Hi all,
I hope everyone had a fun and relaxing holiday season and that the
transition back to production mode wasn't too traumatic! I should let
everyone know that Linda Mona and I are co-editing the summer issue of
Disability Studies Quarterly. The topic is disability and sexuality. In
the memory of Barbara Waxman's and Sandra Welner's work, we are looking
for papers that highlight disability and sexuality as an access and human
rights issue. Too often scholarship in this area fudges when it gets to
the difficult questions of sexual rights. Posted below is the formal call
for papers for this timely and important discussion. Please spread the
word. Thanks,
Russell
Russell Shuttleworth, Ph.D.
Research Scholar
Human Sexuality Studies
San Francisco State University
DISABILITY STUDIES QUARTERLY CALL FOR PAPERS: DISABILITY AND SEXUALITY
Although academicians and disability studies scholars have been
discussing the complexity of the disability experience for many years,
the sexual lives of individuals within this community have remained
veiled at various levels. Multidisciplinary research focusing upon
disability has addressed issues around gender, identity, sexual
orientation, and sexual behavior, yet, lesser attention has been paid to
"sexual access" among members of the disability community. Obstacles
interfering with access to sexual relationships and sexual expression are
often quite similar to those barriers faced in attempting to integrate
into the majority society at symbolic, economic, social, architectural,
psychological, and interpersonal levels. That is, attitudinal
constraints, lack of monetary and/or programmatic access to personal
assistance services, physical barriers, communication issues, and
transportation difficulties all can contribute towards the prevention of
full expression of sexuality. Unique to sexuality, however, are the
cultural meanings of sexual attractiveness and desirability. While
advocacy efforts and policy development have focused on broad ideas of
universal access, a sexual right's agenda that ensures access to sexual
expression has not been included in these endeavors. Based upon these
ideas, a search for a deeper understanding of sexual policy and rights
for people with disabilities is sought.
We want papers that interrogate the multiple kinds of access issues
related to sexual expression and to negotiating sexual relationships for
disabled people. We seek scholarship that discusses disabled people's
resistance to the myth of asexuality, their access strategies, and also
their successes in love. We also want to include research and writing on
difficult topics such as facilitated sex, surrogacy, sex work, and the
access opportunities of those disabled people residing in institutions
and more structured living environments. Some possible types of questions
that might be fruitfully addressed include the following: 1) What are the
policy changes required that will enable all disabled people access to
their sexual rights? 2) Are there perils in losing credibility within the
disability civil rights movement if arguments for sexual rights is on a
broader agenda? 3) How are people with disabilities engaging in sexual
expression and establishing sexual relationships given the potential
obstacles faced at both meta and micro levels?
While we do not want to discourage papers that deal with sexual identity,
sexual subjectivity, the issue of gender, and other important topics, if
at all possible, we want authors to connect these aspects to the notion
of access. If interested, please submit paper ideas and/or a brief
abstract by February 10, 2002 to Linda R. Mona, Ph.D. at [log in to unmask]
and Russell P. Shuttleworth, Ph.D. at [log in to unmask] Manuscripts
will be due by April 15, 2002. Submit papers via electronic file to both
e-mail addresses noted above or send postal mail to:
Russell P. Shuttleworth, Ph.D.
6010 Sacramento Avenue
Richmond, CA 94804
We look forward to reading your work!
Linda R. Mona, Ph.D., Co-editor
Russell P. Shuttleworth, Ph.D., Co-editor
________________End of message______________________
Archives and tools for the Disability-Research Discussion List
are now located at:
www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/disability-research.html
You can JOIN or LEAVE the list from this web page.
|
