Problem
In Brilliant Imperfection, Eli Clare, quoting actor Christopher Reeve, writes "[Reeve's] claims that 'the most disabling thing about being disabled is a feeling of hopelessness.' He means despair about his ongoing paralysis, not the ableist violence, isolation, poverty, and lack of education and employment faced by many disabled people" (11)
• How do you understand Clare's criticism of the typical rhetoric/narratives around disability? In other words, if not "hopelessness," what does Clare actually think is the most "disabling" thing about disability?
• How might "declaring disability a matter of social justice" (12-13) help us to approach a more ethical version of care (as opposed to "cure")?