The use of rights-based discourses in the narrative construction of identity by disabled adults in rural South Africa

Abstract

There has been an increasing focus on developing a human rights approach to ensure that disabled people have equitable access to their rights. A number of policies have been developed, which are intended to meet the needs of disabled people and to provide frameworks within which services should be rendered. This article explores the narratives of disabled adults living in a rural South African community, with a specific focus on the ways in which rights-based discourses are internalized and used in the construction of identity. A total of 103 references to rights emerged within 22 of the interviews. Eight of the interviews did not include rights-based discourses, yet this was juxtaposed by observations of extreme violations of human rights. Suggestions are made for adopting an ethic of care approach to policy implementation and evaluation, with the need for context specific adaptations to be made.

Keywords:

• Narrative inquiry
• identity
• rural
• disability rights
• ethic of care

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 Pass laws were designed to control the movement of Africans under apartheid. All black South African males over the age of 16 were required to carry a ‘pass book’ containing personal information and employment history (Burger 2012).

Additional information

Funding

Carnegie Corporation of New York; Health Communications Unit, University of the Witwatersrand.