Thursday, November 1, 2012

Unmutably yours

Cindy Funkhouser writes Unmutably yours on Autistic Renaissance



My feminist theories of literature class this year propelled my discovery of Muted Group Theory, which is discussed here on Wikipedia. The idea is that dominant groups identify and mute nondominant groups to maintain power over them. What really interests me is how it’s taboo even to discuss our membership in a marginalized group, especially as disabled people, and how people will attempt to mute us when we do speak.
People appear to mute nondominant groups almost instinctively. For instance, when I say I’m Autistic, people who don’t know me will insist that I am not Autistic because I speak. When I try to clarify my identity as a disabled person, I find I am breaking a taboo.

This is only a small part of her piece; Read More Here

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