Highlight of LSA 2023  

On the Fringes of Fame: Confronting Ableism with Stories, Actions & Theories (SAT)

In Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe suggests that Okonkwo’s temperance and behavior could be understood within the context of a different ability in a world that prioritizes, privileges, and marginalizes other skill sets. Okonkwo "had a slight stammer" (p.1). Thus, he compensates with his hand and strength that which he lacks in a world that celebrates verbal dexterity. Achebe writes that Okonkwo has physical strength in a world where "the art of conversation is regarded very highly, and proverbs are the palm oil with which words are eaten" (p.2).Okonkwo's response to his world of ableism can be read in diverse ways. It could be read as agency, activism, and resistance against an order of coloniality of sound/word. How do we navigate ableism in a world that prioritizes certain skill sets? What do we do when systems do not support “how we are” and live in this world? Specifically, Ableism sits at the margins of conversation in higher education and the workplace in Africa and, more specifically, Nigeria.

This panel continues the conversation in the session “On the Fringes of Fame: Subalterns in African Celebrities Studies.” However, instead of featuring conventional academic paper presentations, it focuses on the real-life experiences of activists, NGO experts, and caregivers who have committed their careers and lives to confront Ableism in its multiple manifestations. Our panelists inhabit a world with different skill sets and abilities in domains that seek to erase them and within a society that pays lip service to disability rights. They are celebrities in their various vocations and professions and have contributed significantly to disability discourse, online and offline, uniquely and distinctly.

The panel comprises a pharmacist, a lawyer, an academic and caregiver, and a wheelchair model. The panel centers disability from the margins. Panelists would share their stories of inclusion or exclusion as they navigate their educational goals, the experience of diversity and inclusion, and tips for inclusive classrooms for different learning and physical needs in higher education and what they each consider the most urgent need in confronting and addressing ableism in higher education.

Chair and Organizer

Rosemary Oyinlola Popoola (University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Discussants

Tobiloba Ajayi (Chief Responsibility Officer, The Let Cerebral Palsy Kids Learn Foundation)

Blessing Mary Ochiedo (Director and Policy Advisor, Platinum Interventions)

Rita Ofili (Wheelchair model and public speaker)

Dr. Soji Oyeranmi. (Independent Scholar/Proprietor, Soji Carnegie Multipurpose Ventures)