People Are Calling Out Me Before You for Its Portrayal of Disability
Warning Spoilers for both the book and movie version of Me Before You ahead. Some members of the disabled community and their advocates are protesting how upcoming romantic film Me Before You portrays a disabled character. The movie, which author Jojo Moyes adapted from her 2012 bestselling novel of the same name, tells the story of a paralyzed man Sam Clafin of Hunger Games fame who falls in love with his caretaker Game of Thrones Emilia Clarke. Some have taken issue with the film's ending, which shows Clafin's character deciding to end his own life with Dignitas, a Swiss assisted suicide organization. Some disabled people and advocates for the community are using social media to push back against the film, using the hashtagMeBeforeAbleism to object to the portrayal of a person choosing to die instead of living with a disability. , , , , , , , , In a 2013 interview with Woman Around Town referenced by E! News, Moyes previously said she wasn't trying to take a side in the debate over assisted suicide. "I think the one thing I do believe is that we shouldn't judge someone else if we haven't stood in their shoes," she said. h/t BuzzFeed News