A review by stardustrohrig
Being Seen: One Deafblind Woman's Fight to End Ableism by Elsa Sjunneson

adventurous funny hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

I really enjoyed this book and the way Elsa mixes personal stories with Deafblind history and criticisms of portrayals of disability in various mediums. The criticisms are all relevant to her life because the lives of disabled people are often shaped by what others assume to be true. Like all of us who are disabled Elsa has had to fight the ableist assumptions people have made in order have a life that she wants. She has a whole chapter on Hellen Keller and how Hellen's story is often changed to suite ableist ideas of who she was. There's also a lot to be said for the damage caused by people "not seeing disability" - because when that happens it results in a lot of internalized ableism to unpack while also needing to learn how to actually work with your disabilities instead of ignoring them to pass as non-disabled. There's also a chapter about disability in science fiction and how we're often erased.