“Presentación de libro de historietas hechas por niños con síndrome de down de la fundación CONTENER”

(Presentation of the comics written by kids with Down's Syndrome from the CONTENER Foundation)

I met an editor from Tinta Libre (the book’s publisher) and bought the comic Abriendo Caminos, so I was basically obligated to attend the presentation. (Federico Reggiani accuses me of buying “cualquier porquería” (crap). I don’t deny it.) Anyway, so I went expecting to hear stories worthy of a Lifetime original movie, but actually ended up enjoying the talk. The kids, clutching copies of their book and smiling, talked about their personal lives and the stories they had written. In the United States, this presentation couldn’t have occurred without the focus being on Down's Syndrome. An American version would have presented the disorder, include long speeches by the teachers, and maybe representation by the few best-behaved kids. But in this case, the authors were the stars of the show. Lucho Luna, the moderator asked the kids questions so that we, the viewers, could learn a little more about who these children were as people. Some of the kids joked about their comics, while others talked about significant others. Their happiness and pride in their achievement was notable as well as their comfort with each other and their teachers and families in the audience. The presentation focused on the kids as people, not representatives of Down's Syndrome.

The group of presenters

Responding to Lucho Luna's questions