UPDATED WORKING DEFINITON OF #ABLEISM
-edited for length+clarity
-names colonialism as key to construction of ableism
-more explicitly acknwldgs reproductive in/justice+ productivity
-names @notthreefifths+Black/negatively racialized Disabled folk as centeral to my understanding.
ID: Brown square with the following words:
ABLEISM a·ble·ism \ ˈābə-ˌli-zəm \ noun
A system that places value on people’s bodies and minds based on societally constructed ideas of normalcy, intelligence, excellence and productivity. (1/3)
constructed ideas are deeply rooted in anti-Blackness, eugenics, colonialism & capitalism. This form of systmic opprsn leads to ppl and society determining who is valuable & worthy based on a person’s appearance and/or their ability to satisfactorily [re]produce, excel & "behave”
You do not have to be disabled to experience ableism.
a working definition by Talila "TL" Lewis in conversation with Disabled Black and other negatively racialized folk, especially Dustin Gibson; updated January 2020
Context & blog with additional info for the definition linked here: bit.ly/ableismcontext
2021 UPDATED ABLEISM DEFINITION simplifies previous versions and explicitly includes desirability, misogyny, imperialism, language & religion as ideologies/characteristics used by societies, institutions, ppl to assign value to others.
same 2022 updated working definition of #ableism with an inverted color scheme. Alt text avail on the image and here with additional context: bit.ly/ableism2022
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Black/Indigenous/Disabled communities+our Elders responded to @HarperCollins+@HarperOneBooks reiterating urgent concerns re Be A Revolution.
Signatories incl:
@SFdirewolf
@DrSamiSchalk
@behearddc
@HTCSolidarity
@dissolidarity
me & others
We again urge this book be pulled.
@HarperCollins @HarperOneBooks @SFdirewolf @DrSamiSchalk @behearddc @HTCSolidarity @dissolidarity In community and with great sadness, we write this letter to publicly share serious and urgent concerns...
The book contains countless disclosures, falsehoods, and misrepresentations, many of which present real and current safety and other risks to people profiled and named.
@HarperCollins @HarperOneBooks @SFdirewolf @DrSamiSchalk @behearddc @HTCSolidarity @dissolidarity ..We're politically/lifelong disabled Black/Indigenous authors, artists, attorneys, organizers, profs, griots--regarded as “experts” bc of decades of study & work...Yet, Oluo mis/wrote over & HarperOne published about us w/o so much as notifying us, our communities, orgs, Elders.
me+other Black/Indig disabled folk were (mis)featured in "Be A Revolution" by Ijeoma Oluo wo consent/notice. Oluo has also bullied+doxed me on top of this offensive inaccurate portrayal.
Tell @HarperOneBooks: pull this "book" now!
This is not about intent or animus. This is about accuracy, agency, consent, humanity, and accountability.
An afterthought and literary device to Oluo, *Black/Indigenous/Disability* is everythought and breath to us...
We took very seriously our stated role in preparing Oluo to develop a single chapter on race and disability. What a supreme let down, betrayal, and insult. Even what we correctly reported not accurately reported. . .
Stay tuned for the second portion of this convo next week where we discuss ableism as the driving force behind all forms of incarceration.
@ProfGeorgeYancy@truthout "all oppression is rooted in & dependent on ableism-esp anti-Black/Indigenous racism...ableism plays a leading role in how we frame, understand, construct & respond to race, class, gender,...nationality, criminal status, disability, & countless other identities..."
the construction of “race” is wholly dependent on ableism.
we can’t fully comprehend racism without an anti-ableist lens; and we can’t dismantle racism without an anti-ableist praxis (this is especially & particularly true of anti-Black/indigenous racism).
ableism plays a leading role in how we frame, understand, construct, and respond to race, class, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, nationality, criminal status, disability, and countless other identities.
all oppression is rooted in and dependent on ableism—especially anti-Black/indigenous racism.
It contains heavy and painful content so please use discretion.
It touches on many issues and connections that I think are critical. It is a validation of Black humanity and a celebration of Black resistance.
It's an acknowledgement of Black people’s collective complex traumas-a naming of what occurs after centuries of stolen, swinging, swollen Black bodies is followed by erasure of this violence and problematizing of our resistance to white supremacist violence.
The "I can do anything except..." framing in Disability/Deaf communities is ableist.
I know that very few want to admit or discuss this but it needs challenge, intense scrutiny & deep reflection and conversation. Not necessarily here but I hope folks are having these conversations cuz this is harmful.
It runs counter to Disability Rights, Disability Justice and Disability Solidarity precepts and praxis. It allows society to continue to believe that others who are unable to do some things are inherently lacking which contributes to systemic societal marginalization.