Bringing disabled women together, mobilising
and sharing through lived experiences
Disabled women in discussion
(from right) Rahel Gaffen, Michelle Daley, Zara Todd, Lucia Bellini, Kirsten Hearn, Eleanor Lisney and Ciara Doyle.
Filmed with thanks to Disability Action in Islington by Felix Gonzalez for the WOW party installation at the Southbank, London
Disabled and Proud Women
speakers : Michelle Daley, Zara Todd, Lucia Bellini, Kirsten Hearn, Eleanor Lisney and Ciara Doyle.
Filmed with thanks to Disability Action in Islington by Felix Gonzalez for the WOW party installation at the Southbank, London
Transcript
Michelle Daley
Ok my names Michelle Daley and I’m a member of Sisters of Frida and I’ve been involved in the Disabled People’s movement since early 2000
I think it’s important for us to kind of think about why is it as disabled women we have to keep justifying our existence
Why do we have to justify who we are?
Why do we have to say make a statement about yes I’m attractive?
I can be err attracted to others
I’m a woman and I’m the same as any other woman
I also think it’s important that we recognise the people that came before us err who fought for women rights
But also there are many important disabled women who fought for our rights as well
and I think that’s what makes me proud of who I am as a disabled woman knowing that there was someone before me who started that journey
And I think it’s for me to continue that and to say yes I am proud to be a disabled black woman
Thank you!
Zara Todd
So I’m Zara, I’m 28 and a proud disabled young woman um yeah that’s me!
Is that all you’d like to say about today?
Err my brains a bit frazzled!
I think that it’s really interesting bringing together a group of disabled women
because yes we have a lot of shared experiences but we also have a lot of things
that are very unique to us
And I think often it’s easy to get caught up in labels
And while we need spaces to explore our identity we don’t necessarily need to come
to the same conclusions
And what I think today’s been quite good at
What I think the event will be quite good at is getting a space where we can
acknowledge who we are
All of who we are and just go yeah fine
Thanks!
Lucia Bellini
My name’s Lucia Bellini and I’m part of Sisters of Frida
I’m really happy to be able to say that I’m a disabled woman
That I’m very proud to be a disabled woman
I’m independent, I work, I am able to challenge stereotypes
Um and I’m able to fight for equality of opportunity in society for disabled people in
general
I’m um I think that there needs to be a lot more publicity or disabled women need to be portrayed in a much more positive light in the media
Um we were talking earlier about disabled women doing the catwalk but made to look non disabled
And I think we should be proud of our identities, we should be proud to look different if we choose to
Err if we want to conform and wear make-up and err and we should also be allowed to choose to do that too
Err err I’m a bit fed up of people telling me asking me why I want to wear make-up
Why I’m interested in how I look if I’m blind
Err I also think that it’s time disabled women are seen as women and not different err
you know we heard about the fact that err women don’t understand that we want to go out on dates just like everybody else
That we can also have children if we choose to
That we can be in a relationship if we choose to
That we’re no different because we’re disabled
That we just have the extra challenges that we have to overcome
You have to overcome extra discrimination, discrimination because we’re female and
discrimination because we’re disabled as well as all the additional barriers we have and in physical access
So I think that um more that it would be really good if more women, disabled women, would be proud of being who they are
Of coming out as a disabled woman and um being angry enough to challenge the discrimination that they receive in our society
Kirsten Hearn
My name’s Kirsten
Um I wrote a song about the plight of disabled women and I’d like to share the lyrics
with you
“Think of a mag, yes any old mag
What’s on the cover?
What do you see?
Pretty young women posing and grinning
Slender and sexy but nothing like me
Indoctrination, objectification
Is this the way it’s supposed to be?
No one with blubber gets on the cover
No one who hasn’t got symmetry
SAS Sisters against Symmetry
SAS Sisters against Body Bigotry
They say that prosthetics don’t make good aesthetics
Our surgical corset should never be seen
With bits of us missing there’s no good us wishing
To grace the front cover of Vogue magazine
Indoctrination, objectification this is the way it has always been
You’ve got to be bold break out of the mould
We shape our image let’s learn to be mean
SAS Sisters against Symmetry
SAS Sisters against Body Bigotry
Cherish those humps, those nodules and bumps
Those wrinkles and bulges and bubbly bits
Nurture your spots, your baggy old bots, your stretch marks and scars and saggy old
Indoctrination, objectification
Symmetricality is the pits
Take it or leave it we don’t care one bit
Our bodies are ours including our clits!
