Introduction: Exploring the Opportunities and Challenges of Alliances and Allyship in the Lives of People with Disabilities

Carey, Allison C.; Fannon, Tara; Ostrove, Joan M.

doi:10.1108/s1479-354720200000012002

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…This paucity of allyship experience is also reflected by a general lack of discussion of disability allyship in both scholarly literature and mainstream culture, though it is encouraging that this focus is growing more recently, especially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and concurrent social justice protests. Disabled scholars have addressed how being an ally, accomplice, or co-conspirator might be enacted, within film studies, disability studies, and more recently, in rehabilitation, through actions such as ensuring physically and sensorily accessible experiences and built environments, recruiting disabled students and hiring disabled faculty or clinical staff, and ensuring representation of actual disabled people in media while simultaneously avoiding pity or inspiration narratives ( 26 , 27 , 29 , 31 , 33 , 66 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The process of allyship, as a series of actions to recognize and mitigate discriminatory practices, has been touted as a direct means of challenging, or subverting ableism. While terms are still contested within the disability justice space (i.e., ally vs. accomplice), disability scholars have described allyship as the amplification of disabled voices and experiences in all aspects of society, meaningful engagement within disability communities in solidarity, engaging in inclusive practices, rejecting performative allyship, rejecting harmful disability narratives, becoming educated about disability oppression, and leveraging privileged positionalities to call out ableism and injustice and produce actionable change (25)(26)(27)(28). Scholars in rehabilitation have contributed as well, describing how rehabilitation professionals can practice allyship with disability communities by playing a supporting role in their clients' disability identity journey, educating themselves about intersectionality, honoring preferred language, and engaging in advocacy outside clinical settings (29-33).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Infusing disability equity within rehabilitation education and practice: A qualitative study of lived experiences of ableism, allyship, and healthcare partnership

Feldner¹,

Evans²,

Chamblin³

et al. 2022

Front. Rehabilit. Sci.

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BackgroundAddressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has become central in implementing inclusive and socially responsible rehabilitation education and clinical practice. Yet, the constructs of disability and d/Deaf identity and culture, as well as ableism and allyship are often overlooked. Or, these concepts are approached using outdated philosophical perspectives that pathologize disability and fail to prioritize the lived experiences, expertise, intersectionality, and self-identified needs of people with disabilities. A Critical Disability Studies (CDS) framework may provide a background for better understanding and responding to these issues through allyship.PurposeThis study employed a CDS framework to understand the lived experiences of ableism and allyship from faculty, staff, and students on University of Washington (UW) campuses who identify as d/Deaf, disabled/with a disability, or as having a chronic health condition.MethodsDuring 2020–2021, we conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews and focus groups with 22 diverse undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff with disabilities, one third who also identified as people of color. Encounters were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and coded using constant comparison until themes emerged.ResultsFour major themes that emerged from the data are: (1) Ever-present ableism in healthcare, (2) Ableism at the intersections, (3) COVID: Surfacing ableism and expanding access, and (4) Disability allyship and healthcare partnership building. Experiences of ableism and allyship were identified at individual, group/unit, and institutional/systemic levels, though participants reported significantly fewer instances of allyship compared to experiences of ableism. Participants identified intersections between disability and other marginalized identities and juxtaposed the benefits of widespread adoption of many access-increasing practices and technologies due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while also highlighting ways in which the pandemic created new obstacles to inclusion.ConclusionsThis analysis provides insights into ways of implementing inclusive practices in rehabilitation education, practice, and beyond. Rehabilitation students, faculty, and staff may not be aware of how ableism affects their disabled peers or underpins their professional education. It is important to cultivate opportunities within professional education and clinical training to explicitly address our collective role in creating inclusive and accessible academic and healthcare experiences for our diverse community post COVID-19. Drawing on a CDS framework, the research team devised the mnemonic TRAC, which includes Training, Recognition and Representation, Attendance and Action, and Calling to account as strategic guidelines for operationalizing such opportunities.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Infusing disability equity within rehabilitation education and practice: A qualitative study of lived experiences of ableism, allyship, and healthcare partnership

Feldner¹,

Evans²,

Chamblin³

et al. 2022

Front. Rehabilit. Sci.

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“…There is performative allyship, which is seen as a problematic form of allyship [5][6][7], and authentic allyship [26][27][28]. It is noted that there is the danger of allies being gatekeepers [8,9], that one can be an ally and oppressor [10][11][12][13][14][15]57], and that the very concept of allyship is contested [58]. Results of allyship are categorized as superficial or systemchanging [59].…”

Section: Allyship and Alliesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coverage of Allies, Allyship and Disabled People: A Scoping Review

Wolbring,

Lillywhite

2023

Societies

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Disabled people face many problems in their lived reality, as evidenced by the content of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Disabled people are constantly engaged in activism to decrease their problems. However, disabled people cannot do all the work by themselves and need allies (who can be so-called non-disabled people or disabled people of a different background to other disabled people) given the many barriers disabled people face in being activists, given the precarious lived reality of many, and given the many problems in need of solving. At the same time, the expectations linked to being an authentic ally of disabled people pose many challenges and stressors and a danger of burnout for the ally. Therefore, the aim of this study was to better understand the academic coverage of allyship and allies in relation to disabled people in general, and specifically the coverage of challenges, stressors, and danger of burnout for allies of disabled people. To fulfill this aim, we performed a scoping review of academic abstracts and full texts employing SCOPUS, the seventy databases of the EBSCO-HOST and the Web of Science. Of the 577 abstracts, covering allies and allyship in relation to disabled people that were downloaded, 306 were false positives. Of the 271 relevant ones, the content of six abstracts suggested a deeper coverage of allyship/allies in the full texts. Within the full texts, two mentioned ally burnout and four mentioned challenges faced by allies. Among the 271 abstracts, 86 abstracts mentioned allies without indicating who the allies were, 111 abstracts mentioned specific allies with technology as an ally being mentioned second highest. Sixty-three abstracts covered specific topics of activism for allies. Furthermore, although searching abstracts for equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) related phrases, terms, and policy frameworks generated sixty-three abstracts, only three abstracts mentioned disabled people. Abstracts containing science and technology governance or technology focused ethics fields terms did not generate any hits with the terms ally or allies or allyship. Searching abstracts and full texts, phrases containing ally or allies or allyship and burnout had 0 hits, ally terms with stress* generated four hits and phrases containing anti-ableism, or anti disablism, anti-disableist, anti-disablist, anti-ablist, or anti-ableist with ally terms had 0 hits. Our findings show many gaps in the coverage of allies and allyship in relation to disabled people especially around the barriers, stressors, and burnout that authentic allies of disabled people can face. These gaps should be filled given that disabled people need allies and that there are many challenges for being an authentic disabled or non-disabled ally of disabled people.

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Introduction: Exploring the Opportunities and Challenges of Alliances and Allyship in the Lives of People with Disabilities

Cited by 2 publications

References 26 publications

Infusing disability equity within rehabilitation education and practice: A qualitative study of lived experiences of ableism, allyship, and healthcare partnership

Infusing disability equity within rehabilitation education and practice: A qualitative study of lived experiences of ableism, allyship, and healthcare partnership

Coverage of Allies, Allyship and Disabled People: A Scoping Review

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