In the decades following the collapse of state socialism at the end of 1980s, disabled people in Central and Eastern Europe endured economic marginalisation, cultural devaluation and political disempowerment. Some of the mechanisms producing these injustices were inherited from state socialism, while others emerged with postsocialist neoliberalisation.
State socialism promised social security guaranteed by the public, and postsocialist neoliberalisation promised independent living underpinned by the market. This book argues that both promises failed as far as disabled people were concerned, drawing on a wide range of scholarly reports and analyses, policy documents, legislation, and historical accounts, as well as on disability studies and social justice theory. Besides differences, the book also illuminates continuities between state socialism and postsocialist capitalism, providing on this basis a more general and historically grounded critique of contemporary neoliberalisation and its impact on individual and collective life.
The book will appeal to anyone interested in disability studies and postsocialism, as well as social policy, social movements and critical theory. It will also be of interest to professionals involved in disability-related service provision, as well as to disability activists and policy makers.
Preface
Introduction. Key Terms
Disability
State socialism
Neoliberalism
Postsocialism
Social justice
References
Chapter 1. Disability and Maldistribution
1.1 State socialist legacy
Sheltered workshops
Residential institutions
1.2 Postsocialist neoliberalisation
Retrenchment of public support
Workfare
References
Chapter 2. Disability and Misrecognition
2.1 State socialist legacy
2.2 Postsocialist neoliberalisation
Stigmatisation of public assistance
Overvaluation of self-sufficiency and responsibilisation
References
Chapter 3. Disability and Misrepresentation
3.1 State socialist legacy
3.2 Postsocialist neoliberalisation
Depoliticisation through service provision
Tokenistic participation
References
Conclusion. Postsocialist Disability Matrix
4.1 The question of agency
Advocacy for the right to work
Advocacy for user-led personal assistance
4.2 Concluding remarks
References
Index
Biography
Teodor Mladenov is currently Marie Curie Individual Fellow at the European Network on Independent Living, and was formerly Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the Centre for Public Policy Research, King’s College London. He is author of Critical Theory and Disability: A Phenomenological Approach (2015, Bloomsbury). In the period 2000–2009, Teodor was actively involved in disabled people’s advocacy for equality and emancipation in Bulgaria.