SAS Sisters against Body Bigotry
SAS Sisters against Symmetry”
Ok right that’s better!
Um the key thing that I need to say about being a disabled woman and my
experience in the world is it’s a joyous thing
It’s an absolutely joyous thing to be a disabled woman
I am different in many ways
I have different ways of appreciating the world
And I’m not being Polyandrous about it
It actually is true that we live in a world that assumes that everybody is non-disabled
That everybody can hear, see, speak, walk, talk all the whole lot
And our world is designed in such a way just to allow those to be members of that
privileged club
And I feel really strongly that if we want a diverse community we have to embrace
and celebrate, support and glorify all those people who are different in that kind of
way
And so I do a lot of writing, a lot of speaking about the difference that is me as a disabled woman
And by celebrating those things that other people might find ugly or frightening and at the end of the day that’s where I want us to be as disabled women
But I don’t want us to lose the feeling of anger
We can embrace our pride
We can embrace our anger
And send it outwards to make changes in the world and at the end of the day
I believe that sanity comes to us in terms of being able to cope with the world if we
can also hope that what we do makes a difference
And I really hope that what we’re doing today is making that difference
Eleanor Lisney
I’m Eleanor Lisney
I’m a disabled woman and I’m proud of it
It took me a long time err to come out as a disabled woman even though I’ve had my impairment for a long time
I think for most of my youth I was in denial err about it and I wanted to be a normal person just like everybody else
However I am very happy to be with other women who
I find joy in having found other disabled women
Err it’s a sort of relief and a joy and um celebration to be able to talk with other
women about things that I’ve thought of for a long time and have been quiet about
And now it’s no longer time, it’s no longer time to be quiet
It’s time to um have a voice
Ciara Doyle
I’m Ciara, I am an academic and err a mother, a career woman and a disabled woman
Err I think today was really really powerful and important
Err the err the reason sorry I’m completely frazzled!
Ok err I think that today was extremely important err
I think that it doesn’t happen nearly enough
And needs to happen much more
That the feminist agenda comes to disability politics
And that disability politics is brought to the feminist agenda
Because I really think they need to work far more closely together
And I think that there are areas within feminism or disability where disabled women need to be in the lead
I think that we as women in particular in this society
We are judged very very much within our bodies and how our bodies function
Err within quite strictly set gender norms
And I think that disabled women in particular are living on the knife edge of this
because it’s not just men the Patriarchal system in general
But the Patriarchal system through the medical profession as its Police Force
That chooses to pathologies or identify when women’s bodies, emotions or minds
are working within what are perceived to be acceptable levels of normality
Or outside of those acceptable levels of normality which are then pathologised
Which then creates disability because women are told that they are abnormal
And must either accept a victimhood status
Or work hard to normalise themselves
Instead of being able to celebrate who we are and what we are
And so this why I believe these are very much gender issues as well as being very very much disabled issues
And it is of no surprise that the majority of people who develop disabilities are women
Err and that it is two issues that need to come together and spend far more time and
dialogue with each other
Which is exactly what we were doing today
Making a start on that
Thank you!
Nancy Maguire: Perspective from pioneer to advocate for inclusion
Nancy Maguire was one of the speakers at the WOW party. She agreed to share her journey here with us.
Nancy Maquire
I was born in London in 1986 and have a condition called osteogenesis imperfecta, commonly known as brittle bones. Many children with brittle bones grow up protected – overprotected, some might say – from any possibility of hurting themselves. My parents wanted me to be safe, but they also wanted me to have the opportunity to play, make friends and lead as normal a childhood as possible.
In the 1980s, inclusive education was still a fairly new concept. Like most parents of a disabled child, mine were advised to send me to a special school. My mother is a teacher, and after visiting the recommended school she was convinced that it would provide a substandard education. My parents have always used my older sister Katy, who did not have a disability, to gauge what is acceptable for me: If they thought something wasn’t good enough for Katy, then it wasn’t good enough for me.
I was the first child with a disability to attend my primary school, and in many ways I felt like a guinea pig for inclusion. For example, despite having a positive attitude towards including me in all aspects of school life, my teachers lacked experience in how to adapt physical education so that I could get involved in a meaningful way.
Like most childhoods, mine wasn’t always easy. I spent a lot of time in hospital, and even within an ‘inclusive’ mainstream education system, there were times when I was excluded. For example, I wasn’t allowed to go to my nursery Christmas party because the teachers were worried I would break a bone.
