Sitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body

by Rebekah Taussig

Before this moment, I had no idea these ideals were lurking just beneath the surface. I didn’t know how good it would feel to fit into the standard (ableist) equation of worth: Hours + Production + Wages = Value. This equation is loud, powerful, and everywhere. Those of us who don’t work as many hours, who don’t “produce” as much (whatever that means), whose wages are lower, or (gasp!) rely on others to survive—we are categorized as a drain, a burden. This ableist model tells us that the human body is a work machine whose value is determined by its production—like a toaster that can toast six slices of bread instead of just the usual two. The more you do, the more hours of overtime you work, the less sleep you get, the more duties you fulfill, the faster you get the work done, the less help you require, the more you’re worth.