Stina Melander
Senior Lecturer
The Personal is Political – And Then What? Ideology, Representation, and Legitimacy in a Swedish Disability Organisation
Author
Summary, in English
Background: Who can or cannot claim to represent other members within the disability rights movement has been discussed for decades, mainly concerning being disabled as an eligibility prerequisite. Aim(s): The aim is to analyse arguments concerning representational claims within a Swedish disability rights organisation (DHR, Disability Human Rights). Method: Every member of DHR was given the opportunity to answer three open-ended questions. Answers were subjected to a qualitative content analysis. Results: Two main dimensions of arguments were found. The ideological dimension legitimises representation through lived experience or a human rights approach. The pragmatic dimension legitimises representation through relational claims or organisational necessities. Further analysis revealed a paradox: When a representative is required to have a body with certain characteristics, other knowledge-related aspects risk devaluation. Conclusion(s): Paradoxically, the organisation has a goal of rendering impairment irrelevant in society, while rendering impairment a main issue when electing representatives.
Department/s
- Department of Political Science
- Civil Society and Social Movements
- School of Social Work
Publishing year
2023-06-21
Language
English
Pages
198-211
Publication/Series
Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research
Volume
25
Issue
1
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Topic
- Social Sciences Interdisciplinary
- Social Work
- Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalization Studies)
Keywords
- Disability rights organisation
- elected representative
- representation
- Sweden
Status
Published
Project
- Representation in the digital era: Democratic consequences of changing engagement in the Swedish disability movement
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1501-7419