Also, at high school they had a separate table in the canteen for children with disabilities and the teachers could not understand why I refused to sit at it. Despite setbacks and obstacles, however, I managed to flourish both educationally and socially.
I was always encouraged to try new things. My extracurricular activities included swimming, ballet, wheelchair tennis, drama and singing. In many of these, I was also the only child with a disability. Interestingly, I often found these groups more inclusive than school in terms of how much I could participate and contribute. I felt wanted and people found creative ways for me to get involved. Nonetheless, there were many things I found difficult to do because of my limited mobility. I would sometimes feel upset because I couldn’t do things as well as the other children, and as I grew older and more self-conscious, I became reluctant to put myself in situations where my difficulties were on show.
In my teenage years a lot of my friends went through phases of being a ‘goth’ or a ‘rude girl’, which involved dressing or behaving in ways designed to attract attention. Whilst they were doing everything they could to stand out and be different, I was desperate to be ‘normal’ and fit in. Growing up with a disability, I received a lot of attention. People in the street would often stare at me, make comments and ask my parents, “What’s wrong with her?” I had days when I was able to brush it off, but no amount of resilience or family support can stop that from affecting you.
I developed extremely low self- esteem and poor body image, made worse because I was significantly overweight. I found exercise difficult, and like many girls my age, I ate to comfort myself. I had also internalized the medical terminology that was used to describe me – in particular the word ‘deformed’ (I had a curvature of the spine, since corrected). When I was 14, I developed an eating disorder, partly because I wanted to lose weight – but also because my weight felt like one aspect of my physical appearance that I could actually control.
Although I had incredibly supportive family and friends, being disabled were never something I viewed as a positive thing. I thought I had to overcome it, like adversity. I became obsessed with being as ‘undisabled’ as possible, and I was convinced that if I could walk, my life would be a lot better. Ironically, although I no longer use a wheelchair, in many ways I feel more aware of my disability than ever. People still make comments about me because I have small stature, and make assumptions about my life and ability; I always have to prove myself, particularly in the workplace. Though I am not defined by my disability, it has been pivotal in shaping who I am and what I have achieved. Having a disability is now something I embrace: I no longer see it as a negative thing or something I should be embarrassed about. In many ways being disabled has worked to my advantage and created opportunities that might never have been available to me – like writing this article.
Every child’s experience is different. I come from a lower- middle-class family in the United Kingdom, where I had access to free health care and a good education. But I strongly believe that the issues of belonging, self-esteem and aspiration transcend such distinctions as gender, class and nationality. To develop a greater sense of self-worth, children with disabilities need the opportunity to participate and contribute in all aspects of their lives.
People with disabilities are becoming more visible in many walks of life – in politics and the media, for example. This is instrumental in improving children’s perceptions of what they can achieve. When I was growing up, the only role model I had was Stevie Wonder. I admired him because he was a successful and respected musician despite being blind. However, it would have helped me to see people with disabilities doing everyday jobs – as teachers, doctors or shopkeepers. I think that would also have helped my parents. My mum said that when I was a child, she tried not to think about my future because it made her scared. She knew that I was capable but feared that my options would be limited.
As it turns out, my disability has not prevented me from achieving any of the important things. I am a qualified social worker, passed my driving test when I was 16, left home when I was 19 and have lived and worked in Asia and Africa. In the future I hope to be an advocate for children with disabilities on an international level, as I passionately believe in the inalienable human rights and untapped potential of these children.
First published at UNICEF
No to allowing sterilization of disabled minors in Columbia
Sisters of Frida has signed in support.
Press Release
Organizations in several countries reject decision of the Colombian Constitutional Court allowing for sterilization of minors with disabilities without their consent.
Bogota, Colombia, March 18, 2014.
On March 11th, the Colombian Constitutional Court validated the practice of surgical sterilization of minors with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities after considering a constitutional challenge to article 7 of Law 1412 of 2010, which prohibited the practice of surgical sterilization for contraceptive purposes on minors in all cases. (Decision C-133/14 – Press Release No. 08)
Although the Constitutional Court declared article 7 constitutional, it stated that “when it comes to minors with disabilities for whom there is a proven impossibility to give consent in the future to undergo sterilization procedures, the parents, or in any case, the legal guardian, must request judicial authorization to allow surgical sterilization. In that sense, previous case law has considered that a person that does not have the capacity to understand what sterilization is or its consequences, as it is the case of mental disabilities, she or he will hardly be in a place to understand the responsibility attached to the exercise of maternity or paternity and therefore, the implications of being able to or not to procreate”. The Court added: “The decision to undergo surgical sterilization ensures more dignified living conditions for those who cannot make decisions related to the exercise of their reproductive freedom and that may be exposed to forced pregnancies in detriment of their dignity and personal integrity.” Justices Luis Guillermo Guerrero and Luis Ernesto Vargas will draft concurring opinions because they consider that such interpretation goes against applicable international human rights standards.
