The Intersection of Black History and Disability History in the United States.
I posted the following as a comment on Mia Mulder’s excellent Video Essay “Beauty is a Scam” (Auto-Captioned in English; Essay portion w/o ad 43 minutes, broken into shorter chapters). You should watch it.
In the meantime, this is something I think should be said everywhere, so I’m posting it here, too (slightly edited):
Did you know that, in the United States, many cities across the country had "Unsightly Beggar Ordinances" (retroactively called "ugly laws")? These laws made it actually illegal for people with certain physical deformities, or simply visible disabilities to be out in public as a visible public nuisance?
The first of these laws were put in place in 1867 (shortly after the end of the United States' Civil War), and the last of these laws weren't taken off the books until 1974 ❗❗ The only exception in these laws was if you, as a disabled person, were put on display, as a medical or moral lesson -- (Q.V.: freak shows at carnivals, and medical schools).
Naturally, these laws hit the poor the hardest, since, if you were disabled and unable to work, but your family was wealthy, they could keep you hidden away in a back room, and keep you clothed and fed, or they could afford to send you away to live in an asylum or home for invalids. But if you were poor, you had no choice but to beg, so the cops would have an excuse to arrest you, and send you to prison. And black and brown folk are more likely to be judged as “Unsightly” by white cops and judges.
Funny about the timing of these laws, in this context, isn't it?
