Minifigures with Disabilities: Discussion and Rumours

[CDM]

2 hours ago, Poodabricks said:

Given the topic of this forum, I feel the need to ask this here. ** deleted the rest of an extremely offensive and disgusting post **

It's 2022 and you're still using the c-word? Really?

Edited October 7, 2022 by CDM
see above, good call MAB

[williejm]

Pretty sure the poster knew what they were doing there, and as such would suggest reporting the post as (massively & deliberately) inappropriate. 

[Legochaek]

1 hour ago, Murdoch17 said:

As someone with Autism, how would you do that with a Lego mini-figure? The thing about autism or most neuro-divergent conditions is that it's invisible (I.E. not physical, like missing limb, or hearing aid, etc.) unless you talk to them or notice their quirks. So, I'm genuinely curious how you would do that or someone with down syndrome, without using harmful stereotypes...

I have Asperger’s too. I’m think @Poodabricks is thinking of making a  minifig covered in puzzle pieces… I’ve reported them. 

[MAB]

1 hour ago, Murdoch17 said:

As someone with Autism, how would you do that with a Lego mini-figure? The thing about autism or most neuro-divergent conditions is that it's invisible (I.E. not physical, like missing limb, or hearing aid, etc.) unless you talk to them or notice their quirks. So, I'm genuinely curious how you would do that or someone with down syndrome, without using harmful stereotypes...

Simple, you make them look like a minifigure. Some disabilities are hidden in real life, and they will therefore also be hidden in minifigure world. The good thing is that means there are plenty of parts that can be used to represent a specific person with a hidden disability. And no other minifigures need to know about the disability unless the minifigure wants to declare it somehow. Just like real life.

And I really suggest anyone that quoted his post remove the offensive word from the quote.

 

[Yoggington]

My 3y/o nephew was up at the house the other day. When he discovered the paralympian from CMF 22 in my box of mini-figs, it was all he wanted to play with. Cars, jeeps & helicopters are his usual preferences, but a guy with a chair with wheels on?! Forget the rest, this is the BEST thing.

So that was neat to see. Keep em coming Lego.

[Mandalorianknight]

2 hours ago, Murdoch17 said:

As someone with Autism, how would you do that with a Lego mini-figure? 

Yeah...I've always just used standard heads, not sure how it'd look different. I suppose they mean people who's mental conditions impact their facial expression/features, but I don't think I've ever seen someone with autism with their facial features changed.

1 hour ago, CDM said:

It's 2022 and you're still using the c-word? Really?

This seems a bit of an overreaction to me. Are we really making crippled a -word? Really?

2 hours ago, Poodabricks said:

Given the topic of this forum, I feel the need to ask this here. How would Lego portray a crippled person with buckled legs? They covered wheelchair bound people, deaf people and amputated people. But what about a cripple? Just thought I'd ask. I'm also thinking about making some portrayal of a person with autism or down syndrome. 

For buckled legs, I suppose side leg printing could work. Though I admit I am curious as to how you think people with autism look.

[Driver Brandon Grumman]

I'm sorry! I didn't mean to upset. I didn't know how else to ask. My sincere apologies. 

As a person with autism (ASD to be specific) I just felt they deserved an appearance. 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Poodabricks

[MAB]

46 minutes ago, Yoggington said:

My 3y/o nephew was up at the house the other day. When he discovered the paralympian from CMF 22 in my box of mini-figs, it was all he wanted to play with. Cars, jeeps & helicopters are his usual preferences, but a guy with a chair with wheels on?! Forget the rest, this is the BEST thing.

So that was neat to see. Keep em coming Lego.

If it is anything like how my son played with cars and helicopters at that age, the passengers would all need wheelchairs afterwards!

[Lion King]

(Deleted post)

Edited October 7, 2022 by DBlegonerd7

[Aanchir]

3 hours ago, Murdoch17 said:

As someone with Autism, how would you do that with a Lego mini-figure? The thing about autism or most neuro-divergent conditions is that it's invisible (I.E. not physical, like missing limb, or hearing aid, etc.) unless you talk to them or notice their quirks. So, I'm genuinely curious how you would do that or someone with down syndrome, without using harmful stereotypes... 

It's definitely possible to have autistic characters via narrative media like comics, movies, video games, or animated series, since storytelling in those formats can go into more detail with characterization than just what's visible in a character's physical design.

Arguably, there have already been a number of LEGO in-house characters who exhibit various autistic traits, but it's usually unclear if they're written as autistic, and I feel like even many creators who DO consciously or subconsciously write these sorts of characters as autistic are reluctant to confirm it due to worries about whether they're being respectful to people's real-life experiences (especially if they aren't autistic themselves).

