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Nothing About Us Without Us: disability oppression and empowerment JAMES J. CHARLTON, 1998 Berkeley, University of California Press 197 pp., L19.95. ISBN 0-520-2079
I first spotted this book sat on a colleague's desk across the office. The bold title told me in no uncertain terms that it was written by a disabled person, who positively identifies and is politically motivated-an activist, someone who understands the power and passion of words like 'oppression' and 'empowerment'. I had high hopes and expectations.
Dipping into the first few pages I was optimistic. I thought I was about to read a book which would help me develop my thinking, that was uncompromising in the way that it presented disabled people's reality and written in a style accessible to activists; a book which gathered up our stories of resistance from across the world and brought them successfully together as a testimony and celebration of our struggle thus far. What follows are some of my thoughts about how far these expectations were met.
This book is a polemic, interspersed with anecdotes from disabled activists across the world. Charlton argues for a universal theory of `disability oppression' and offers this text as contribution to the debate.
Hopes of a text which is readable by both activists and academics alike quickly have to be revised. Written in a traditional academic style, long words, dense text, small print and sentences that will leave the reader reaching for dictionaries do not make it an attractive read. Having said that, it is also a book which is written from one activist to another which makes it very refreshing. It is clearly rooted within the movement and uses the language of the activist-empowerment, consciousness, oppression and struggle.
The book is organised in to four parts: Introduction, Disability oppression and everyday life, Empowerment and Organisation, and the Conclusion.
In Part 1 Charlton sets out his values and principles, the methodology, the motivation and rationale for the book. Included is an overview of the world system-the economic, social and political climate. Charlton explains and explores terms like `third world' and considers the implications of capitalism for the worlds population of disabled people. I found this an invaluable introduction to world politics and the rest of the book.
The book...