Book: Being Seen by Elsa Sjunneson

I got this book from my local library and while I felt invested every time I picked it up, not having a reading routine really does make it difficult to finish a book. But I did, thanks to reading in the tub! Yay! It’s a pretty good book about ableism in all facets of daily life, easy to read (text-wise), from time to time hard (content-wise). If you ever asked yourself if you are disabled enough to call yourself disabled, you might find yourself in her writing. And if you ever wanted to hear a critical take on some of the most popular TV genres: take a read.

There are also some quote-worthy paragraphs in there. Diagnosis Capitalism, for example, is spot on in my opinion: “The medical system is based on problem-solving, looking at bodies as logic problems, and conditions as things to fix. I call it Diagnosis Capitalism. Diagnosis Capitalism is the default lens that doctors see through, and while I believe many doctors join the medical profession intending to heal, everyone ends up on the Diagnosis Capitalism train. Why? Because the American medical system is in the business of making money.” (p. 200) “So often, disabled bodies are not seeking a cure, or a way to be fixed; the people who live in them simply want solutions to help them function in the world. Diagnosis Capitalism assumes that a disabled body is a fundamentally broken one, and that it must be fixed in order to be useful and good.” (p. 207)

While it overall does not seem like a scientific publication, mostly due to some very personal topics, footnotes are included everywhere and quite helpful for understanding and further research. This should be the case more often!