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[personal profile] sasha_feather
I was reading the other day at This Ain't Livin' about the Ashley X case: On Growth Attenuation and Moral Compromise. A warning: This is an upsetting case to read and learn about. (Thanks [personal profile] torachan for the link).

I first heard about this at a talk I went to where a candidate for a professorship was giving a slide show and lecture focused on disability. During the Q and A someone raised the issue of the Ashley X case. The questioner summarized the controversy and some discussion ensued. I remember that one young woman in particular seemed confused and defensive/uncomfortable.

The presenter, whose name I unfortunately do not recall, let the discussion go on for a bit before stopping it. She said, and I paraphrase, "All of the medical details can get confusing and upsetting, so I like to use a metaphor. Imagine you are caring for your elderly grandmother. It's difficult to get her up and down the stairs and into the tub because she is a tall woman. So, to fix this problem, you decide to cut off her legs to make her smaller."

That silenced the room.

Date: 2011-03-22 03:49 am (UTC)
hypatia: (Default)
From: [personal profile] hypatia
that is a good metaphor for an awful thing.

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