Friday, June 27, 2014

Disability and Politics

picture of questionnaire check boxes with one box checked with a red checkmark
Are you a Democrat or a Republican? A Progressive Conservative, Liberal, or New Democrat? Labour, Tory, Liberal Democrat, or whatever that UKIP thingy is? Are you a liberal or conservative, or perhaps a libertarian?

If you're not sure, or if you think you could do with a bit of a check-in on your political views, take this new Pew Research Center questionnaire to find out your approximate political position, at least in relation to US politics. Be sure to note the emphasis on choosing the answers closest to your beliefs. You will probably find several questions where you like aspects of both answers.

I also recommend this Vox.com article about the Pew Center’s new report on politics in America, which, among other things, subdivides the traditional red vs. blue, liberal vs. conservative formulation into more specific viewpoints. It’s an interesting read.

Then ask yourself, "Does my disability experience have any affect on my general political views?" Or, do your political views influence how you understand disability?

Sometime in the next few days, I plan to post something about how I “scored” on the Pew questionnaire, and how that relates to my understanding of disability.

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