''Freedom Machines'' is a 2004 PBS/

P.O.V. ''POV'' (also written ''P.O.V.'') is a Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) public television series which features independent nonfiction films. ''POV'' is an initialism for ''point of view''. ''POV'' is the longest-running showcase on television ...

documentary that looks at disability in the age of technology, presenting intimate stories of people ages 8–93, whose talents and independence are being unleashed by access to modern, enabling technologies. Nearly twenty years after the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the film reflects on the gaps between its promise and the realities for our largest minority group – 54,000,000

Americans with disabilities Americans with disabilities are a significant minority group in the United States, making up a fifth of the overall population and over half of Americans older than eighty. There is a complex history underlying the United States and its relationshi ...

. Whether mainstream tools or inventions such as a stair climbing wheelchair (

iBOT The iBOT is a powered wheelchair developed by Dean Kamen in a partnership between DEKA and Johnson & Johnson's Independence Technology division. History Development of the iBOT started in 1990 with the first working prototypes available in 1992 ...

), ''Freedom Machines'' examines the power of technology to change lives.

Film content

''Freedom Machines'' a public television program and national outreach campaign, looks at our beliefs about disability through the lens of

assistive technology Assistive technology (AT) is a term for assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and the elderly. Disabled people often have difficulty performing activities of daily living (ADLs) independently, or even with ...

. The program explores how human experience and technological innovations are outpacing social policies and the perceptions that have guided them. In ''Freedom Machines'', viewers will meet a cross-section of America's population a few of the 54 million Americans with disabilities whose lives are being transformed with the help of new technologies. Despite its promise, statistics indicate that fewer than 25% of people with disabilities who could be helped by assistive technology are using it. A 1999 study commissioned by The California Endowment and conducted by the Alliance for Technology Access found that people with disabilities "make do" without vital technology because they are not aware that it is available to them and don't know how to obtain it. Furthermore, the people they most often turn to for information and referrals medical care providers, educators, and community technology centers have inadequate or outdated knowledge themselves. The hardest hit are the poor, those who speak English as a second language, minorities, and the rural poor. What makes this situation unusual is the existence of tangible solutions and the possibility that they can be widely applied. ''Freedom Machines'' weaves together the stories of a group of people in a dozen locations around the United States. It shows what is now possible, what will soon be possible, and why those who could and should benefit are not doing so.

Synopsis

''Freedom Machines'' studies the concept of diversity through the intimate stories of adults and children with disabilities who are using modern technologies to change their lives. Among them are Susanna who is beginning her college career, 38-year-old Floyd Stewart who was paralyzed in mid-life while raising four children; 92-year-old Gladys who is determined to overcome a hearing loss; and high school student Latoya Nesmith who dreams of becoming a translator at the United Nations. Fifteen years after passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, ''Freedom Machines'' is a reflection on the status of life of America's largest minority group: 54 million people with disabilities.

Scenes

with running times (min/sec) * Susanna - Growing Up with Technology (4:24) * The Movement for Civil Rights (1:37) * Bonita - Reaching Beyond Expectations (3:01) * Floyd - The Accident of Disability (2:10) * Shoshana & Jackie Brand - Breaking Through & Parent Advocacy (4:53) * Latoya -

Public Education State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

& the Law (5:32) * Gladys - Challenging the Limits of Age (3:05) * Bonita - Seeking

Employment Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any othe ...

(2:03) * Floyd - Independence and Public Policy (2:52) * Funding

Assistive Technology Assistive technology (AT) is a term for assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and the elderly. Disabled people often have difficulty performing activities of daily living (ADLs) independently, or even with ...

(3:00) * Latoya - A New High School (3:42) * Susanna - First Day of College (6:39) *

Kent Cullers Kent Cullers (July 21, 1949 – July 17, 2021) was an American astronomer, who was a manager of SETI's Project Phoenix. In 2005, he retired from the SETI Institute. Early life and education Cullers was born in July 1949 in El Reno, Oklahom ...

- A Life in Science (4:23) * Dean Kamen & Others - Designing An Accessible World (7:12) * End Credits (2:04)

Additional Segments

with running times (min/sec) * Technology for You (6:10) * Getting the Technology You Need (4:15) * Your Legal Rights (3:25) * Designing for Everyone (3:31)

Nominations and awards

* PBS Fall Special on

* Audience Access Award, Superfest XXV * 2005

Council on Foundations The Council on Foundations, founded in 1949, is a nonprofit leadership association of grantmaking foundations and corporations. The Council's mission is to provide the opportunity, leadership, and tools needed by philanthropic organizations to exp ...

Film Festival * A.T. Network Outreach Award * FIRST LEGO League NO LIMITS World Festival * Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 15th Anniversary, Dept. of Commerce, Washington, DC

References

External links

Freedom Machines Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freedom 2004 television films 2004 films American documentary television films 2000s Spanish-language films Computer accessibility Documentary films about people with disabilities Documentary films about technology 2004 documentary films POV (TV series) films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films