Anchoring Disablement: Social Definitions and Social Ontology in Britain’s Disabled People’s Movement
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Luke Beesley
Abstract
Intervening in debates around the ‘social model of disability’ (or the claim that biological/mental impairment is distinct from social processes of disablement, and that the latter constitutes a form of social oppression), this chapter argues that academic literature has mischaracterised variants of the claim emerging from social movement activity, and that an analysis of the social movement literature reveals competing and incompatible variants of it. Using Brian Epstein’s (2015a; 2015b) distinction between grounding and anchoring definitions of social phenomena; I distinguish between the ontological assumptions of Disability Studies- type research, and the social ontological claims mobilised by competing variants of the social model. I conclude that much of the critical literature presumes social models to make grounding claims about the experience of disabled individuals, a presumption which is false when applied to what I believe is the theoretically strongest and best developed version in the social movement literature-the definition of disablement as a ‘by-product’ of capitalism’s unfolding, formulated by the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation.
Abstract
Intervening in debates around the ‘social model of disability’ (or the claim that biological/mental impairment is distinct from social processes of disablement, and that the latter constitutes a form of social oppression), this chapter argues that academic literature has mischaracterised variants of the claim emerging from social movement activity, and that an analysis of the social movement literature reveals competing and incompatible variants of it. Using Brian Epstein’s (2015a; 2015b) distinction between grounding and anchoring definitions of social phenomena; I distinguish between the ontological assumptions of Disability Studies- type research, and the social ontological claims mobilised by competing variants of the social model. I conclude that much of the critical literature presumes social models to make grounding claims about the experience of disabled individuals, a presumption which is false when applied to what I believe is the theoretically strongest and best developed version in the social movement literature-the definition of disablement as a ‘by-product’ of capitalism’s unfolding, formulated by the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- Introduction: From Social Movements to Philosophy (and Back Again) 1
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Section 1: At the Intersection Between Academia and Social Movements
- Critical Social Ontology and Social Movements 13
- Social Movements and Epistemic Injustice 35
- Feminist Research as a Response to Political and Epistemic Violences 45
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Section 2: Contemporary Approaches to the Philosophy of Social Movements
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Social Ontology and Social Movements
- Toward a Liberatory Metaphysics of Sexuality 59
- The Political Ontology of Rawls’ Model of Disobedience: Depoliticization Through Moralization 77
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Social Movements and Epistemology
- How Social Movements Bear Collective Duties 103
- How Politics Shapes the Value of Perceptual Experience: From Epistemic to Prudential Value 121
- The Standpoint of the Oppressed Must Be Conquered by the Oppressed Class Itself: Standpoint Epistemology and Epistemic Autonomy 143
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Section 3: How Specific Social Movements Inform Philosophy
- Climate Social Movements and the Politics of Leadership 169
- Viral Social Movements, State(s) of Emergency, and the Insurgent Public Realm: A Philosophical Analysis of China’s 2020 – 2022 Social Movements 187
- Anchoring Disablement: Social Definitions and Social Ontology in Britain’s Disabled People’s Movement 207
- European Health Social Movements: An Introduction 229
- List of Contributors 251
- Index 253
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- Introduction: From Social Movements to Philosophy (and Back Again) 1
-
Section 1: At the Intersection Between Academia and Social Movements
- Critical Social Ontology and Social Movements 13
- Social Movements and Epistemic Injustice 35
- Feminist Research as a Response to Political and Epistemic Violences 45
-
Section 2: Contemporary Approaches to the Philosophy of Social Movements
-
Social Ontology and Social Movements
- Toward a Liberatory Metaphysics of Sexuality 59
- The Political Ontology of Rawls’ Model of Disobedience: Depoliticization Through Moralization 77
-
Social Movements and Epistemology
- How Social Movements Bear Collective Duties 103
- How Politics Shapes the Value of Perceptual Experience: From Epistemic to Prudential Value 121
- The Standpoint of the Oppressed Must Be Conquered by the Oppressed Class Itself: Standpoint Epistemology and Epistemic Autonomy 143
-
Section 3: How Specific Social Movements Inform Philosophy
- Climate Social Movements and the Politics of Leadership 169
- Viral Social Movements, State(s) of Emergency, and the Insurgent Public Realm: A Philosophical Analysis of China’s 2020 – 2022 Social Movements 187
- Anchoring Disablement: Social Definitions and Social Ontology in Britain’s Disabled People’s Movement 207
- European Health Social Movements: An Introduction 229
- List of Contributors 251
- Index 253
