Posted June 19, 2018 by Alice Wong DVP Blog Posts and Essays

Disability History in the US: Interview with Teddy Bennett and Daniel Rabinovitz

11th grade history US history students at Gann Academy spent an entire year interviewing people, collecting artifacts, conducting oral histories and research, and creating a museum exhibit on disability history. This disability history exhibit is on display this summer in Waltham, Massachusetts at the Charles River Museum of Industry titled, “Division, Unity, Hardship, and Progress: A Disability History of the United States.”

Student Teddy Bennett stands at left in front of an exhibit case holding an early IQ test alongside student Zachary Sherman, putting together a museum exhibit on disability history. Photo courtesy of Gann Academy. Photo credit: Maya Wainhaus

Check out this interview with Gann Academy students Teddy Bennett and Daniel Rabinovitz about their experiences with this project. Link to full transcript.

Special thanks to Alex Green and Yoni Kadden of Gann Academy for reaching out to me!

Summary: Teddy Bennett and Daniel Rabinovitz dedicated their year in 11th Grade US History to studying and telling the story of the history of disability through artifacts and oral history interviews. Alongside 33 other students from two history classes and a graphic design course, they created a public museum exhibit in order to advocate for the creation of a national museum for disability history at the site of the former Walter E. Fernald Developmental Center. In this conversation, the two take time on one of their final class days of the year to reflect from two different vantages; one as someone who has a disability and the other as someone who does not.