The voiceless woman : countering dominant narratives concerning women with disabilities in Nigeria

Abstract

The main research problem in this study is whether law and specifically the human rights framework can speak to the lived experiences and realities of the disabled Nigerian woman. This thesis reflects the frustrations that I experience with my own intersectional identity as a (Nigerian, Yoruba and disabled) woman. These frustrations begin with Nigerian law, specifically its human rights framework and its perception of the disabled woman. One illustration is that the law demands that one must choose between being a woman (identity category) and being disabled (identity category). Yet, the disabled woman has trouble choosing one of these established identity categories because she is a woman and disabled at the same time. The law makes these demands without necessarily recognising and contemplating the interaction and intersection between sex(ism) and disability (discrimination). Unfortunately, because the disabled woman does not neatly fit into the human rights categories, she is labelled deviant and denied protection.1 In most cases, Nigerian law even makes the choice: on the strength of the disability the law decides that one is less of a woman and more disabled, and so refuses to contemplate and recognise the gendered and emergent nature of disability.2 Thus the limits of the law and human rights in speaking to the complex and intersectional lived realities of the disabled Nigerian woman become evident. The law, and specifically the human rights framework, is often portrayed as a saviour of some sort. For instance, a number of commentators point to the need for a Nigerian law and human rights framework that will protect the rights of disabled persons.3 The acquisition of rights, particularly for vulnerable groups who have previously been denied access to these rights, can be empowering and there is no denying the value of a legal and human rights framework. This in turn raises the question that is asked in this thesis. The position I hold is that law and specifically the human rights framework, while having enormous value, is limited in its ability to speak to the lived realities of disabled women. In my view, this limitation results from a failure to recognise the complexities, interactions and intersections that exist between identity categories such as sex, gender, ethnicity or race, sexuality, class, age, culture, religion and disability. Specifically, in this case, the law fails to recognise the interactions and intersections between sex(ism) and disability (discrimination) in the country. However, I argue that the product of these unacknowledged interactions and intersections crucially underlie and form the lived realities of the disabled woman.