Interview with Mrs. Dina Rosenfeld - New book: We can find a way

hi my name is Mohammad Hershkowitz and we just finished recording story time with mrs. Dina Rosenfeld and I was really intrigued by her new book we could find a way because as many people know my daughter uses a wheelchair I would love to hear what your inspiration was regarding the wheelchair that you put in the yasya labels book specifically because my daughter is in a wheelchair and that was really the only book even just ten years ago that has a wheelchair in it that made it seem normal and the kids are regular and they could be regular in in a wheelchair well once you see a label mastered sharing and doing favors for people and you know displaying obviously Cyril I felt that there was a hole in the market I felt that we weren't adequately representing children with various abilities in the books and parents were telling me that bullying is increasingly becoming a problem and we just we just weren't we just didn't have something in the market that filled that need so I became very committed and interested in showing these boys the SDN label setting a good example about having all different kinds of friends and my theory was that children don't often come over to someone in a wheelchair someone who's struggling in that way with mobility issues and maybe make fun of them or bully them right I find the children who get bullied are those who have other you know difficulties and challenges and so the characters in the book represent a wide range of differences maybe one tile with glasses one child has braces they're they're one of different heights different weights those are the things that are difficult and then the example of including a child in a wheelchair then became inspirational a bit right and I was very committed to having that child in the wheelchair be active and a very not a passive character that other people are pushing around but a kid who is mobile who's dashing around going in the house wait I'm getting my mitt I'm getting my ball and you know even like holding his baby sister on it I love that part exactly they don't hand the baby and he's perfectly you know he's just a person he's a whole person in a wheelchair that's just one aspect then the other aspect is he like sports he's a good friend I wanted a children's who really internalized the message we're not to judge others by their parents or what you think their abilities are but to give them a chance there was some discussion beforehand about whether people who didn't know anyone in a wheelchair would even buy the book why would they bring that up and would it be frightening to children to think of someone who couldn't walk who needed a wheelchair to get around right but I was I was pretty sure that on the strength of the series a book like that would be it could be accepted because this is you see and label making a friend so do you find that with the new book it took that many years to create a fully inclusive book because I'm not sure if there are any other fully inclusive books out there well my hope for this book is to take it to the next level you know I chose examples in this story I mean we have characters who are allergic because that's kind of mild in common right we have a carrot a character who's not in a wheelchair permanently but he's using a wheelchair and he literally can't get in to the venue for the party so the challenge is not just accepting everyone and not judging people but rather making every possible effort so that everyone's included and then a character with a social anxiety disorder she feels uncomfortable at parties that seems like an insurmountable challenge how can you include someone in a party if a party is not for them and I recently I saw that Ashley I had a dance party you know simplice based I show Ava event and provided noise-canceling headphones for people who find the music too loud and the situation you know too threatening you know to their well-being they just can't go to loud noisy and structured things and feel comfortable and I thought that was a beautiful example of how inclusion works everyone's dancing to the music but there's some people wearing these headphones and you don't want them not to come you want them to come but just to make them comfortable the only way to signal that you want everyone to come is to make these accommodations available right so who would you like recommend buying the book I'm sensitive to it because I have it in my own house but the family that's not oh by the way I chose examples weren't necessarily that you know like your daughter is in a wheel and this is how she gets around love her love her wheelchair no this is who she is but I think that everyone needs some special accommodations if you have a guest who's elderly it would be a good idea to think about our you know do you have a handrail where it's needed do you or your stairs well-lit if you have a guest who has a baby you're going to want to provide a crib you're gonna ask the person what can I do to make you more comfortable and that's a question that applies to everyone right so I think that's really what it's about about inclusion is right really finding what works for everybody that's very nice and then of course I think a teacher in a classroom I know that Association for the blind often has people come and speak to children and explain to them that there's etiquette when you welcome a guest who has an impairment in their vision there's a way to serve food there's a way to indicate where the seating is where the chair is there are ways to make someone more comfortable and asking is an educator oneself and then asking did you have to research that in your book absolutely yes and in the book we give credit to those who guided us and helped us to make sure that wording was sensitive and that we were using the correct terms and I'm very grateful to dr. Sarah Krantz Ament and her team at the Ruderman foundation inclusion initiative they were very helpful they looked over the material they made sure to guide us in the right direction you know now people with disabilities want that to be the term that they don't have disabilities of some kind and I think it's important to use words that make people comfortable if someone has a disability they're the ones that get to decide what words are used and what's the most respectful way of referring to whatever condition that they're they're working under and so it was a great learning experience for me choosing a wheelchair it was a very it's very visible and it's also look at this picture this picture really illustrates what the challenge looks like yes the struggles real we have it um I took my daughter yet to a friend's house from CIPA Shabbos in her wheelchair and I saw and I was wearing heels and there was like 10 steps and I was like brace myself like do i what I did but I was scary and I was like okay we got this we can do it but I was like it's so like people don't realize is you know and even like the steps the sidewalks you know when there's bumps on it and like all pass by somebody on the street and he's in a wheelchair with no help at all and I'm like how is he gonna get over that curb like even you know like I you just become so much more aware I think what made this real for me was when I was making a poem sudha and there was a family member at that point in a wheelchair and unable and unable to attend and I was like this that's not okay I have to make you know I would Brooklyn buildings don't have elevators what do you do it's funny because over pizza we ready to the rent in house in Maryland and we came there and there was a ramp and it was shocking in the house I mean on the side there was a ramp and the fact that my daughter Musti was able to go in and out by herself and then when she spoke to be knows when I'm on her Sunday whatever and the first thing she said to the cosmos there was a ramp having a ramp made so much of a difference to her like where she was like she's well and welcome she felt accommodated and and that's it and I think if the you know if more people were more aware and more educated I think inclusion is just that everyone has some kind of need or something making them comfortable and it's the hosts job and a your friend's job a neighbor's job to make sure that we're meeting people you know where they are and welcoming them thank you good that's exactly what my goal was [Music]