Various national and international organizations firmly rejected the statements of the Constitutional Court. “Sterilization does not protect anybody from sexual violence and in fact it is a risk factor. With this decision the Court disregarded its obligations under the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, ratified by Colombia. The Convention requires that States recognize people with disabilities’ full legal capacity to make their own decisions and that they provide the necessary supports to do so”, said Andrea Parra, Director of the Action Program for Equality and Social Inclusion (PAIIS) of the Universidad de los Andes in Colombia. “The Convention specifically protects people with disabilities’ right to maintain their fertility, which historically has been controlled and denied.The Convention recognizes that all the people, regardless of their disability, have will and preferences and the State must recognize and respect them. Validating a third party signature of the consent form to the procedure is forced sterilization”, Parra added.
Organizations from Australia, Argentina, Canada, the United States, India, Mexico, Peru and the United Kingdom, as well as international organizations rejected the decision. According to the report
“Sterilization of Women and Girls with Disabilities” by the Campaign to Stop Torture in Health Care, “Systemic prejudice and discrimination against women and girls with
disabilities continues to result in widespread denial of their right to experience their sexuality, to have sexual relationships, and to found and maintain families. Forced sterilization is an act of violence, a form of social control, and a violation of the right to be free from torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.”
The International Federation of Gynechology and Obstretics (FIGO) in its guidelines on female sterilization states that
“Only women themselves can give ethically valid consent to their own sterilization. Family members including husbands, parents, legal guardians, medical practitioners and, for instance, government or other public officers, cannot consent on any woman’s or girl’s behalf.”
Doctor Claudia Malacrida, sociologist and professor at the University of Lethbridge in Canada, expert in eugenic practices said:
“Involuntary sterilization is not the solution for disabled people’s sexuality. Rather, education, support and opportunities to engage and learn, facilitate disabled people’s emotional, sexual and reproductive lives. Involuntary sterilization can also often have the effect of hiding the outcomes of sexual abuse; it is NOT a way of protecting disabled people from abuse or unwanted sexual contact, but in fact can make them more vulnerable”.
Stephanie Ortoleva, from international NGO Women Enabled, Inc. states:
“Forced non-consensual sterilization of women and girls with disabilities cannot be tolerated as it not only violates our core human rights, but also our physical and mental health. Empowering others to make such decisions for women and girls with disabilities is an unacceptable form of violence and control”.
Erich Kofmel from Autistic Minority International added:
“What is particularly troubling to us is the uncertain scope of the court’s decision. Many persons with so-called mental disabilities, for example those on the autism spectrum, may be falsely thought of as incapable of exercising their sexual and reproductive rights, now or in the future, and unjustly judged due to a lack of knowledge about their condition.”
The decision not only disregards the UN Disability Convention, it also ignores the recommendations made to Colombia by the Committee to Eliminate all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which specifically told Colombia to amend its regulatory framework to guarantee that sterilization is conducted with the free and informed consent of women with disabilities.
This and other aspects related to violations of sexual and reproductive rights of people with disabilities in Colombia will be presented to the Inter-American Commission on Human rights during the upcoming thematic hearing on the issue, which will take place on March 24th in Washington, D.C., United States.
Colombia has the international obligation to adjust its laws, judicial decisions, policies and practices to the mandates of the UN Convention on Disability and to guarantee the autonomy and legal capacity of all people with disabilities as recognized by Law 1618 of 2013.
