France
Applications accepted through April 5th
French Notions of Disability and Difference
Attitudes about disabilities in France are in the midst of a major transformation, characterized by a new flourishing of interdisciplinary disability studies (whereas in the past scholars discussed disabilities in the context of various disciplines), a push toward a comprehensive policy of inclusion (as epitomized in the 2005 law in France, the European Disability Strategy, the 2015 deadline for accessibility in public buildings, and the establishing of “Maisons Départementale du Handicap”), a revived activism that challenges the limits of these policies and the breaks on their application, and a burst of attention to disabilities in popular culture (as seen in the enormously popular French movie Les Intouchables, about the close relationship between a well-to-do French tetraplegic man and his African-origin care-giver, and the renewed attention to sports events such as the Paralympics).
The new energy in disability activism and disability studies has meant re-examining such questions as the definition of psychic, cognitive and mental disabilities; the kinds of perception, communities and solidarities that arise around particular disabilities such as blindness or reduced mobility; Deafhood and the relationship of Deaf people to the notion of disability; and the role of creativity and artistic expression. The differences between the U.S. and French approaches to disabilities are extraordinarily fruitful – in a sense, it's a question of different notions of difference. This seminar seeks to make the most of this exciting moment, and to make the most of these differences, by bringing U.S. and French scholars, activists and professional people together in dialogue.