Disability Justice

The future is disabled

Chapter 1: Introduction

Context of Political Climate:

Mention of Trump's presidency creating anxiety and a feeling of survival.

Disco and science fiction are used as coping mechanisms, providing imaginative futures.

Importance of Storytelling in Adversity:

Charlie Jane Anders discusses using storytelling to survive bullying as a queer, disabled youth.

Fiction allows for imagining alternate realities and futures.

Disabled People Activism:

Acknowledges the resilience of disabled communities during Trump's presidency and pandemic.

Specific actions taken:

Mask giveaways, organizing performances, community efforts through social media.

Notable accomplishments like saving Medicaid and passing laws against harmful practices (e.g., banning electroshock therapy on autistic youth).

The hashtag campaigns (e.g., #PowerToLive) and mutual aid efforts showed community resilience.

Disability Justice Futurism:

Emphasizes a vision of the future where disability is not seen through a lens of cure or supercrip but focuses on community and survival strategies.

Disabled people are portrayed as heroes, taking care of each other and teaching others survival skills.

Chapter 2: Giant Disabled Grief

Care Work & Grief:

Discusses the intertwined relationship between caregiving and grief.

Personal losses include friends and family due to illness and COVID-19.

Social Impact of Grief:

Reflects on fears of systemic harm to disabled individuals during the pandemic (e.g., potential for disabled killing camps).

The Purpose of Writing:

The act of writing becomes a mechanism for processing grief and documenting the resilience of disabled communities.

Creates a reflective narrative on surviving hardship and the continual effort to document a disabled past.

Chapter 3: Read Disabled Books

Purpose of Disability Justice:

Disability justice emerged to represent the voices of multiply marginalized disabled individuals, opposing the celebrity activism model.

The Essence of Writing:

Emphasis on authenticity and the need to reflect the complexities of disabled lives without sanitizing the narrative.

Distinction between academic writing and personal narrative in the context of disability.

Urgency of Documentation:

The pandemic emphasized the need to document community actions and stories as time and people are lost to illness and death.

Chapter 4: Many Disabled People

Historical Context:

Acknowledges foundational disabled BIPOC writers and activists whose work has shaped the disability justice movement.

Emphasis on Community:

Writing serves as a medium to connect with history and articulate lived experiences of the disabled community.

Advocates for inclusivity and recognition of diverse narratives within the disabled community.

Chapter 5: Disabled People

Backlash Against Disability Rights:

Discourse around eugenics has re-emerged alongside policy changes during the pandemic that disregard disabled lives.

Collective Response to Crisis:

Disabled communities have mobilized to ensure their voices are heard amidst dismissive policies regarding their worth in society.

The Ongoing Importance of Community Care:

Reiterates the importance of mutual aid and community support in navigating the challenges presented during the pandemic.

Chapter 6: Conclusion

Enduring Spirit of Dreaming:

Despite political and personal crises, disabled people continue to dream of a just and equitable future.

The act of dreaming is portrayed as both radical and necessary for survival.