Signatory Organizations:
Colombia:
Action Program for Equality and Social Inclusion (PAIIS), Universidad de los Andes
Asociación Colombiana de Síndrome de Down (ASDOWN)
Liga Colombiana de Autismo (LICA)
Fundamental Colombia
Corporación Transición es Crecer
Other countries:
ARROW – Asian Pacific Resource and Research Center for Women (Regional)
Autistic Minority International (International)
Burton Blatt Institute, Syracuse University (United States)
Canadian Association of the Deaf (Canada)
Eugenics and Newgenics Research Project, Universidad de Lethbridge (Canada)
Center for Reproductive Rights (International)
Centro Estratégico de Impacto Social – CEIS (Mexico)
Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales – CELS (Argentina)
Clínica Jurídica de Acciones de Interés Público, sección Discapacidad de la Pontificia
Universidad Católica del Peru. (Peru)
Clínica Jurídica del Programa Universitario de Derechos Humanos de la UNAM (Mexico)
Disability Rights International –DRI (International)
Documenta, análisis y acción para la justicia social a.c. (Mexico)
Impact Litigation Project, American University (United States)
International Disability Alliance (International)
International Network of Women with Disabilities (International)
Open Society Foundations (International)
Proyecto de Litigio de Alto Impacto, American University (Estados Unidos)
Respectful Interfaces (Estados Unidos)
School of Health, Policy and Management, Critical Disability Studies, York University (Canada)
Sisters of Frida (United Kingdom)
Sociedad y Discapacidad (Peru)
Women Enabled, Inc. (International)
Women’s Link Worldwide (International)
Women with Disabilities Australia (Australia)
Women with Disabilities India Network (India)
For more information contact:
Andrea Parra
Programa de Acción por la Igualdad y la Inclusión Social (PAIIS) Universidad de los Andes.
Ph: +5713394949 ext 3157 – +573136726231
Sources:
Constitutional Court of Colombia – Press Release No. 08 – March 11, 2014: http://goo.gl/pTKohf
UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities: http://goo.gl/P72C2s
Recommendations to Colombia by the CEDAW Committee, October 2013, par. 30(e): http://goo.gl/94Yjpz
International Federation on Gynechology and Obstetrics. Guidelines on Female Sterilization, 2011: http://goo.gl/Y8xTPn
Campain to Stop Torture in Health Care. Briefing Paper: http://goo.gl/0ZX0Bi
Comunicado de Prensa esterilización Colombia VERSION FINAL 20140319 (Spanish version pdf)
Comunicado de Prensa esterilización Colombia VERSION FINAL 20140319(Spanish version Word doc)
Press Release Sterilization Colombia FINAL VERSION 20140319 (Word doc)
Press Release Sterilization Colombia FINAL VERSION 20140319-2 (pdf version)
At WOW Festival 2014 | Feminism & Privilege
Does mainstream feminism only speak to white, straight, able-bodied, middle class women? This panel unpicks the debate about feminism and identity politics, what it means to be a good ally and whether you can ever leave your privilege at the door. Speakers include Nan Sloane, director of the Centre for Women and Democracy, Reni Eddo-Lodge, writer and contributing editor at Feminist Times and Eleanor Lisney of Sisters of Frida and Mercia McMahon. Chaired by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown.
At WOW Festival 2014: Austerity – Who Benefits?
Why are cuts and austerity politics still disproportionately affecting women? Leading anti-cuts campaigners including Rosie Rogers from UK Uncut, poet, artist and activist Zita Holbourne and Eleanor Lisney from Sisters of Frida lay out today’s cuts landscape and consider what challenges the next round of cuts will bring. Chaired by Guardian journalist Kira Cochrane.
Photos : WOW Party at the Royal Festival Hall, South Bank
Charlotte Gage: speech at WOW party!
Thanks to Sisters of Frida for asking me to speak but really I want to thank them for their involvement in the reporting process for the examination of the UK Government under the International Bill of Rights for Women (CEDAW) last year.
It was really important to have Sisters of Frida involved from the beginning as part of the working group for the report that went to the UN Committee and to ensure that the issues facing disabled women in the UK were included in this. As well as a specific appendix on disabled women, which I hope will also be used for the International Disability Convention which the UK Government is being examined under this year.
It was also really important to have Eleanor and Eleanor from Sisters of Frida at the examination in Geneva last July lobbying the Committee on disabled women’s issues and being a part of the UK delegation. And the results of this work (report written by Armineh Soorenian) can be seen in the recommendations made by the UN Committee to the UK Government which include specific references to disabled women in terms of disabled women’s representation in decision-making, access to employment and access to healthcare, particularly prenatal and reproductive health services.
So it is really great to be able to celebrate with Sisters of Frida tonight and to look forward to more important work ensuring that disabled women’s rights are realised!
