A few weeks ago Saturday Night Live managed to outrage the governor of New York as well as many blindness advocacy groups by portraying the governor’s blindness in what was essentially a form of 18th century rural farce. Carl Augusto president of the American Foundation for the Blind quite properly said: “It is difficult to understand why ‘SNL,’ a show known for its clever, political satire, would take cheap shots at people with disabilities instead of coming up with better material – especially when mimicking a politician known for his sense of humor.”
Last evening SNL did it again. Comedian Fred Armisenportrayed Paterson with a reprise of the offensive buffoonery they demonstrated about a month ago: Armisen stumbled and groped his way around the stage, squinted uncomprehendingly into the camera and held a pair of binoculars by the wrong end, and when his presentation was done couldn’t find his way offstage. .
I think its not difficult at all to understand why the 30Rock suits are dismissive of the outrage that’s been expressed by and on behalf of blind people. TV Land is not able to conceive of people who can’t see their cathode ray tubes or plasma screens. And as we all know, bigotry springs from the inability to conceive of others as being in any way real.
For my money this is what most offends me about Lorne Michaels and his SNL crowd (who not only refused to comment about the protests last month but have seen fit to reprise the loathsome enterprise) –to whit: they do not believe that genuine blind people who struggle daily to gain employment against nearly insurmountable odds, who are collectively disadvantaged in wholly unacceptable ways are real human beings. The academic term for this is ohptho-centrism. Vision is the a priori assumption of importance. If you think I’m kidding just try to imagine SNL producing a “step ‘n fetch it” show about African-Americans or a bit about Indians who speak pigeon English and scalp their co-hosts on the news segment. You can’t imagine this because in fact the case for the reality of these alterities has been established. There are black and Native American TV viewers after all.
But the blind are different because they’re not culturally recognized within the bubble of TV Land. Their only place in 30 Rock or anywhere else in the media is still a matter of the grotesque caricature and the shopworn cliche.
When NBC weatherman Al Roker heard that Don IMus had made racially objectionable comments about the Rutgers womens’ basketball team he helped to lead a protest within Rockefeller Plaza calling for the ouster of Imus from MSNBC. This was appropriate and I was in agreement with Mr. Roker’s view that there’s no place for bigotry at NBC.
Well there’s no place for ableism either but I’m not at all certain we will be hearing from any celebrity broadcasters about the matter. The “blind” are not real viewers you know. They probably don’t own property or vote or have businesses or raise families don’t you know.
And besides: its just a joke.
And we can leave it there.
Just remember that over 70 per cent of the blind who are of working age are unemployed. They are thought to be incompetent. Its in this context that the SNL farce takes on a much grimmer meaning.
S.K.
Planet of the Blind 
You may be too young to remember, but in the late 80’s, I think it was, Stevie Wonder was the musical guest and they had a skit where they tricked him into buying a crap painting as the valuable work of a master. I remember cringing on Stevie’s behalf.
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