That said, writing explicitly autistic characters is far impossible — some examples from popular media of the past decade include as Entrapta from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Billy Cranston (the Blue Ranger) from the 2017 Power Rangers film, Norma Khan from Dead End: Paranormal Park, and Symmetra from Overwatch. Much like LGBTQ+ representation, it's mostly a matter of whether creators/storytellers are willing to both commit to representing people in that category and take accountability for how well or poorly they manage to do so.

From my experience, the best examples of this sort of representation tend to be those in which people from the demographic in question are involved in the creation process, and are supported in this effort by their fellow creators.

[Murdoch17]

14 minutes ago, Aanchir said:

It's definitely possible to have autistic characters via narrative media like comics, movies, video games, or animated series, since storytelling in those formats can go into more detail with characterization than just what's visible in a character's physical design.

Arguably, there have already been a number of LEGO in-house characters who exhibit various autistic traits, but it's usually unclear if they're written as autistic, and I feel like even many creators who DO consciously or subconsciously write these sorts of characters as autistic are reluctant to confirm it due to worries about whether they're being respectful to people's real-life experiences (especially if they aren't autistic themselves).

That said, writing explicitly autistic characters is far impossible — some examples from popular media of the past decade include as Entrapta from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Billy Cranston (the Blue Ranger) from the 2017 Power Rangers film, Norma Khan from Dead End: Paranormal Park, and Symmetra from Overwatch. Much like LGBTQ+ representation, it's mostly a matter of whether creators/storytellers are willing to both commit to representing people in that category and take accountability for how well or poorly they manage to do so.

From my experience, the best examples of this sort of representation tend to be those in which people from the demographic in question are involved in the creation process, and are supported in this effort by their fellow creators.

Ok, but how do you do that by "showing" autism in a non-speaking mini-figure on a town layout? They are called hidden disabilities for a reason, and that was the question at hand I was asking.

[CDM]

2 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

This seems a bit of an overreaction to me. Are we really making --------- a -word? Really?

Yes, really. It has been considered a derogatory term for quite a while now.

 

[Driver Brandon Grumman]

Look! I said I was sorry. I never heard of it being a derogatory term. Not everyone is up to date with everything going on in the world. Everyone is not perfect either. Either that or people are just overreacting like @Mandalorianknightsaid. Sheesh! Now we're getting off topic. So I'm going to just mute this chat. 

To the moderators: Sorry if it comes across as backseat moderating. I just felt it had to be said. 

[Mandalorianknight]

1 hour ago, Poodabricks said:

Look! I said I was sorry. I never heard of it being a derogatory term. Not everyone is up to date with everything going on in the world. Everyone is not perfect either. Either that or people are just overreacting like @Mandalorianknightsaid. Sheesh! Now we're getting off topic.

Honestly I think you're good man. A bit of cursory research seems to suggest it's not widely considered super inappropriate (certainly not the the extent of deleting the word itself from posts, jeez). Your original post was worded kinda confusingly, but it's clear you weren't trying to make fun of people with autism or buckled legs. 

But yeah no idea how they'd make a guy with autism visually. We generally look pretty normal.

 

I'm not super big on "every condition/disability/etc needs to be in lego", but it's nice that we have wheelchairs and crutches now. One thing I would like to see is, now that armor wars is a movie (and as such more likely to get sets), a Colonel Rhodes figure with side leg printing of his leg supports.

[Driver Brandon Grumman]

2 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

I'm not super big on "every condition/disability/etc needs to be in lego", but it's nice that we have wheelchairs and crutches now. One thing I would like to see is, now that armor wars is a movie (and as such more likely to get sets), a Colonel Rhodes figure with side leg printing of his leg supports.

I also would recommend a walker piece. Perhaps that could represent a person with leg (changed the wording as to not offend) or back issues. 

2 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

But yeah no idea how they'd make a guy with autism visually. We generally look pretty normal.

Yeah! That's actually true. Can you believe I actually made it through public school with it? To make a minifig with autism is like trying to make one that's LGBTQ+. You have to use your imagination. I don't even know why I recommended it. 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Poodabricks

[Lion King]

As a deaf-blind AFOL here, I would like to see a new mold for guiding stick (or guide ding cane you call it if you like to). Like, a regular bar (dual-molded - white + red) with a marshmalloor ball tip. 

Also, TLG designers should include a brick-buildable Braille typewriter. And a Braille paper (2x4 tile printed with Braille cells. 

