I think Laurence has a point. I wonder if we can perhaps make a distinction
between 'social inclusion', 'economic integration' and identity politics.
If you follow my drift, if exclusion is taken to the extremes of all three
then what we are talking about is social (leisure?) spaces specifically for
disabled people, disabled industries run by disabled people and (remember I
said extremes) civil war. It seems to me that we frequently get these three
things mixed up and one doesn't necessarily follow from the other, though
perhaps extreme forms have their uses at some point in our his/herstory.
I also feel the 'like me' argument has its limitations from the social
perspective, particularly from the point of view of people who have a
number of 'categorical' differences. In terms of individual identity, for
me, this is not a problem. But socially (and to a certain extent
economically), I have found this too difficult to resolve, so in addition
to just being allowed to 'be', I choose to be with people I feel safe with
and who do not abuse me or my significant other (who is not deaf) and that
has proved to have very little to do with whether they are like me or not
e.g. we get more abuse from Deaf people than anyone else! That being said,
I reserve the right to have dreams, and to make the distinction between
dreams and reality.
My dream is of a society in which difference and the need for private space
is valued and where we all recognise our interconnections and
interdependence. I don't think that striving for social co-existence and
arguing from standpoint theory without appealing to social justice (as some
groups of disabled people do) will change existing oppressive power
relationships, and I think there are precedents. So Judith, yes, maybe it's
how we see inclusion.
Best wishes
Mairian
>
>Oh yes yes yes...in developing and teaching a subject called
>'Recreation for specific population groups', the one thing that was
>common to all identifiable groups in a diverse community, is the want
>to associate with people 'like themselves'. This was something
>students needed to be aware of when facilitating the inclusion of
>people (who were otherwise removed from the community) through
>social and recreational experiences - that they will not necessarily
>want to be 'mainstreamed' in their leisure. Give people the option and
>don't assume that in all areas of life or at all times that people will
>want to be part of an integrated society (specially one where the
>status of 'other' can become tiresome). It seems very natural to me
>that I work, shop, and do business in an integrated and diverse
>environment and yet I am very discriminating when it comes to the
>more discretionary parts of my life. Leisure is a space where I
>choose do do what I want; when I want; with who I want; to become
>who i want to be at the time.
>
>This position of course is damned by the 'mainstream'. The friction
>that this causes is quite evident in comments like "If they want to
>come to this country they have to try to fit in...not start up their own
>clubs for their own nationality" and "On one hand they want to be
>accepted and included and then they want to be separate...Its just
>reverse discrimination".
>
>
>
>> Hi,
>> I can hardly believe it but I've been considering this as well. Am not
>> able to write at he moment but would like to discuss this with you
>> further.
>> Phyllis Rubenfeld
>> Survivor and Professor
>> Special Education
>> Hunter College of the City of New York
>>
>> On Thu, 10 Jun 1999, homan wrote:
>>
>> > Good evening Paul,
>> >
>> > I believe we are to glib in asserting that policies of inclusion will be
>> > the panacea for all our ills and pains. I once thought inclusion was
>> > very nice, but have concluded after much observation that it is not a
>> > natural thing people do or aspire to. On the contrary. In our
>> > relationships we tend to have many more shallow relationships than close
>> > acquantances, and again many fewer friends. It is a natural gradient,
>> > and pretty obvious when as a golfer you stand at the bar of a yacht
>> > club, or for that matter another golfclub than your own.
>
>Best regards
>
>Laurence Bathurst
>School of Occupation and Leisure Sciences
>Faculty of Health Sciences
>University of Sydney
>P.O. Box 170
>Lidcombe NSW 2141
>Australia
>
>Phone: (62 1) 9351 9509
>Fax: (62 1) 9351 9166
>e-mail: [log in to unmask]
>
>Please visit the School's interim web site at
>http://www.ot.cchs.usyd.edu.au
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious
>
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mairian Corker
Senior Research Fellow in Deaf and Disability Studies
Department of Education Studies
University of Central Lancashire
Preston PR1 2HE
Address for correspondence:
111 Balfour Road
Highbury
London N5 2HE
U.K.
Minicom/TTY +44 [0]171 359 8085
Fax +44 [0]870 0553967
Typetalk (voice) +44 [0]800 515152 (and ask for minicom/TTY number)
*********
"To understand what I am doing, you need a third eye"
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