Disability and Embodiment in Namibia: Religious and Cultural Perspectives

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Venturing into under-researched areas (disability studies in Africa and the religio-cultural narratives of disability in Namibia) this project will develop a 'Diverse Bodies Namibia' network, collaboratively created by the Universities of Namibia and Exeter, the National Federation of People with Disabilities in Namibia and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia. Religio-cultural attitudes can be co-opted into disabling narratives, whether around illness, or experiences of specific disabilities (physical/sensory/mental) and those associated with gender and sexuality. For example, illness may be associated with sin or spirit-affliction and people with disabilities may encounter perceptions of deficiency, pity or as requiring cure. Gender as disability means that women are exposed to the patriarchal religious or cultural attitudes that may undergird a scourge of gender-based violence. Contestation over where religious and cultural authority lies concerning issues of sexuality has precipitated a polarised debate on the ground, lacking in nuance. The stark inequalities caused by Namibia's colonial legacy are compounded by, and intersect with, divisions of race and ethnicity. These unchecked inequalities contribute to intensified experiences of poverty, exclusion and a lack of well-being.The project will focus initially on a traditional understanding of disability. We will document lived experiences of physical and mental illness in Namibia alongside church responses and develop an educational package based on biblical and local cultural resources that tackles marginalising discourses. Given its use to address social injustices in Southern Africa, Contextual Bible Study has been chosen as an appropriate methodological approach to complement disability studies in a context where 90% of the population is Christian. The network will gradually expand to collaborators in well-established, pioneering activist-advocacy groups in Namibia - those concerned with social justice, development, and disability/gender/LGBTQI+ rights. In this forum, academic and activist-advocacy groups can engage with church representatives in a collaborative effort to explore and interrogate dominant religious and cultural narratives surrounding diverse experiences of embodiment. It will consider the extent to which missionary-colonial narratives of 'normativity' have been co-opted and are being refigured and rehearsed as inviolable, Christian and/or indigenous narratives. It will then go on to consider ways in which those same religio-cultural resources might be employed in the promotion of equality, inclusivity and diversity, in line with the UN 2030 Agenda's drive to 'leave no one behind'. The network will bring together expertise on the impoverishing effects that people with disabilities experience disproportionately: disempowerment, marginalisation, stigmatisation, inadequate access to health care and education, socio-economic struggle, and even violence. The network will exchange knowledge and collaborate further on four themes: i. collating and foregrounding impoverishing experiences of disability ii. understanding challenges and priorities from the perspective of the disabled and their advocatesiii. mapping and interrogating religious and cultural narratives of inclusion/exclusioniv. addressing religious and cultural narratives of inclusion/exclusion in order to promote inclusivity, equality and diversity and, thereby, to maximise potential for development.The network will convene participants at 3 workshops, with resources being trialled throughout the year. It draws upon substantial regional academic expertise in religion and social justice, thereby promoting 'South-South' collaboration alongside UK-LMIC collaboration. Members of the network will foster Namibian-centred approaches to the promotion of equality and diversity, avoiding the pitfalls of importing Western approaches to embodied diversities.