I certainly welcome a critique of impairment as the whole philosophy of the
social model is in itself a product of social and cultural forces and
emerged as it did not because it was right but because of many other
political undercurrents.
No matter what the intention behind the social model it is like any other
thery in its implementation and becomes a slogan rather than a reality for
hard line politicos if they do not realise that within it are contained
contradictions and exclusions.
It is not the concept of negative construction of difference as a cause of
disability I quibble with but the failure to really comprehend what
difference is, and to lean in ones connoting of the concepts towards a
traditional canon of acceptable images of that "impairment".
It does not take account of pyscological or neurological difference, a
difference in the very way we percieve and react to what the physical model
supposes to be reality because one person's reality is not anothers.
Is dyscalculia for example an impairment? is the ability to perform certain
numerical calculations so essential to the human entity that a lack of it
constitutes an impairment. I do not think so.
The trouble with so much disability thinking is that inspite of the social
model supposedly underlying it, it creates identities based around
impairment which therefore exclude difference and the building of common
approaches to discrimination based upon the notion that all forms of
discrimination are based upon the devaluing or undervaluing of some aspect
of difference, be that difference a physiological, or a neurological one, or
a genetic, or a self chosen one, eg being a linguistic or religios minority
in a mainstream that despises that.
Larry
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Disability-Research Discussion List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Dr Dan Goodley
> Sent: 13 March 2004 02:47
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: new book
>
>
> Shelley
>
> I appreciate a critique of 'impairment' as much as the next
> person but do not
> feel this 'personality politics' is really furthering the debate.
>
> As Gregg is pointing out: chill with the personality attacks and
> go with the
> critique
>
> all the very best
>
> Dan Goodley
>
>
>
> Quoting Shelley Lynn Tremain <[log in to unmask]>:
>
>
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