Thanks, Larry, for raising this. "Able-bodied" has been bothering me
since the original question was posed, and I'm kind of surprised no one else
challenged it. "Able-bodied" retains the medical model assumption that
'disability' resides in the body rather than in society. I fear for DS's
future if we don't come to understand this basic premise. Not only that,
"able-bodied" also assumes impairment renders the disabled or 'impaired' body
rather useless. Even though I am blind my body is able to do most everything
else I want it to do. Even so, society continues to disable me. The concept
of able-bodiedness also excludes cognitive and sensory features of the
lived experience of embodiment and probably more than what is coming to my
mind at the moment. I am also troubled by the continued use of 'disability'
and 'impairment' interchangeably. And I disagree with and am offended by
the assertion that everyone has "disabilities."
This is the whole point. This international list does not have an agreed understanding of Disability. That is why we use the expression 'non-disabled' as opposed to 'able-bodied' This discussion keeps rearing its head. Impairment or condition is the concrete fact and disability is the systematic oppression that people with impairments face.
Re: the content of the question -- I think whether it is appropriate for
nondisabled researchers to do disabilitly research depends on their intent,
their theoretical approaches, their research models, etc. I think it's
important for disability researchers who consider themselves nondisabled to
state this throughout the project, including in the write-up.
At various times during my doctoral research, each and all the participants
mentioned they would not have responded to my call for blind participants
had I not stated I am blind because they were not willing to be used once
again by sighted researchers.
It is the same at DPO level, disabled people are continuously researched, 'consulted with', 'involved' etc etc. And people are sick and tired of it. They need action, they need money, they need jobs etc
Whilst organising a disability arts and culture festival individuals/organisations who have indeed been of good intentions kept suggesting non-disabled arts practitioners to me. And when I said the festival would only employ disabled people - i was immediately asked 'but, do you mean you are discriminating against 'able-bodied' people"? And instead of going through all the rigmarole of trying to explain what disability culture was all about - I just said YES.
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