How to Tell When We Will Die: On Pain, Disability, and Doom

by Johanna Hedva

There are many definitions of ableism, and I’d encourage you to look them all up, especially the ones written by disabled people. One of my favorites is by Talila A. Lewis, who updates it every year as a working definition so it changes as the world and Talila’s thinking does. Here’s the 2022 definition: able·ism /'āblizәm/ noun: A system of assigning value to people’s bodies and minds based on societally constructed ideas of normalcy, productivity, desirability, intelligence, excellence, and fitness. These constructed ideas are deeply rooted in eugenics, anti-Blackness, misogyny, colonialism, imperialism, and capitalism. This systemic oppression leads to people and society determining people’s value based on their culture, age, language, appearance, religion, birth or living place, “health/wellness,” and/or their ability to satisfactorily re/produce, “excel,” and “behave.” You do not have to be disabled to experience ableism. If you remember one thing from that definition, I’d like it to be the last sentence.