Cringe....

Feb. 1st, 2020 09:42 pm
davidgillon: A pair of crutches, hanging from coat hooks, reflected in a mirror (Default)
I thought we were getting the message out to politicians that patting disabled people on the head is infantilising, but this clip from twitter showing Joe Biden interacting with a wheelchair user is the most egregious example of crip-stroking I've ever seen:

Text Description: A young man in a powerchair, using a communication device, and wearing a teeshirt saying "Without communication there is no freedom", approaches Joe Biden with a question on how he'll support inclusive education after identifying himself as a college student. Biden responds saying he'll fund ADA and that all his classes should be accessible (as far as I can tell he implied they were) and then tells him "You're smart, you're smart, you're smart. The disability does not define who you are. It doesn't define who you are.' while reaching in to stroke his face, adding "So proud of you. Presumptuous of me to be proud of you, but I am". Basically a masterclass in how not to respond to any disabled person.

I hadn't really noticed the repetition - too busy cringing - until I sat down to write the text description, but it's almost as infantilising as stroking his face, as though he can't believe any disabled person might be able to understand him first time.




davidgillon: A pair of crutches, hanging from coat hooks, reflected in a mirror (Default)

Gabby Giffords and the Problem with ‘Inspiration Porn’

Really good article from the Daily Beast looks at negative reactions to Gabby Gifford's anti-gun campaigning, then goes on to demonstrate how they are part of inspiration porn and how the normies really don't like disabled people who express opinions for themselves and actively need us to be Tiny Tim figures.

Be warned that if you venture below the line it has some of the most horrendous comments that I've yet seen, which of course just confirm the whole point of the article.

(For anyone who doesn't know what 'inspiration porn' is, it's objectification of disabled people to let normies feel good about themselves, things like 'The only disability in life is a bad attitude', usually smeared over a photograph of a disabled toddler as an 'inspirational poster', or when we're praised for meaningless things like getting out of bed in the morning. A friend rewords it as 'The only disability is life is a bad platitude')

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davidgillon: A pair of crutches, hanging from coat hooks, reflected in a mirror (Default)
David Gillon

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