A Conversation About Overcomer by Mandisa

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2 minute read

Last night, Tara asked if I had checked out this video.  She'd seen it on Facebook, via this post:

So, we watched it, and admittedly, I thought it was pretty good.  Definitely better than Flawless by MercyMe (which I reviewed - or ranted angrily about - recently.)  I told Tara as much, seeing as how she asked me what I thought in the first place. 

She replied, "That's because there's no one like you on it.  If this video had someone in a wheelchair would you feel the same?"

I admitted I wasn't sure.  There were several things I liked: mainly, that all the participants in the video were adults and therefore, had consented to not only being in the video, but also what content was shared about their personal experience.  I'm also, generally a fan of Mandisa.  Her voice is stellar, and her video didn't overtly pigeon hole disabled people and portray them as less than.

Tara persisted, "You don't think this walks the line toward inspiration porn?"

Again, I hadn't thought about it.  I asked Tara "What do you think?"

"I don't know!" she admitted, insisting that this video made her feel "some kind of way" but couldn't quite articulate it.  "There's so little representation for brain injury survivors anyway...but...I mean, doesn't this make you feel like people are being put on a pedestal for living their everyday lives?"

For my sister, brain injury recovery was (and is) a part of her everyday life. So, as she put it, a video like this, while not overtly harmful, "doesn't really help."

What do you think of Mandisa's Overcomer video?

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