You can use a sunglasses-wearing minifigure head because it represents visually impaired in order to protect their eyes from sun’s glare. And any civilian hat is fine (for example, baseball cap). Pretty simple. 

And recolored lab reliever (brown and black) for guide dog. There is already one yellow, I believe. 

Edited October 8, 2022 by DBlegonerd7
Typo

[Driver Brandon Grumman]

21 minutes ago, DBlegonerd7 said:

As a deaf-blind AFOL here, I would like to see a new mold for guiding stick (or guide ding cane you call it if you like to).

Now that would be nice! Until Lego does that, I had to use the wand pieces from Harry Potter as something like that. 

[Mandalorianknight]

5 hours ago, Poodabricks said:

Yeah! That's actually true. Can you believe I actually made it through public school with it?

I did! Though I wasn't informed of my diagnosis until I was 17, so I'm high-functioning to the point I feel bad saying I've got it sometimes, because I've met and worked with people with far more severe autism than me.

48 minutes ago, DBlegonerd7 said:

As a deaf-blind AFOL here, I would like to see a new mold for guiding stick (or guide ding cane you call it if you like to). Like, a regular bar (dual-molded - white + red) with a marshmalloor ball tip. 

I think we'll see the guiding stick soon with Matt Murdock. They've got to make him eventually, right?

[Legochaek]

I got the series 23 candy cane piece and it looks exactly like a normal cane! As in its very large, almost as large as the figure. Gotta be recoloured and used as a cane. 

[Lion King]

8 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

I think we'll see the guiding stick soon with Matt Murdock. They've got to make him eventually, right?

I know Friends has a guiding stick but it’s not exactly what I expected. It’s just regular bar or wand.

Let’s hope that they make a proper mold for Matt! 

1 hour ago, Lego-fire said:

I got the series 23 candy cane piece and it looks exactly like a normal cane! As in its very large, almost as large as the figure. Gotta be recoloured and used as a cane. 

I have a same thought there! Ithought it’s-reflect for elderly citizens or a person with a walking challenge.

[williejm]

9 hours ago, DBlegonerd7 said:

As a deaf-blind AFOL here, I would like to see a new mold for guiding stick (or guide ding cane you call it if you like to). Like, a regular bar (dual-molded - white + red) with a marshmalloor ball tip. 

Also, TLG designers should include a brick-buildable Braille typewriter. And a Braille paper (2x4 tile printed with Braille cells. 

You can use a sunglasses-warning minifigure head because it represents visually impaired in order to protect their eyes from sun’s glare. And any civilian hat is fine (for example, baseball cap). Pretty simple. 

And recolored lab reliever (brown and black) for guide dog. There is already one yellow, I believe. 

The Labrador retriever exists already in tan and reddish-brown 

[Peppermint_M]

A guide dog can be any colour and they are all good boys and girls.

I think it would be great if LEGO included more accessibility architecture in sets. A wheelchair ramp access, maybe an accessible vehicle.

[Driver Brandon Grumman]

57 minutes ago, Peppermint_M said:

I think it would be great if LEGO included more accessibility architecture in sets. A wheelchair ramp access, maybe an accessible vehicle.

Yeah! I think they did that with the school bus from this year's school set. I kinda wish they do a parking lot road plate pack with a handicapped/disabled driver parking space. That would give us more closure in the City theme. 

Edited October 8, 2022 by Poodabricks

[Lion King]

2 hours ago, williejm said:

The Labrador retriever exists already in tan and reddish-brown 

In fact, these tan and reddish brown dogs can be golden retierever for guide dog too. 

55 minutes ago, Peppermint_M said:

A guide dog can be any colour and they are all good boys and girls.

I think it would be great if LEGO included more accessibility architecture in sets. A wheelchair ramp access, maybe an accessible vehicle.

I think Haunted House (from Creator theme) does have that ramp  for a bound-wheelchair minifigure. But I do agree with you that there should be more across themes (City, Ninjago, Friends, Creator, etc). 

Actually, I am taking back what I said “Friends”… I don’t think it’s likely for Friends to have wheelchairs becuase of minidolls’ legs. 

[williejm]

4 hours ago, DBlegonerd7 said:

In fact, these tan and reddish brown dogs can be golden retierever for guide dog too. 

I think Haunted House (from Creator theme) does have that ramp  for a bound-wheelchair minifigure. But I do agree with you that there should be more across themes (City, Ninjago, Friends, Creator, etc). 

Actually, I am taking back what I said “Friends”… I don’t think it’s likely for Friends to have wheelchairs becuase of minidolls’ legs. 

Friends already has several sets with brick-built wheelchairs