Disability, race/ethnicity and gender: themes of cultural oppression, acts of individual resistance

Abstract

Community psychologists have called for research on human diversity and interactions between individuals and society with a focus on oppression. This study examines learning disabilities as they co-occur with other sociopolitical minority statuses. We examined dominant cultural narratives of and individual responses to learning disability, race/ethnicity and gender identified by low-income men and women of color with learning disabilities. Our qualitative analysis identified cultural narratives that suggest that: (1a) individuals with learning disabilities are perceived as having an illegitimate impairment and being of lower intellectual ability and unworthy; (1b) having an invisible disability facilitates passing as nondisabled, thereby lessening disability discrimination from within racial/ethnic groups; (1c) having a learning disability detracts from positive gender expectations and exacerbates negative ones; and (1d) gender and racial/ethnic narratives are relevant for individuals with learning disabilities. Our analysis also identified two overarching individual acts of resistance used to thwart internalization of oppressive cultural narratives: (2a) removing self from oppressive environments and (2b) reframing dominant cultural narratives (including discounting the validity of negative messages, using negative narratives for motivation, and engaging in positive self-talk). We discuss findings in relation to extant research and theory and consider implications for research, theory, and practice.

Dominant Cultural Narratives, Racism, and Resistance in the Workplace: A Study of the Experiences of Young Black Canadians

“…Fanon (1967), for example, argued that the dominant cultural narratives reflected in European history books, comic books, and literature served to propagate myths about the inherent savagery of Blacks and superiority of Whites, and that the internalizations of such myths engendered subordinate identities and inferiority complexes within Black children. Contemporary scholarship has illustrated how dominant cultural narratives contribute to the marginalization of subordinate groups (McDonald, Keys & Balcazar, 2007) and contributes to psychological problems such as the depreciation of cultural identities, self-hatred, and low self-esteem (Sonn & Fisher, 1998).…”

“…Community psychologists have drawn on various theoretical perspectives to examine experiences and processes of resistance, such as empowerment (Christens, 2012), sociopolitical development (Watts, Williams & Jagers, 2003), and liberation (Garc ıa-Ram ırez, Manuel, Paloma & Hern andezPlaza, 2011). A small but notable body of community psychology scholarship has examined various strategies for resisting dominant cultural narratives, such as the deconstruction of social myths as a central part of critical consciousness raising (Sonn & Fisher, 2003), and the telling of counter-narratives, re-imagined narratives of the self that reject the assumptions of dominant cultural narratives, and emphasize the capacity to resist and overcome oppression (Case & Hunter, 2012;McDonald et al, 2007;Rappaport, 2000). Much of this work signals the importance of identity-focused strategies for negotiating dominant cultural narratives, and points toward a broader body of scholarship on identity work (more recently referred to as narrative identity work), which is concerned with the construction and strategic use of personal and collective identity through narrative (Case & Hunter, 2014;Ibarra & Barbulescu, 2010;Snow & Anderson, 1987).…”

“…Narratives about European racial superiority and moral imperatives to civilize the savage, sub-human Africans, were used to justify institutionalized slavery and the violence required to maintained it (Cooper, 2005). A small body of community psychology literature has examined the impacts of such narratives on contemporary race relations in the United States, and how African-Americans resist their influence (McDonald et al, 2007;Rappaport, 1998;Rappaport, 2000). Few studies, however, have examined the impacts and resistance to racist dominant cultural narratives in the Black Canadian context.…”

The Embodied Experience of a Football Championship Subdivision Student-Athlete

“…Student-athletes, especially minority football players, fight against the "dumb jock" stereotype as soon as they set foot on campus (Preacco, 2009;Watt & Moore, 2001). African American males face greater stigmas than any other racial group documented so far (McDonald, Keys, & Balcazar, 2007;Stone, Harrison, & Mottley, 2012). African American athletes believe they are negatively stereotyped by professors and classmates as "dumb jocks" (Edwards, 1984) more than Caucasian student-athletes.…”

Psicologia, Sexualidade e Deficiência: Novas Perspectivas em Direitos Humanos

“…De acordo com o artigo 1º de tal documento, pessoas com deficiência são aquelas que têm impedimentos de longo prazo de natureza física, intelectual ou sensorial, os quais, em interação com diversas barreiras, podem obstruir sua participação plena e efetiva na sociedade em igualdade de condições com as demais pessoas (Brasil, 2008) A Convenção inova em relação à visão predominante de deficiência que, ancorada no modelo biomédico, reduz a deficiência ao corpo com lesões e/ou impedimentos (Nosek & Simmons, 2007;Barnes, 2009;Diniz, Barbosa, & Santos, 2010). A partir do conceito por ela apresentado, pode-se considerar que a deficiência é articulada com os inúmeros marcadores sociais -raça, gênero, geração, classe social, entre outros -que atuam como barreiras limitadoras do processo de participação efetiva na sociedade (Petersen, 2006;McDonald, Keys, & Balcazar, 2007;Lang, 2009;Organização Mundial de Saúde, 2012;Gesser, Nuernberg, & Toneli, 2012 (McDonald et al, 2007;Maia & Ribeiro, 2010;Gesser, 2010;Organização Mundial de Saúde, 2012 (Dhungana, 2006;Nosek & Simmons, 2007;Soares et al, 2008;Sánchez, 2008;Brasil, 2009;Organização Mundial de Saúde, 2012 Outro determinante que gera dificuldades no acesso à informação refere-se à falta de preparo dos profissionais que fornecem assistência à saúde Soares et al, 2008 (Shakespeare, 1998).…”