Thank you for this, Maeve. I found this well worth reading and mulling over, and hope others do as well. -------------------------------------------------- Alison Reiheld Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy College of Arts and Sciences SIU-Edwardsville [log in to unmask] -------------------------------------------------- Quoting "O'Donovan, Maeve" <[log in to unmask]>: > Hello everyone, > > I write as one of the signers of the petition, and as a disabled philosopher > who is disturbed by the responses to the petition from those who are critical > of it. I think there is something being asked for in the petition that is not > being understood, and I am surprised by the tone and content of the > criticisms of the petition. > > What is being asked for: > > As has been pointed out by others, the petition calls attention to the > difference between an environment that accommodates disabilities and one that > is accessible in nature, and it asks that the APA and the profession make a > move from being the former to being the latter. Much of the criticism of the > petition rests on claims that accommodations are made, but this is not what > the petition is asking for from its addressees. I venture a guess that the > majority of the people involved in discussing this petition, including those > without disabilities, know that it's far better to be given equal treatment > (accessible environments) than to have to ask for it (accommodations). Also, > the petition explains that the absence of an accessible environment at APA > events contributes to an overall hostility met by many persons with > disabilities in the field. The existence of the petition itself, as well the > many posts on the Disabled Philosophers blog (and to confidential listservs > to which I hope a member of the committee has access) are evidence of the > fact that there are many persons in our field who are living with > disabilities and who are meeting great obstacles in their careers as a result > of a lack of accessibility and, in some cases, as a direct result of asking > for accommodations. So whatever is being done in our field and by the APA, > for philosophers with disabilities, it is clearly not enough and we, the > signers, are asking for more. > > Tone and content of criticisms: > > Shelly Tremain is an accomplished philosopher who is a trailblazer, and she > began this petition. Many more of us have signed it. I am not alone in > experiencing the criticisms of our petition--criticisms that claim that > petitions aren't helpful or that a lack of concrete demands somehow > diminishes this particular petition--as disingenuous. They sound too much > like what we heard when we were demanding that attention be paid to the lack > of gender and racial diversity in the profession, demands that resulted in > the forming of the very task force that is now critical of the petition > signed by many disabled philosophers and their allies. For those who want > specific grievances to be made public, they already are. They are posted on > the Disabled Philosophers blog on a regular basis. > > To further this conversation, here is my concrete recommendation: I recommend > that members of the Committee on Inclusion and Diversity read or re-read all > of the posts on the Disabled Philosophers blog and, if granted permission, be > given access to the posts on confidential listservs for philosophers with > disabilities, then devote a meeting to discussing the significance of these > postings for the work of the committee ("to identify problems faced by the > discipline in advancing inclusion and equitable treatment of historically > underrepresented groups at all levels of philosophical pursuit, and to > suggest policies that can effectively address these problems" > http://www.apaonline.org/news/153559/Announcing-the-APA-Task-Force-on-Diversity-and-Inclusion.htm). > > On a final note, it shouldn't be ignored that the members of the Task Force > on Inclusion and Diversity include tenured, full professors while many of the > philosophers with disabilities who post their experiences are students and > those searching for tenure-track jobs. It is a great thing that there are now > feminist philosophers in positions of power in our discipline, including > President of the Eastern Division of the APA; this doesn't mean our > profession is no longer deserving of criticism when it comes to the needs of > those on its margins. There are now many who hold positions of power to do > something concrete and positive in response to this petition, and I look > forward to seeing that happen. > > Maeve > > Maeve M. O'Donovan, Ph.D. > Associate Professor and Chair of Philosophy > School of Arts & Sciences > Notre Dame of Maryland University > 4701 N. Charles Street > Baltimore, MD 21210 > 410-532-5129 > [log in to unmask] > > www.pickeringchatto.com/raceandgender > > ############################ > > To unsubscribe from the FEAST-L list: > write to: mailto:[log in to unmask] > or click the following link: > https://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=FEAST-L&A=1 > ------------------------------------------------- SIUE Web Mail ############################ To unsubscribe from the FEAST-L list: write to: mailto:[log in to unmask] or click the following link: https://listserv.jmu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=FEAST-L&A=1