No Pity: People with Disabilities, Forging a New Civil Rights Movement
Joseph P. Shapiro.
1993
Reaction paper
In reaction to the book the first point of emphasis is the core themes within the book is identity, which is applied irrespective of the topic. This ranges from blindness, deafness, paraplegia as well as other forms of disabilities. The implication of the title is that disabled rights as a movement is one that is far from pity. The poster children and the appeal of sad faces for funding sends the message of disability as being something that is curable as well as being able to overcome. Individuals with disabilities are objected to messages that are reduced in the entirety as require fixing. In this case disability is what creates them to take the persona of who they are. In the book emotions run somewhat strongly with certain objection to efforts directed at finding a cure. Such as several deaf people who use cochlear implants. This is a suggestion of deafness as a pathology as well as having a certain correction or elimination. This is further held in the view of being cultural murder or even genocide of the deaf culture. Certain disability rights activists are have even reached the point of being critical towards research that emphasizes injury prevention. This is to say that prevention of disability is a suggestion of a certain pejoratively to it with others showing objection to the highly costly technological means in assistance to mobility. Citation is attributed to the reduced rates of success in healing of spinal cord related injuries as well as arguments of such expenditures being used for the extensive majority of individuals to whom assistance cannot be provided in the advancement of technology.
The view put forward by the author is of non-disabled Americans not understanding those who are disabled. More overall those who are non-disabled have no understanding of the livelihood and the struggles faced by those who are disabled. The author delves the reader into the world of the civil rights movement of disabled people and its inception in the United States. The core strand that runs through the book is the arena of disabled people that has undergone significant transformation over the years. As attributed to rapid changes in technology, protection of civil rights as well as a new generation of disabled better educated students from mainstream education institutions as well as being involved in political activism. This leads the author introduce the definition of disability within the rights movement in the notion of not pity or tragedy of disability within the society. On the basis of mythical tendencies, fears as well as stereotyping that create difficulty of those with disabilities. Therefore, the requirement of civil rights protection is outlined in the features of the movement with Shapiro presenting the suggestion of the movement of disability rights being a mosaic movement originating from the 1990S. This along with the diversification of the central attributes as well as one where leader or the organization that holds the claim of speaking for all individuals. The sense is held of the disability movement that is imbibed in lessons of diversity with black and feminist movements all grappling with the current issue.
For instance, in chapter three the author provides an explanation of how popular imagery of disabled persons in the form of the poster child invokes emotions of pity or the "supercrip" that is inspirational. As one overcomes disability through feats that are extraordinary which are not a reflection of the reality of the livelihood of disabled individuals. It is made worse by the fact that these same individuals are faced with discrimination whether in terms of receiving medical treatment or in rights of guardianship as well as opportunities of employment. This presents a discussion of associated terminology that is applied to disabled persons with political correctness controversies or surroundingpoliticalcorrectness. Recent shifts make the reclaim of legitimacy or the hitherto illegitimacy of terms such as cripple.
The books further compels the reader to manage exhaustively the origins as well as historical development of the movement within United States. This begs one to question the role of charitable organization, the formulation of medicine that is rehabilitative as well as living that is independent as a movement. This in addition to self-advocacy factions and activism that is cross disability as witnessed in the 1980s second wave in manifestation of demands of laws for civil rights.
For those with interest in the dynamics of minority struggles in the emergence of networking comprising of accounts of personal struggles as well as the victories of leaders of disability rights movements. One can point to the specific value in later discussions in detail of some events with significance within the disability rights movement and its historical outlook. Such as the 1988 Gallaudet University student protest at holding a deaf president in appointment to the University, as well as celebrations of the culture of deafness in comedy as well as theatre. This event among others led to transformations in the form of lobbying of passing the 1992 Disabilities Act and subsequent creation of assistive technology in combination with transformed perceptions.
