This four year project – Performing disability activism. Acts and stories of activism and the Finnish disability movement – studies the present and past of disability activism and disability movement. We ask what kind of disability movement is formed in and by the acts and stories of activism. Methodologically the project is ethnographic: activism is approached as acts of citizenship and analysed through observations, stories and representations of acts and performances named as activism. Theoretically, the project draws from new citizenship theory, theoretisation of intersectionality and academic discussion analysing identity politics. The project aims at (1) building a diverse image of disability activism and disability community, and through this (2) reimagine and provide a new representation of the Finnish disability movement, its diverse present and past. Project is funded by the Kone Foundation.

Research group

Reetta Mietola, Research Fellow, Project Leader

Amu Urhonen, Project Coordinator

Daniel Blackie, Research Fellow

Aarno Kauppila, Postdoctoral Researcher

Pekka Koskinen, PhD Researcher

Steering group

Julianna Brandt

Maija Koivisto

Daniel Talvitie

Jaana Tiiri

Academic associates

Kristín Björnsdóttir, Professor, University of Iceland

Merja Tarvainen, University Lecturer, University of Eastern Finland

Jenni Helakorpi, University Lecturer, University of Helsinki

Simo Vehmas, Professor, Stockholm University

Nick Watson, Chair of Disability Research, University of Glasgow