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Lettering: Up to Date, queer and feminist calendar of the Equal Opportunities Office of TU Dortmund University © Borgschulze​/​TU Dortmund
December 3

International Day of Persons with Disabilities

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities takes place on 3 December. It provides an opportunity not only to focus on the topic of disability, but also to think intersectionally and, for example, to consider disability and queerness. It is noticeable that an intersectional perspective on disability has so far hardly featured in the public sphere or in research.

The day was proclaimed by the United Nations in 1992 and is intended to draw attention to the concerns of people with physical or mental disabilities and gaps in inclusion (bpb, 2024).

"All people are equal before the law. [...] No one shall be disadvantaged because of his disability." (Basic Law, Article 3)

Since 1994, Article 3 of the Basic Law has stipulated that people with disabilities must not be disadvantaged. According to the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, over 13 million people with disabilities live in Germany (2022). That is more than one in ten people. Despite this large number of people affected, everyday life in Germany is far from being free of barriers.

The Federal Accessibility Initiative, which was launched by the government in 2022, provides information on its website about various barrier construction sites, for example in schools, road infrastructure, public transport, housing and the labor market. Even in the healthcare sector, doctors' surgeries or the right medical care are not always accessible. In the digital space, it is primarily the lack of image descriptions or overly complicated and incomprehensible texts that prevent inclusion and participation (BMAS, 2022).

Discriminatory and ableist structures in the world of work have increasingly come into focus in recent years. According to the current Inclusion Barometer , the unemployment rate for employable people with severe disabilities was 11% nationwide in 2023, significantly higher than the general unemployment rate of 5.7% (Aktion Mensch, 2024). Workshops in which people with disabilities work have long been calling for a minimum wage (tagesschau, 2024); employees currently receive a so-called workshop wage, which averages 222 euros per month (Lebenshilfe).

Disabled and queer?

However, one topic that is rarely talked about is the sexual and gender freedom of people with disabilities. People who are queer and have a disability face multiple disadvantages in many areas of life.

In the Zeitschrift für Menschenrechte, the author Nina Eckstein describes queer*disabled people as doubly discriminated against. They are subject to prejudice and discrimination because of their disability and their queerness. "With regard to the realization of their human rights, queer*disabled people are also disadvantaged by the fact that they do not have their own lobby" (Eckstein, 2020). This is because neither in the LGBTQIA* community nor in the disability movement is "the intersectional dimension of queer and disabled given sufficient attention" (Eckstein, 2020).

In the podcast "BBQ-Black, Brown, Queer", politician and activist Edwin Greve sees ableist structures and a lack of research as the reasons why the topic receives so little publicity. It is only in recent years that an interdisciplinary branch of research has been developing that combines the intersection of queer and disability studies. In addition to the specific discrimination associated with disabilities and queer identities, Queer Disability Studies researches, for example, body norms and body politics and, in connection with this, examines the cultural and social practices that have emerged from a white and male society (Ledder & Raab, 2022, 361 ff.).

One result of this research is that queer people with disabilities are often not only denied the existence of sexual desires, but also denied self-determination over their sexuality or their gender. This happens despite the fact that all people have the same right to recognition of their sexual and gender diversity. For people with disabilities, however, access to this right is often made more difficult or denied (El Ismy, 2022, 147).

Studying with a disability

According to the Deutsches Studienwerk, around 16% of students in Germany have a "study-impairing impairment" (Deutsches Studierendenwerk). The hurdles and challenges they face at universities often go unnoticed by others. TU Dortmund University has been working since the 1970s to identify and remove these obstacles in everyday student life. The central player on campus is the "Disability and Studies" (DoBuS) department. It combines individual advice and support with systematic analysis of barriers and the development of sustainable solutions. The aim is always not just to offer individual solutions, but to create barrier-free structures in the long term.

Every two years, TU Dortmund University's Equal Opportunities Office calls on people to report unsafe places on campus. This year, the focus is on non-accessible places.

In this way, TU Dortmund University aims to move ever closer to the goal of a barrier-free and inclusive university.

Last updated: 02.12.2024

Sources (in German)

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