Critical identity scholars have noted the importance of a self-reflexive stance with respect to our own subject positions as a necessary ingredient toward knowledge production and effective engagement across differences of identity (e.g., Harding, 1991; Michalko, 2002; Mohanty, 2003; Reinharz, 1992). This proposed special issue of Disability Studies Quarterly intends to focus on the "researcher as subject" to ask how our own identities inform our work in and beyond Disability Studies.
The process of self-reflection is critical to any intellectual or interpersonal endeavor. This is particularly true in an arena like Disability Studies in which issues of identity, power, oppression, cooptation, etc., are consistently and persistently at play. The Disability Movement's rallying cry "nothing about us without us" is a reminder of the responsibility we all have to situate ourselves in relation to our work in Disability Studies. Tensions and opportunities related to who is "disabled" and who is an "ally" also deserve additional attention, and we think this special issue of DSQ can be an important venue for addressing those issues and why they matter.
We invite researchers, practitioners and teachers from diverse disciplinary backgrounds and with diverse social identities to reflect on the ways in which their multiple identities inform their scholarly interests and research programs, pedagogy, relationships to particular texts or people, etc. We encourage a variety of strategies for critical self-reflection; possible topics include but are not limited to:
Submissions should be a maximum of 25 double-spaced pages (including references and other supportive material). All submissions will be peer reviewed. Manuscripts should follow the author guidelines specified on the DSQ website (http://www.dsq-sds.org/about/submissions#authorGuidelines) and should be submitted electronically to ostrove@macalester.edu.
If you have any questions, please contact Joan Ostrove (ostrove@macalester.edu) or Jennifer Rinaldi (jrinaldi@yorku.ca).