Abstract
In this chapter I shall explore why unexamined terms such as ‘people with disabilities’ are parts of a discourse which identifies disability as a personal problem rather than as a structural issue, and why they are at odds with thinking in the disabled people’s movement. I shall consider the disability definition in the UK 2010 Equality Act and explain why this establishes in law a way of looking and thinking which makes it difficult to think about disability other than as unfortunate individual limitation. I shall consider the affirmation model, an idea that has emerged from the creative practice of the disability arts movement, which offers a way of understanding disability rooted in ideas of pride and respect. I shall conclude by reflecting on the affirmation model in the light of a number of statements made by disabled people, and draw out its implications for anti-oppressive social work practice.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | The Routledge Research Handbook on Social Work and Societies |
| Editors | Hugh McLaughlin, Barbra Teater |
| Publisher | Routledge |
| Publication status | Accepted/In press - 3 May 2024 |