Disability Antiwork Politics

Abstract

Disability theorists have long argued against the valorization of work under capitalist social relations; I explore some of the key arguments for why. Similarly, feminist theorists critiquing productivism have suggested that we should aim not just for better work, but for less work. Given this, it is surprising that disability arguments against what has been called productivism have not been taken up by theorists arguing against work. In this paper, I argue that feminist anti-work theories should be engaging critical disability theorists on work. However, I claim that in turn critical disability theories benefit from help envisioning how we make meaning in ways not organized around wage work. Following this approach, I turn to science fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin’s anarchist politics for an orientation towards such imagining.