Students at the New York City Institute for Special Education in the Bronx welcomed Friday a special visitor who spoke about the importance of representation of people with disabilities in the media. Actor Charlie Cox, best known for his role as the Marvel superhero with a visual impairment Daredevil, spoke with K-12 students about his experience portraying a blind character.
Marvel’s Daredevil follows the story of attorney Matt Murdock, a vigilante who fights crime on the streets of New York City when the sun goes down. Cox played the iconic character in the television adaptation of the comic book written by Bronx legend, Stan Lee.
Founded in 1831, the New York Institute for Special Education (NYISE) is a private non-profit school that serves children who are blind or visually disabled and preschoolers who are developmentally delayed. It was one of the first schools to serve the unique educational needs of students with visual impairments in the United States.
Cox discussed the need for people with disabilities to be represented in the industry, noting their low numbers. For instance, the 10th annual Hollywood Diversity Report from the UCLA Entertainment and Research Initiative found that less than 1% of shows in the 2021-2022 season featured characters with physical or visual disabilities.
Cox and the students watched his performance in Daredevil, then created superhero themed craft projects. Cox encouraged the NYISE students to realize their full power and potential.
Cox, who is not visually impaired, worked with teacher Joe Strechay at the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) on the role, observing his movements and learning to walk with a cane while blindfolded. The AFB awarded Cox with a Helen Keller Achievement Award for his work to portray the blind Marvel superhero accurately.
