Move over "Modern Family", "The Goldbergs", and "The Middle". America's newest dysfunctional family has just landed on ABC, and made their way into the hearts of families young and old. While I may be exaggerating just a little, I believe "Speechless" is the next iconic show to land on our television screens.

The show follows the DiMeo family and their chaotic life as they switch school districts to benefit the eldest son, J.J. J.J. was born with cerebral palsy, making him wheelchair bound and unable to physically speak (although he can laugh by making grunting noises). He is given the opportunity to have his own "voice" and through trial and error, ends up bonding with his voice mentor. The rest of the family, however, is affected by the change in school districts, which also results in another move to another town. This takes a toll on their middle son, Ray, who feels as if his own voice is not being heard by his mother. Mrs. DiMeo explains that although J.J. forces her to devote the majority of her time to him, she loves her son equally as much as her other two children. The show is about the ups and downs of supporting a child with a disability, as well as proving that every voice, no matter how small, deserves to be heard.

So what makes this show poignant? Unlike many television comedies that touch on difficult subjects of race, ethnicity, and sexuality, Speechless is one of the few shows that focuses on a family with a child that has a disability. According to Disability Scoop.com, J.J.'s actor, Micah Fowler, has cerebral palsy in real life. Fowler, who is able to speak unlike his character, said in an online interview, “Growing up a huge TV and movie fan, I couldn’t help but notice the lack of characters dealing with disabilities,” Many of the television shows I watched as a child including Dragon Tales, Barney, Blues Clues, and Clifford the Big Red Dog, only featured minor roles to children with disabilities. Other comedy shows I began watching as a teen/young adult poked fun at disabilities, but they never addressed the issue concerning the person with a disability. Some of these television shows included Seinfeld, Two Broke Girls, and Family Guy It made me wonder, for children and teens growing up with disabilities, how did they feel whenever they flipped on a channel and the show only focused on the average American families?

According to Web MD over 10,000 babies are diagnosed with cerebral palsy each year. While this number may seem minor, imagine what it must feel like for a child with CP or a physical disability to struggle finding a role model that speaks for their disability rather than against it. In many television shows in the 1950s, 1960s, and even the 70s, the regular American family was pictured as having non-physically or mentally disabled children. All the children were depicted as star athletes and making honor roll in their school. While diversity was included during the 70s, there was still a lack of voice for those families who had children with disabilities, making it difficult to relate to those television shows.

I feel glad to be living in a time when children and teens with disabilities are represented, like in "Speechless". A show like "Speechless" would not have been featured in my grandparents or even parents generation due to the provocative topic of disabilities. This television show has helped me gain a new perspective about what it's like to live with a family with a child who has a physical disability, as well as the daily struggles they must face concerning their child from school to his social life. I also realized that just because the topic of the show is on disabilities, does not mean it's not allowed to be comedic or focus on the other struggles of the non-disabled family members. All voices deserve their own story and every voice is unique, no matter if the person is disabled or non disabled. I continue to look forward to spending my Wednesday nights in my dorm lounge watching "Speechless", and following the hilarious lives of the DiMeo family.

What do you guys think? Do you believe television shows are starting to feature more characters with disabilities? Are you going to start watching "Speechless"? Comment Below!