| FT-285970-22 | Research Programs: Summer Stipends | Lorraine Krall McCrary | Disability, Community Care, and Agency in Geel, Belgium | 5/1/2022 - 6/30/2022 | $6,000.00 | Lorraine | Krall | McCrary | | | | Wabash College | Crawfordsville | IN | 47933-2484 | USA | 2022 | Political Theory | Summer Stipends | Research Programs | 6000 | 0 | 6000 | 0 | Research and writing a chapter on the disabled caregiving community in Geel, Belgium, leading to a book in political theory on the inclusion of disability communities and the notion of just society.
I will interview people with intellectual disabilities and mental illness in Geel, Belgium, in order to understand how communities of care at Geel foster agency in people with disabilities—and how that agency supports the agency people with disabilities develop in other associations in the town. Together with another case study, my analysis of these interviews will form the foundation for the argument of my larger book project that communities of care are essential to an inclusive, just, and stable society. To political theory, my work will bring the perspective of those marginalized by the discipline, encouraging the reevaluation of assumptions that have historically informed political theory, such as autonomy, rationality, and independence, as well as the disability-excluding social contract that results from these assumptions. My work highlights the promise of local associations that cultivate agency, while recognizing the dark side of communities of care. |