Diversity and Divisions in the Swedish Disability Movement: Disability, Gender, and Social Justice

Abstract

There is lively discussion in the social sciences about minority groups and their claims for social justice. Universalism versus difference and redistribution versus recognition are two important issues of debate. This paper takes a closer look at the social justice claims articulated by the Swedish disability movement. It discusses how questions of representation, collective identity, and needs interpretations are dealt with in a number of disability associations. One important assumption guiding our study is that the interpretations of members’ needs, how their needs can best be met, and who is to have the legitimate right to communicate their needs, are questions subject to constant debate. The aim is to demonstrate some of the complexities confronting the disability movement in its struggle for social justice. To be more specific, we set out to show two things: (i) how different kinds of justice claims are balanced by the investigated organizations; and (ii) that the demands for cultural recognition and socioeconomic redistribution are raised not only by the disability movement vis-à-vis the state, but also by groups within the disability movement vis-à-vis other groups in the movement.