Humanities & Social Sciences

Critical theory and Independent Living

by Teodor Mladenov

Description

Critical theory and Independent Living explores intersections between contemporary critical theory and disabled people's struggle for self-determination. The book highlights the affinities between the Independent Living movement and studies of epistemic injustice, biopower, and psychopower. It discusses in depth the activists' critical engagement with welfare-state paternalism, neoliberal marketisation, and familialism. This helps develop a pioneering comparison between various welfare regimes grounded in Independent Living advocacy. The book draws on the activism of disabled people from the European Network on Independent Living (ENIL) by developing case studies of the ENIL's campaigning for deinstitutionalisation and personal assistance. It is argued that this work helps rethink independence as a form of interdependence, and that this reframing is pivotal for critical theorising in the twenty-first century.

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Reviews

Critical Theory and Independent Living explores intersections between contemporary critical theory and disabled people's struggle for self-determination. The book sheds new light on the Independent Living movement - an influential yet undertheorised and misrepresented new social movement. The analysis highlights the affinities between the insights of Independent Living advocates and prominent studies of epistemic injustice, biopower, and psychopower. This helps uncover the contributions of Independent Living activism to contemporary critical theorising. Specifically, the book explores the engagement of Independent Living thinking and practice with critiques of welfare-state paternalism, neoliberal marketisation, and familialism. Thus, it develops a comprehensive assessment of the three organising principles of social welfare - the state, the market, and the family - in view of their impact on disabled people's self-determination. On this basis, the analysis highlights the successes and failures of the Independent Living movement in various welfare regimes - liberal, social-democratic, conservative, and post/socialist. The result is a pioneering cross-regime comparison grounded in Independent Living activism. Critical Theory and Independent Living substantiates its analyses by drawing on the work of the European Network on Independent Living (ENIL) - a Europe-wide advocacy organisation led and controlled by disabled people since its founding in 1989. Case studies of ENIL's struggles for epistemic justice, campaigning for deinstitutionalisation, and advocacy for personal assistance evidence the critical-theoretical contributions of Independent Living. It is argued that these efforts help rethink independence as a form of interdependence - a reframing that is pivotal for critical theorising in contemporary society.

Author Biography

Teodor Mladenov is a Senior Lecturer in Social Work at the University of Dundee.

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Bibliographic Information

  • Publisher Manchester University Press
  • Publication Date December 2024
  • Orginal LanguageEnglish
  • ISBN/Identifier 9781526175151 / 1526175150
  • Publication Country or regionUnited Kingdom
  • FormatPrint PDF
  • Pages216
  • ReadershipCollege/higher education; Professional and scholarly
  • Publish StatusPublished
  • Dimensions234 X 156 mm
  • Biblio NotesDerived from Proprietary 5972
  • SeriesCritical Theory and Contemporary Society
  • Reference Code15892

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