PG 265 - The Politics of Disability

1.0

This course investigates contemporary politics in the United States through the lens of disability studies. The course is divided into four units. In the first, we will explore how different activists and thinkers conceptualize disability, paying particular attention to how our understandings of disability have evolved over time. In the second unit, we will look at key moments in disability politics—from the Section 504 movement to the Deaf President Now protests. In the third section of the course, we will discover how disability theorists and activists contest some of the core assumptions of democratic citizenship—like self-determination, autonomy, and freedom. We will explore how our understandings of these concepts might change if the fact of disability were recognized and respected. Finally, we will investigate contemporary political debates over the role of disabled persons in a functioning democracy. Woven throughout the course will be autobiographical writings by those who identify as disabled, so as to provide first-hand insight into the lived experiences of those engaged in disability politics. We will pay particular attention to the intersections between disability and race/class/gender.