''Deej'' is a 2017 documentary about David James (DJ) Savarese, a nonspeaking

autistic The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

teenager with disabilities who is depicted as communicating through the scientifically discredited

facilitated communication Facilitated communication (FC), or supported typing, is a scientifically discredited technique that attempts to aid communication by people with autism or other communication disabilities who are non-verbal. The facilitator guides the disabled ...

technique. The film's unskeptical depiction of facilitated communication, including the claims that DJ's degree from Oberlin College is legitimate, and that he is the author of the film's script (rather than it being created by his facilitator), have been the subject of criticism.

Background

The film was directed by Robert Rooy. David James Savarese, known as DJ or Deej, was also credited as a director and co-producer of the documentary. The film depicts Savarese as an activist with the goal of promoting communication access for nonspeaking autistic people as part of the

neurodiversity Neurodiversity refers to diversity in the human brain and cognition, for instance in sociability, learning, attention, mood and other mental functions. It was coined in 1998 by sociologist Judy Singer, who helped popularize the concept alo ...

movement. Savarese was

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

from the foster care system and diagnosed early in life as

. As a child, his adoptive parents struggled to ensure his inclusion in the local public school system. Eventually winning the right for Savarese to receive education in public schools, his parents framed their challenges as a

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...

struggle against

ableism Ableism (; also known as ablism, disablism (British English), anapirophobia, anapirism, and disability discrimination) is discrimination and social prejudice against people with Disability, disabilities or who are perceived to be disabled. Ableis ...

. Since the events featured in ''Deej'', Savarese was awarded a degree from

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

for coursework completed through a facilitator. ''Deej'' aired nationally on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

in October 2017.

Criticism

This film portrays the use of

as legitimate. The documentary does not mention that scientific studies have raised questions about facilitated communication and the film's depiction of facilitated communication was the subject of one critical essay in a peer reviewed journal.

Behavioral scientist Behavioral sciences explore the cognitive processes within organisms and the behavioral interactions between organisms in the natural world. It involves the systematic analysis and investigation of human and animal behavior through naturalistic o ...

and author, Craig Foster notes that Deej is never shown independently communicating or exhibiting his "hidden intelligence", even though the documentary implies that he does. Foster argues that "skepticism toward facilitated communication is necessary to ameliorate its harmful influence and to encourage genuine acceptance of people with complex communication needs." Janyce L. Boynton judges the film in a review to be "uncritical promotion" of facilitated communication and notes that the film's editors "chose to leave out some vital information." She concludes that the documentary is a "missed opportunity to teach people what about what living with autism is really like" and that the story the film tells is "one sided and built on facilitator-authored messages."

Awards

* Peabody award * Chagrin Documentary Festival – Winner, Best Feature * Indigo Moon Film Festival – Winner, Best Documentary * Newburyport Film Festival – Audience Award * Superfest Disability Film Festival – Best Feature

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, tt5634002
"ASHA Policy Statement"
American documentary films 2017 films Documentary films about autism Facilitated communication 2010s American films Films about disability