An article asks a question worth asking: “Why do we marginalize and Other people whose bodies do not meet the societal criteria of normalcy” (Dossa, 2005, p. 2). Maybe it’s because people feel superior towards them because the “others” are to be considered “pitiful”, maybe because the “others” live in “our world”, meaning we are the ones who are socially dominant (we, as in society and the government). And the fact that the socially dominant sticks together only provides more intimidation and more reason for others to feel impotent; “hierarchies provide a self-perpetuating dynamic that allows the dominated to console themselves through a comparison with yet more degraded people” (Mullaly, 2007, p. 279).
No matter how much we say “Canada is a mosaic” or “Canada is about acceptance”, there are people dwelling in Canada who would not agree with that statement. There are people who are branded into minorities that do not feel a sense of belonging. Mehrun, a Muslim immigrant, exemplified this common opinion amongst immigrants and refugees in an article based on her struggles as a disabled woman immigrating to Canada. Although Mehrun was fortunate enough to be allowed to live in Canada with a disability (unlike other cases), she did not feel like she was being acknowledged and the struggles she went through devastated her ideal perspective on Canada. The Canadian Immigrant Policy does not permit entry of the disabled applicants, especially if they are female (Dossa, 2005, pg. 3). Having this sort of regulation not only causes oppression but it allows the feeling of not being “part of the multicultural and gendered landscape of Canadian Society” (Dossa, 2005, p. 3). This ridiculous notion that they come to Canada with a persons with a disability because of free health care is a generalization. Yes, maybe a few people do have that specific agenda, but not all. According to a different case, Abdelkader belaouni, an Algerian immigrant who is blind, was order by Citizenship and Immigration Canada to be deported back to an unstable Algeria, where his safety will be jeopardized. I find this decision completely unnecessary because the life of a person is in danger.
Also, a major conflict arising within both immigrants and persons with disability is the acquisition of resources. The notion of “deserving ‘clients’ and the undeserving others” (Dossa, 2005, p. 4) poses as a significant obstacle, especially if you are a refugee or racialized, and disabled. As noted there is importance in knowing the ranking of the disabled; disabled men attain higher status than females and disabled white women have greater supremacy and status than racialized women (Dossa, 2005, p. 2). If a disabled immigrant falls into the category of undeserving others, accessibility obtained is very few; therefore there is a limit to how comfortable your life will be.
- Kristal
Dossa, P. (2005). Racialized bodies, disabling worlds “they [service providers always saw me as a client, not as a social worker”. Social Science & Medicine, 60(11), Retrieved from <http://www.sciencedirect.com.proxy1.lib.umanitoba.ca/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6VBF-4F6MD89-1-1&_cdi=5925&_user=1068138&_pii=S0277953604005611&_origin=search&_coverDate=06%2F30%2F2005&_sk=999399988&view=c&wchp=dGLbVlW-zSkzV&md5=738ed859f1fb4e4ce73bc5b66038aaaa&ie=/sdarticle.pdf>
Mullaly, B. (2007). The New Structural Social Work (3rd ed.). Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press Canada.
Christoff. S. (2008, January 17). Two years and counting…. Retrieved from <http://www.hour.ca/news/news.aspx?iIDArticle=13828>
People need to step away from their comfort zone and realize, not everyone is this same, and we must take the opportunity to learn from unique individuals. So many people are being turned away from Canada because they’ve got a disability, it’s sad, because we are turning away people who are the most vulnerable, and in need of assistance. I enjoyed this post, good work Kristal.
ReplyDelete-Rocco Scarcella
It is very sad to hear that Canada hardly lets immigrants into the country if they are disabled. I suppose they might want people who can work, and not people that will be on assisted living or "taking advantage" of the medical system. This is no excuse for not allowing everyone to have the quality of life we have here. Not all countries are as lucky as us when it comes to our free health care, freedom of speech, and human rights. It is the least we can do to allow the people who come from war-torn countries, or countries where they have no freedom what-so-ever, to live in our country.
ReplyDelete- Amanda P.
It took me a moment to realize what the quote "we marginalize and Other people whose bodies do not meet the social criteria of normalcy" meant when I first started reading your post. When I continued to read, I realized that the word "other" was used in the form of a verb, which i found to be very interesting and effective. Your reflection which highlights the fact that we often see the world as 'us, the people' and 'them, the other people who are disabled' is a very accurate picture of how we "other" people. The idea of looking at 'us, the whole' in 'our (everyone's)world' would be a big step towards decreasing discrimination and "othering" people. This is a great post which really highlights the struggles of people who are facing intersecting oppression.
ReplyDelete-Crystal M.