Disabled Clients Are Fellow Citizens? Essay -- essays research papers

Disabled clients be fellow citizens?Developments in the Disabled Peoples Movement have brought disability to the fore as a civilised rights issue in Britain. Growing numbers of politically active disabled people have generated an aw arness of how their rights as citizens are denied by discrimination and oppression. issue of this has emerged the concept of independent living. A philosophy encompassing the full range of human and civil rights necessary for disabled people to be equal members of society. Underpinning this are four key beliefs     that all human life is of value     that anyone, whatever their impairment, is capable of exerting choices      that people who are disabled by societys reaction to physical, intellectual and sensorial impairment and to emotional distress have the right to exert control over their lives     that disabled people have the right to participate fully in society (Mo rris, 199321)The focus of this essay is the potential conflict between this philosophy and the policies and practices of social practise. In particular, contrasting interpretations of the client/social work relationship result be examined with regard to their capacity to foster these ideals. There is ample evidence that disabled people are poorly housed, less well educated and chiefly receive less in the way of life-enhancing opportunities when compared to their non-impaired peers (Finklestein (1991). For example, they are four times as likely as non-impaired people to be unemployed, while those who do work receive wages on average 20% lower (RADAR, 1994). Most disabled people, therefore, rely on benefits. Furthermore, those benefits fail to allow for the extra expenses incurred as a result of disability (Cohen, 1996 Thompson, 1996).     Thus it is poverty and poor quality of life resulting from discrimination which creates the need for social work interventio n. Becoming a client, Davies (1981) suggests, is seen as a sign of having given up and as a mark not only of failure but of shame (p. 35). This not only further marginalises disabled people from mainstream society, i.e. separates those who are "clients" from those who are not. It also, according to Barton (1993), maintains a..     Cul... ...nd peach, H (eds) (1989)"Disablement in The Community" Oxford University, Oxford.Payne, M (1991)"Modern Social Work Theory A Critical Introduction" Macmillan, London.Smalley, R (1970)"The Functional Approach To Casework Practice" in Roberts, R., and Nee, R (eds) (1970)"Theories of Social Casework" University of Chicago Press, London.Thompson, N (1993)"Anti-Discriminatory Practice" Macmillan, London.Journals.Barton, L (1993)"The Struggle For CitizenshipThe Case of Disabled People" in baulk, Handicap and Society, Vol. 8(3), p 235-248.Cohen, R (1996)"The Poverty Trap&q uot in Community Care, p 26-27, 1-7 dire.George, M (1996)"Figure it Out" in Community Care, pullout feature, August 1-7.Morris, J (1996)"Where to Now?" in Community Care, p 25, Sept 26-Oct 2.Oliver, M (1989a) Book Review of Hunter (1988) in Disability, Handicap and Society, Vol. 4(1).Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation (1994)"Unemployment" in Donellan, C (ed) (1994).Thompson, A (1996)"The Fight For Rights" in Community Care, P 14-15, 18-24 July.