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Saturday, January 25, 2014

thoughts on absence

heart grows fonder
regrets surface
possibilities make themselves known
shimmering symbols, uphill paths
lead to golden goals

attachment to innocence, victimhood, martyrdom
solitude, longing
melancholy spells
cast contempt on what is given

uncertainty is eternal
certainty the lie
some lies must be told
to maintain the dignity of mystery

who is gone? who is left behind?

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

On disability and white privilege

Some thoughts on identity politics from a disability perspective...:

Not all impairments become disabilities. Indeed, even some "impairments" are simply attributes of a person, rather than impairments per se (i.e. they do not necessarily function as a LACK, only a site of difference from others).

As an example.
Being slightly short-sighted is an impairment. However, it does not double function as a disability in the society I live in, because glasses are relatively affordable and accessible for a majority of working people, socially acceptable, and thus my short-sightedness does not function in a way that disables me from functioning in society in the way it is currently built.

On the other hand...:
If I lost my legs, this too would be an impairment, but it would additionally classify as a disability. This is because this particular impairment would be significantly more disabling in this society, as a lot of society is not built for people who do not have legs. Even with access to a wheelchair, there are some buildings that I would not be able to get into, some corridors too narrow for me to navigate, some housing that I will not be able to rent, and some services I would thus have an excessive burden to be able to access.

Because of these additional disabling factors, having a disability of this kind may also potentially be further socially debilitating, with negative consequences on my mental health. To be denied entry or to not have basic access to services or certain forms of recreation, or to have people socially ostracise me because of my disability can do nasty things to my sense of self.

...

In considering all these, then, an additional foray into a consideration of Privilege-as-Impairment (but NOT as disability).

One of the things about benefiting from systemic oppression is having the privilege not to have to think about it if I don't want to (as compared to, for a person directly impacted by this oppression, who often does not have the choice to ignore it).

By way of example, white privilege can sometimes mean "colourblindness", a pretense of being able to "not see race" (because one does not necessarily live the negative material consequences of being racialised).

"Blindness", in an ordinary example, is an impairment which can function as a disability, because a lot of ordinary world is not built for people who cannot see.
"Colourblindness", in this race context, and "blindness to one's privilege" in general is an impairment that does NOT function as a disability, because a lot of ordinary world IS built to main this impairment as a normative way of being, and of understanding the world for white people and other privileged people.

The fascinating thing then:
When white privilege is pointed out to white folks, there can sometimes be a defensive posturing, as if I have pointed out some "flaw" in their character, akin to suddenly being equated to having a disability.

The overlap here, then, between racial justice and justice for people with disabilities...

That I must do a few things...:
1. To note that being made aware of one's (e.g. race) privilege is to call attention to the ways that privilege impairs us from being able to SEE CERTAIN TYPES OF REALITIES, and thus cuts us off fully from a significant portion of humanity's capacity for diverse perspectives.
2. To note that this impairment is not necessarily disabling, because often it is fully catered to.
3. This, in itself, a form of angst (to keep one developmentally thwarted through maintenance of privilege... the angst that comes from being "too sheltered").
4. Even if the privilege to be willfully ignorant were disabling (which it is not), having a disability need not and should not warrant social ostracism...
5. We should address all forms of social ostracism, at the same that we maintain integrity in relationships of accountability.