The ableist conflation by Joel Reynolds Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The ableist conflation by Joel Reynolds - Essay ExampleAs many groups adjudge done, disabled people have been engaged in what Anspach calls identity politics politics that endeavor not only to change familys concept and response to disabled people, but also to change the self-concepts of disabled people themselves. The work of disabled people in changing how they think around themselves continues, as the disability community struggles for self-definition and self-determination, as well as for civil rights. One of the most important problems facing the political struggle of people with disabilities is the necessity of growth a positive sense of identity.The very idea of a positive disability identity flies in the face of long-standing social wisdom about disability. The reason for this lies in the cultural beliefs about disability that have determined the status and perceptions of disabled people in our society today. Historically, disabled people were viewed as social and moral deviants, violations of the natural and cosmic order of the universe (Reynold, J). The response to such deviance was to protect society by separating disabled people from society in asylums, jails, basements, attics, etc. Disabled people were not considered fully human, had no role in society, and no basis for a positive social identityThe theories of psychosocial identity breeding in onset disability, particularly minority identity development, provide a useful framework for exploring the concept of disability identity development as a minority culture phenomenon. Within the literature of identity development, few theorists have explicitly addressed the issue of disability, yet the models provide fertilizable ground for exploration. In contrast, an extensive body of rehabilitation literature exists that is grounded in the aesculapian view of disability that has generated research findings that support and reinforce a medical