Disability and Poverty: Stories that Resist Attitudinal Barriers to Inclusion

Abstract

This ongoing project is about listening: listening to stories of impoverished disabled peoples' lived experiences of exclusion. The project embraces Emancipatory Disability Research (EDR) principles and is grounded in a human rights framework. The project objective is to understand how attitudinal barriers such as stigma and discrimination impact the (lack of) social inclusion in Canada. In-depth interviews were conducted with eight individuals who live with various conditions such as poverty, bi-polar disorder, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, diverse mobility needs, intellectual diversity, Asperger’s syndrome, etc. Stories were audio-recorded and transcribed. Qualitative thematic and content analysis incorporated all story content; derived results include key emergent themes. Results to date indicate that social inclusion is currently linked to the obstruction of individual ability (inability) to scale attitudinal barriers or ‘walls’ to full participation in Canadian society. Research participants (co-researchers) lived experiences of exclusion encapsulate stigmatization and oppression from others as well as rejection of self. This ongoing project has begun to highlight the dire need to question normative understandings of social inclusion and how those understandings of citizenship violate human relationships in Canada.