Samuel" is partnering withMercy Corps, a global relief and development agency, to support the growing civil rightsmovement of the two million - nearly 1 in 13 - Iraqi citizens who are disabled. In addition tobeing translated into Arabic, the film will be incorporated into the Mercy Corps People withDisabilities Advocacy Program, which is designed to provide education, advocacy, andoutreach to ensure that Iraqis with disabilities fully participate in society.Photojournalist Dan Habib, filmmaker in residence at the University of New Hampshire'sInstitute on Disability, made the documentary to honestly chronicle his family's efforts toinclude his eight-year-old son Samuel, who has cerebral palsy, in every facet of their lives.The film also features four other families with varied inclusion experiences, plus interviewswith dozens of teachers, young people, parents, and disability rights experts. "IncludingSamuel" is a highly personal, passionately photographed film that captures the cultural andsystemic barriers to inclusion in schools and communities. The Including Samuel Project isbased at the Institute on Disability at UNH."In a country where the word 'accessibility' lacks definition, resources like 'Including Samuel'help create an understanding of how people with disabilities can be included in all aspects ofsociety," said Tiana Tozer, Mercy Corps Iraq program manager. "The film will enhance theMercy Corps People with Disabilities Advocacy Program by sparking our young advocates'creativity and imaginations, and opening their eyes to the possibilities of what Iraq can be forthem in the future."There is strong societal and internal stigma that Iraqis with disabilities face each day, Tozersays. Changing cultural attitudes that exist toward people with disabilities is central to theMercy Corps People with Disabilities Advocacy Program as well as the message in the film"Including Samuel."Habib says that there is a universal truth about people with disabilities around the world.Film "Including Samuel" to Support Iraqi Disability Rights Movementhttp://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2008/aug/mg6samuel.cfm.html[9/12/2016 11:16:21 AM]"They are generally undervalued and underestimated, whether it is my son Samuel inConcord, New Hampshire, or a young boy in Baghdad who lost a limb to the war."Mercy Corps works amid disasters, conflicts, chronic poverty, and instability to unleash thepotential of people who can win against nearly impossible odds. Since 1979, Mercy Corps hasprovided $1.5 billion in assistance to people in 106 nations. The agency's unified globalprograms reach nearly 16.4 million people in more than 35 countries. Since 2003, MercyCorps has been supporting a social justice movement in Iraq that supports the independenceof those who experience a disability. Tozer's work in Iraq was featured on the NBC NightlyNews (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/#25008541). For more information, visit theMercy Corps website at www.mercycorps.org.Dan Habib, the director, producer, and cinematographer of "Including Samuel," is theFilmmaker in Residence at the Institute on Disability / UCED at the University of NewHampshire. For more information, including a film trailer, visit the Including Samuel websiteat www.includingsamuel.com.The Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire was established in 1987 toprovide a coherent university-based focus for the improvement of knowledge, policies, andpractices related to the lives of persons with disabilities and their families. Its mission is toadvance policies and systems changes, promising practices, education, and research thatstrengthen communities to ensure full access, equal opportunities, and participation for allpersons.-Photographs available to download:Still images from the film "Including Samuel." Credit: Dan Habib.http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2008/aug/samuel_bubble_color_lores.jpghttp://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2008/aug/samuel_classroom_color.JPGhttp://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2008/aug/samuel_dan_tball.JPGMercy Corp's Tiana Tozer, right, holds hands with Rana, who is a member of the Iraqi Allianceof Disability Organizations, during a meeting at the Al Rami Center for Autism in Baghdad.Courtesy Mercy Corps. http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2008/aug/Mercy_Corps_a.jpg

Film  Including Samuel  To Support Iraqi Disability Rights Movement

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Film Including Samuel To Support Iraqi Disability Rights Movement

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