Independent Living Movement: what it is and how it has transformed society

This social movement has been improving the rights of people with disabilities for years.

The Independent Living Movement brings together different struggles for the recognition of functional diversity and for the guarantee of their civil rights... Broadly speaking, the Independent Living Movement subscribes to a social model of disability, where the latter is understood as a situation (not an individual medical condition), where a person interacts with a series of social barriers.

The latter was later articulated with the concept of "functional diversity" which aims to move away from the traditional association between "diversity" and "lack of capacity". In this article we will a brief review of the history of the Independent Living Movement.The aim of this article is to highlight the impact it has had in promoting the quality of life of people with disabilities.

Independent Living Movement: what it is, beginnings and repercussions.

In 1962, the prestigious University of Berkeley in the United States, accepted for the first time a student with disabilities, specifically in management and law courses. His name was Ed Roberts, he had had polio at the age of fourteen and consequently a neu and consequently neuromuscular paralysis, which led him to require a significant need for supports. Because he was able to meet that need, in large part due to the support of his mother, Ed Roberts soon became an important activist and campaigner for the civil rights of people with disabilities.

When he began his studies, Ed Roberts had to look for a residency that was suited to his medical conditions, but he did not see the need for his room to become a hospital ward. Faced with an offer from the director of the university's health service to allocate a special room in Cowell's hospital, Ed RobertsEd Roberts accepted, as long as the space was treated as a dormitory rather than a medical facility.

The authorities agreed and this set an important precedent for other people who also had medical conditions that they wanted to be treated not only by medicine. Ed was also gaining involvement in other settings, and even helped to reshape many of the spaces in the helped refurbish many of the physical spaces, both inside and outside the university, to make them more accessible..

A large community of independent living activists was created, who inaugurated, among other things, the first Center for Independent Living (CIL) at UC Berkeley. A pioneer in generating more community-based models to address the diverse needs that are inherent to human diversity.

Nothing about us, without us

The Independent Living Movement made it clear that understanding disability from the more traditional biomedical model meant that interaction with diversity and the provision of social services would be carried out under the same logic. That is to say, under the idea that there is a person who is "sick", who has little autonomy, as well as limited capacities to participate in social services.and limited capacity to participate in society. And the latter, society, remained as an external entity and alien to these limitations.

In other words, it was favoring the stigmatization of diversityThis stigmatized diversity through stereotypes such as that people with disabilities cannot study, cannot work or cannot take care of themselves, which in the end resulted in serious limitations to access different spheres of social life.

Not only that, but very important research was being generated to intervene on different vital conditions. However, such research and interventions were leaving aside the people with disabilities themselves, that is, their needs, interests, abilities, and everything that defines them beyond a condition that can be explained by medicine.

A slogan then emerged that has accompanied the movement, and even carried over to other movements, which is "Nothing about us without us". At the same time, it was made explicit that an independent life is not a solitary life, i.e., that there is a need for interdependence and in many cases there is an important need for support, but this must be satisfied without sacrificing the autonomy of the person with disabilities. has to be satisfied without sacrificing the autonomy of the person with a disability..

Background and other social movements

As we have seen, the Independent Living Movement arises as a reaction to the dehumanization of the process that has historically characterized the traditional medical model.. It also arises as a struggle for the need for civil rights and equal opportunities for social participation.

One of the most immediate antecedents of the Independent Living Movement is that Ed Roberts was admitted to the University of Berkeley two years before the latter became the cradle of the free speech movement, which among other things helped to empower different causes.

In the same context there were other struggles for equal opportunity in the United States. The African-American rights movement was gaining strength, along with the feminist movement. For their part, people with disabilities noted that, as was the case with other minorities, they were denied access to the most basic social services and benefits, e.g., health care, education, housing, housing and social services and benefits, such as education, employment, transportation, housing, etc.

A paradigm shift

From the struggles of the Independent Living Movement, different principles were generated. For example, the promotion of human and civil rights, mutual aid, empowerment, responsibility for one's own life, the right to take risks and community life (Lobato, 2018)., responsibility over one's own life, the right to assume risks and life in community (Lobato, 2018).

Below we summarize the above, taking as a reference the paper by Shreve, M. (2011).

From patients to users

People with disabilities were first considered as users of services, rather than as patients, and later as clients, all in line with the transformation in the provision of social services (Lobato, 2018). in line with the transformation in the provision of social services in line with the transformation in the provision of social services that was taking place in that context.

The latter helped, little by little, to convey the idea that people with disabilities can be active agents in their own situation, as well as in making decisions about the services and products that best suit their support needs.

2. Empowerment and self-help groups

As a result, people with disabilities began to group together and to abandon the role of the sick. Mutual aid groups were then created, where the protagonists were the people with disabilities, and no longer the medical experts.

The latter was no longer considered as one of the necessary supports). The latter favored that people with disabilities, as well as professionals, took other positions and new specialties were created. new specialties more focused on accessibility than on rehabilitation were created..

3. Impact on institutions

People with disabilities made it known that medical and pharmacological intervention is very important, however, it is neither sufficient nor necessary in all cases. From this point on, the paradigm of care shifted from medicalization to personal assistance, where the person with disability takes a more active role.

In the same sense, especially in the case of people diagnosed with mental disorders, it became possible to begin a process of de-medicalization and de-institutionalization of psychiatric institutions, where different human rights violations that took place in these spaces gradually became visible. From this point on, the foundations have been laid to generate and promote more community-based and less segregated models. and promote more community-based and less segregationist models..

Beyond the United States

The Independent Living Movement soon moved to different contexts. In Europe, for example, it was initiated in the 1980s by British activists who had been in the United States during the development of the movement. From there, different forums have been created in many countries, which have had a major impact on policies and the paradigm of rights in relation to functional diversity.

However, given that resources and needs are not the same everywhere, the above has not been applied to all contexts. The community model and the rights paradigm coexist with strong processes of stigmatization and segregation of disability. Fortunately is a movement that continues to be active and there are many people who have continued to work for this to change.

Bibliographic references:

• Lobato, M. (2018) Movimiento Vida Independiente. Vida Independiente Comunidad Valenciana. Retrieved June 28, 2018. Available at http://vicoval.org/movimiento-de-vida-independiente/.
• Shreve, M. (2011). The Independent Living Movement: History and Philosophy to Implementation and Practice. Social Chance for the Integration and Inclusion of All People with Disabilities into Society. Retrieved June 28, 2018. Available at http://www.ilru.org/sites/default/files/resources/il_history/IL_Movement.pdf.
• Garcia, A. (2003). The Independent Living Movement. Experiencias Internacionales. Fundación Luis Vives: Madrid.