International Relations

C05(c) - Political Representation, Inclusion and Participation in Local, National and Transnational Activities: Learning from Women with Disabilities

Date: Jun 12 | Time: 03:30pm to 05:00pm | Location: Room #109, 469 rue Jean Talon Ouest, Montréal. Hybrid session/session hybride (see Zoom details below/voir détails Zoom ci-dessous)

Chair/Président/Présidente : Karen Soldatic (Toronto Metropolitan University)

Discussant/Commentateur/Commentatrice : Kirsten Van Houten (University of Guelph)

Zoom Meeting Link | Meeting ID : 964 2166 7336

Representing Women and Girls with Disabilities in United Nations Arenas: Dominique Masson (University of Ottawa), Clothilde Parent-Chartier (University of Ottawa)
Abstract: The yearly meetings of the Conference of State Parties (COSP) of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) are the UN arenas where speakers from organizations centering women and girls with disabilities are most likely to participate on the international stage, and where their issues are the most visible to an international audience. Based on data collected at the 2021 and 2022 meetings of the COSP and UN-CSW, held online during the Covid-19 pandemic, this paper aims at documenting and analyzing the representation of the diversity of women and girls with disabilities in these setting. What is the variety of political actors involved in speaking on behalf of, for, and about women and girls with disabilities in the spaces offered by these meetings? How has the balance between different categories of actors changed over time? Which intersectional differences are taken up as the basis for self-representation by civil society actors representing women and girls with disabilities? What can we say about the place of “voices from the South” in these events and the effects of global inequalities on who represents? This paper also inquires into the factors that orchestrate the representation of women and girls with disabilities in these arenas, from imposed yearly themes to the role of organizers in the selection of panel topics and speakers, and to the barriers placed on who can organize and who can participate, which all structure who gets to speak in these venues and, conversely, who does not. Finally, the paper comments on the possibilities and limits of the representation of women and girls with disabilities in these two settings.

From Global Norms to Local Action: Implementing the Intersectoral Global Action Plan (IGAP) in South Africa: Sharlene Cassel (Epilepsy South Africa and Chair, South African Disability Alliance)
Abstract: This paper explores the localisation of the international norms embedded in the IGAP, adopted at the World Health Assembly in May 2022, in the South African context. The IGAP seeks to support the recovery, well-being and participation of people living with neurological conditions through interdisciplinary and intersectoral approaches. In South Africa, the process of norm localization of the IGAP has been led by Epilepsy South Africa in collaboration with the Department of Women, Youth and People with Disabilities. Theoretically, we utilize Acharya’s postcolonial framework concerning normal localization which seeks to understand how norms – global or otherwise - are created, adopted, and adapted within specific cultural and social contexts, in a dynamic, pluralistic, and often contested manner. Drawing on documentary analysis and key participant interviews, we examine how IGAP norms have been re-prioritized, adapted, and aligned with existing government policy and programmes, as well as local conditions and expectations. We assess the extent to which they have deviated from international standards in the process, and how this affects their prospects for successful implementation.

Using a Feminist Intersectional Livelihoods Analysis to understand experiences of historically marginalized women and girls with disabilities in Canada: Deborah Stienstra (University of Guelph), Kathryn Reinders (University of Guelph)
Abstract: This paper will explore what diverse women and girls with disabilities in Canada perceive as opportunities and barriers to achieving their goals and dreams using a feminist intersectional livelihoods analysis. We examine how human rights frameworks can enhance and/or provide barriers to livelihood choices of diverse women and girls with disabilities. This research is part of the Engendering Disability Inclusive Development (EDID) partnership, a 7-year project working with diverse women and girls with disabilities for rights and justice in Haiti, South Africa, Vietnam, Canada and transnationally. This paper is based on qualitative and policy research undertaken in 2021 – 2023 in the Canada country study. The Canada country study is a collaboration between the DisAbled Women’s Network of Canada (DAWN Canada), the Canadian Council on Rehabilitation and Work (CCRW), Realize, Indigenous Disability Canada, and researchers from the University of Guelph. In the qualitative research we asked diverse women and girls with disabilities about the supportive and hindering factors that shape their paths to livelihoods. In our policy analysis and key informant interview we considered how legislative, jurisdictional and human rights frameworks facilitate and/or limit paths to livelihoods for diverse women and girls with disabilities. The data gathered and key themes are developed using a feminist intersectional livelihoods approach. Livelihoods are the means through which life necessities are ensured, and they shape how individuals, families, and communities live. A livelihoods approach brings into view the forces that influence the options people perceive to have and the choices they make. A feminist intersectional approach allows us to focus our gaze on the experiences of diverse women and girls with disabilities recognizing that their lives are shaped by multiple and interconnected social experiences of gender, disability, race, Indigenousness, class, and sexuality as well as ableism, racism and colonialism among others.