Alden Chadwick wrote:
"Nevertheless, it might be useful to note that not all of us disabled people
have 'internalised the oppression of the said structure'."
Now this is were I have to state that I am of a different opinion. I think
that we all have and will continue to internalise the oppression of
society's structure. The notion, that it would be possible to live to at
least some extent integrated in a structure that encompass every activity of
your life, and not be "tainted" with the prevalent values of that structure,
seem utopian to me. I cannot perceive how it could be done, social model or
not. I feel that every day that I wake up is another day in a continuous and
never ending task of trying to keep as "clean" as possible. I think that
every time a position is reached or a process is finished by me or any other
person inside this structure, the structure (and we who live inside it) is
the interpreter of that activity. In the same way that Dante called the
translator betrayer, this interpretation, as I see it is loyal to the
oppressive values and betrays the quest of changing them. As I see it, the
only possibility of achieving change is to continuously question every fixed
position and process; to always try and take the position of the outsider;
to always try to question the distribution of power.
I don't mean that things are hopeless, or that we never make progress. I
just cannot see that we can afford to be sure even of ourselves. The one
dangerous standpoint, in my opinion, is to think "you've made it".
So when you write
"Given that bureaucracies are governed by written policy and
procedure, the trick will be to construct such policies and procedures by
operating within (and strengthening) the power / knowledge of a social
model. "
this is to me a fixed process, and by being so its intent and effect has
ceased to be questioned. Being finished it is then interpreted by the
structure and "Voila!" there we go again. I have never seen any policy no
matter how beautifully constructed that did not fail at some point; failing
because of the interpretation of it from the prevalent value system.
As to the social model, well I think it i is probably to some extent
"tainted" by the structure too; at least as far as the "knowledge-part"
goes.
Susanne Berg
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