Life After

Film Forum

In 1983, a disabled Californian woman named Elizabeth Bouvia sought the “right to die,” igniting a national debate about autonomy, dignity, and the value of disabled lives. After years of courtroom trials, Bouvia disappeared from public view. Disabled director Reid Davenport narrates this investigation of what happened to Bouvia and her story’s relevance today. LIFE AFTER coalesces the missing voices of the disability community in the contemporary debate about assisted dying. Davenport looks at the ways that disabled people have and continue to die prematurely—whether murdered by a hospital in the case of Michael Hickson in Texas, or with the support of parents and community in the case of Wisconsin teen Jerika Bolen. Davenport’s exploration brings him to Canada, where safeguards have been lifted to allow disabled people unprecedented access to Medical Aid in Dying (MAID), even if their deaths are not reasonably foreseeable. In Ontario, Davenport interviews disabled computer programmer Michal Kaliszan, who contemplated MAID when his only alternative was entering an institution. In a society where ableism and poor healthcare can limit options, the autonomy of a disabled individual is often compromised. LIFE AFTER demonstrates how assisted dying may not represent choice when oftentimes it is seen as the only option.