Deej is a 2017 documentary about David James (DJ) Savarese, a nonspeaking autistic teenager who communicates with a voice synthesizer. The film has been criticized as using the scientifically discredited facilitated communication technique;[3] however, it has been stated that Deej actually used augmentative and alternative communication, which is often mistaken for facilitated communication.[4]
| Deej | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Robert Rooy |
| Written by | David James Savarese |
Release date | |
Running time | 72 minutes |
Background
editThe 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.[5] The film depicts Savarese as an activist with the goal of promoting communication access for nonspeaking autistic people as part of the neurodiversity movement.[6]
Savarese was adopted from the foster care system and diagnosed early in life as autistic.[7] As a child, his adoptive parents struggled to ensure his inclusion in the local public school system.[8] Eventually winning the right for Savarese to receive education in public schools, his parents framed their challenges as a civil rights struggle against ableism.[9][10][7] Since the events featured in Deej, Savarese was awarded a degree from Oberlin College.[10][11]
Criticism
editThe film's relationship to facilitated communication was the subject of one critical essay in a peer reviewed journal.[13] Behavioral scientist 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 states the documentary does not mention that scientific studies have raised questions about facilitated communication and that "skepticism toward facilitated communication is necessary to ameliorate its harmful influence and to encourage genuine acceptance of people with complex communication needs."[13]
Janyce L. Boynton, a former facilitator who has become a critic of facilitated communication, 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."[14]
Counter-criticism
editOn September 14, 2019, neurodivergence advocate Shannon Des Roches Rosa published an article stating that Deej did not, in fact, use facilitated communication. Rosa argues that Foster, the scientist who first criticized Deej, mistook augmentative and alternative communication for facilitated communication. She further criticized Foster’s article as an example of confirmation bias and scientific ableism, drawing attention to Foster's failure to contact or interview relevant parties before presenting his allegation professionally.[4]
Awards
editReferences
edit- ^ "26th Annual Woods Hole Film Festival – Woods Hole, MA".
- ^ @DeejMovie (July 31, 2017). "The DEEJ World Premiere is tomorrow 7/31 at Woods Hole Film Festival in Cape Cod! 7pm #WHFF #DeejMovie" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Foster, Craig A. (August 9, 2019). "Deej‐a Vu: Documentary revisits facilitated communication pseudoscience". Behavioral Interventions. 34 (4). Online Library: 577–586. doi:10.1002/bin.1687. S2CID 202247479. Archived from the original on July 22, 2020. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
- ^ a b Des Roches Rosa, Shannon (September 14, 2019). "Distorting Deej: Deconstructing a misinformed literature review".
- ^ "AMERICA REFRAMED UNFILTERED: Inclusion Shouldn't Be a Lottery". POV's Documentary Blog. Archived from the original on May 20, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ Borha, Imade. "DJ 'Deej' Savarese pursues freedom as a non-speaking autistic man in new documentary". The Frederick News-Post. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ a b Gabbard, Chris (January 31, 2008). "Savarese, Ralph James. Reasonable People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption". Disability Studies Quarterly. 28 (1). doi:10.18061/dsq.v28i1.76. ISSN 2159-8371.
- ^ "'Deej' film puts a spotlight on autism and disability rights". The Arizona State Press. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ Corley, Maria (September 20, 2017). "Deej: A non-verbal autistic man raises his voice for inclusion". Medium. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ a b Fishman, Kate. ""Deej" Highlights Interdependence, Challenges Assumptions". The Oberlin Review. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ Gittin, Adam. "Student Panelists Celebrate Neurodiversity". The Oberlin Review. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ "'Deej' film spotlights nonspeaking student with autism | National Center on Disability and Journalism". ncdj.org. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
- ^ a b Foster, Craig (2019). "Deej‐a Vu: Documentary revisits facilitated communication pseudoscience". Behavioral Interventions. 34 (4): 577–586. doi:10.1002/bin.1687. S2CID 202247479.
- ^ Boynton, Janice L. (March–April 2021). "Fresh Thinking or Exploitation?". Skeptical Inquirer. Amherst, New York: Center for Inquiry. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
- ^ "The Best Stories of 2017". peabodyawards.com. May 9, 2018. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Deej". Deej. Retrieved February 16, 2020.[self-published source?]