Zara Todd on International Women’s Day
Sometimes it is only with space and time to reflect that you realise what an effect Individuals can have in your life. Yes, you can acknowledge actions which are helpful, but sometimes it’s just knowing the person and seeing them conduct themselves that can have the biggest impact of all.
While this is not ground-breaking it is a realisation I have only come to recently while I was talking to a friend of mine about our identity as young disabled women. I am proud of all facets of my identity, but particularly of being both disabled and a woman, however this hasn’t always been the case. I remember at university finding it very difficult to identify with women’s movements and feminist movements because they didn’t seem to include me or my experience. For example discussions about pro-choice and objectification are important to all women but when you are struggling to be acknowledged as something other than asexual or as somebody can have children it can sometimes feel like the women’s movement has moved past you and your experience.
Equally the disability movement has a tendency to make disability issues and campaigning gender neutral even if they’re not. There is rarely discussion about how gender identity affects the experience of disability and impairment.
I have found my own way to explore my identity so that I am comfortable with who I am. During the conversation with my friend I realised that some of the biggest influencers on who I am today are the disabled women I met in my late teens and early 20s.
Two of these women particularly stand out for me and for very different reasons
Jackie Christy James I met at 17 and she really started my own personal revolution it’s through conversations with her that I began to get my head around the social model of disability. Jackie’s enthusiasm and passion for disabled people rights movement could motivate
Rowen Jade was a force of nature who showed me what being independent really means. She was one of the most independent women I have ever met despite being able to do physically very little for herself. She taught me many things but it was her ownership of her identity that sticks with me.
What’s interesting is I can’t remember having a conversation with either of these women about our identities as disabled women. In both cases they impacted on my understanding of my identity because they were empowered active women who were getting on with life challenging perceptions just by being themselves.
Eleanor Lisney : Intersectionality and disability
‘Nothing about us without us’ – how often do we declare and hear that as disabled people? I ve certainly carried placards and shouted the slogan on protests but tonight I want to turn it on its head. Disability intersects class, gender, ethnicity, race, religion, age, and sexual orientation – but are they always represented in the disability movement? I was told by a fellow activist that she was asked why Sisters of Frida is needed because she feels discriminated as a disabled person but not for her gender. And my response was that she obviously came from a position of privilege – yes she is white, middle class and in a salaried job and unionised. And I assume she never had the experience of feeling trapped in an abusive relationship unable to leave because she was financially dependent and that refuges meant for women escaping from domestic violence were seldom accessible or supported for disabled women. Women’s Aid outlines particular ways in which disabled women are vulnerable to physical, sexual, psychological and financial abuse – and makes the point that “Getting away from abuse is often harder for disabled women because access to help and support is often controlled by the abuser.”
Racism is embedded in the system and people who have never encountered it can never understand how insidious it can be. And they, yes, even friends, make assumptions and can say things like tokenism when you insist on representation and be condescending about your culture to an extent where it is too hurtful for that friendship to be sustainable. But most of all, the real invisibles and voiceless are those women who have no recourse to legal services – for example, those whose identity documents are held by the abusers so that their residence rights cannot be proven. And how often do we hear about the ones incarcerated in residential homes/ institutionalised which put them at more risk to be exploited and abused, hidden from view.
Disabled women who are discriminated against – from feminist communities, LGBT, faith communities because they insist on congregating in non accessible venues. And the segregation is also from the disabled people’s communities because they do not understand nor interested in other identities. Where do disabled women go to discuss about the roles of being disabled lovers, mothers if they were given the opportunity of being girlfriend, wife or mother. And there are those whose sexuality were being denied or even sterilised (often presumed to be for their own good). And who knows how to support them when they are raped? A report by Professor Betsy Stanko, stated that the ‘rape of vulnerable women, especially those with learning difficulties, has effectively been “decriminalised”.
I guess I am speaking about the need for intersectionality also when we talk about disability – that we have more than one identity and we ought to acknowledge that – and that we should acknowledge we need a space for disabled women as disabled women, we need to listen to the different identities. And feminism needs to accommodate intersectionality too – speaking as a disabled woman of colour when I can be the only non white disabled at the table I feel a double disconnect. I m sure some of you here know what I m saying where you stop wanting to engage as a form of self protection.
Harriet Tubman, a disabled American bondwoman who escaped from slavery in the South to become a leading abolitionist before the American Civil War, said ‘If I could have convinced more slaves that they were slaves, I could have freed thousands more’. I think we ought to insist on being intersectional and free people from being locked into labels so that we can build a more inclusive society.
