3. A Child Is a Child: Disability and Equality among the Kenya Maasai

Coming to America for the good of a deaf child: The case of Joy

“…In East Africa, people frequently have beliefs that simultaneously reflect a medical understanding and a spiritual belief about disability and its causes. In some East African societies, disability is determined not through a medical diagnosis, but by one's ability to participate in society and the role that a person plays in that society (Harknett, 1996;Kisanji, 1995;Miles, 2002;Talle, 1995). At times, individuals will provide multiple explanations to help neutralize the negative beliefs about disability, such as suggesting a medical explanation in addition to the traditional belief (Ingstad, 1995).…”

“…People with physical, hearing, and visual impairments are not seen as categorically different, but simply as people with this specific impairment (Ogechi and Ruto, 2002). Among the Maasai of Kenya, people with disabilities, particularly physical disabilities, are viewed as "abnormal" only if they cannot carry out daily activities (Talle, 1995).…”

“…Published papers (Mallory, 1993;Ogechi and Ruto, 2002;Talle, 1995) explain that some people in Africa believe that disability is caused by God or is a punishment for a mistake made by a family member; however, Laura discusses a new concept, one that does not appear in the literature. Joy's family was attending a local Pentecostal church, and Laura remembered: Then there were religious people, who broughtvery Pentecostal people, who came to pray for her, lay hands on her.…”

Disability in Different Cultures

“…Many cultures lack the level of abstraction and belief in the immutability of science that characterize Western cultures (Hall 1976), which contributes to an alternative perspective of disability, the social systems, or the community perspective (Mercer 1973;Edwards 1997) where "the meaning of impairment must be understood in terms of cosmology and values and purposes of social life" (Whyte/Ingstad 1995: 10). In this context, disability has no inherent meaning but is defined by any given community's understanding of people's roles, and the degree to which one is able to fulfil the tasks of membership determines the degree of one's physical ability or disability (Edwards 1997;Talle 1995). For instance, while certain descriptors, such No-Eyes in many American Indian tribes (Locust 1988) or dhegoole for without ears in Somalia (Helander 1995), imply a set of conditions, the image intended by the term varies from usage to usage, informed by the context (Edwards 1997;Talle 1995) and is not meant to signify the individual as being a member of a category of disabled people (Chan 1986;Helander 1995;Locust 1988).…”

“…In this context, disability has no inherent meaning but is defined by any given community's understanding of people's roles, and the degree to which one is able to fulfil the tasks of membership determines the degree of one's physical ability or disability (Edwards 1997;Talle 1995). For instance, while certain descriptors, such No-Eyes in many American Indian tribes (Locust 1988) or dhegoole for without ears in Somalia (Helander 1995), imply a set of conditions, the image intended by the term varies from usage to usage, informed by the context (Edwards 1997;Talle 1995) and is not meant to signify the individual as being a member of a category of disabled people (Chan 1986;Helander 1995;Locust 1988). Further, the value attached to a specific condition varies among families, in terms of whether it is perceived as disabling and/or stigmatized.…”