Alice Wong is the editor of the new book Resistance and Hope: Essays by Disabled People. A research consultant and disability activist, she is the founder of the Disability Visibility Project, which focuses on sharing disability media and culture. She is based in San Francisco.
Q: You write that the idea for this book was sparked by
Election Day 2016 and your desire to "fight back." How did you choose
the authors to participate?
A: I did not post an open call for submissions. As someone
who never edited or self-published a book, I individually reached out to people
I know and admire and asked them to contribute an essay. I wanted a wide range
of people who are doing different things, each with something unique to say.
Q: What themes do you see running through the essays
included in the book?
A: One theme is resistance comes in different forms--there
are a lot of different ways of expressing resistance and being an activist,
especially for disabled people.
Another theme is the idea that resistance isn’t something
new; disabled people have been resisting against oppression since time
immemorial and we should recognize how we survived and what we learned from our
ancestors.
Q: How did you decide on the order in which the chapters
would appear?
A: I kept it very simple and listed the authors in
alphabetical order by last name! Each essay is singular and there wasn’t any
neat way to group them.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from this book?
A: I hope people learn something new and that it prompts
them to explore the writing and work of disabled people more. Each movement is
intertwined with others and it’s time for people to start understanding the
experiences of disabled people and how we are impacted by changes in this
particular political climate.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: It’s been a huge learning curve and a big adventure in
self-publishing so far. I’m preparing for the official launch of Resistance and
Hope on Oct. 15 on Amazon and Smashwords.com.
I’ve been reaching out to journalists and other media
outlets about the anthology and getting ready for a social media ‘push’ once it
comes out.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: Resistance and Hope is available as an e-book only and
all proceeds from Amazon will go to HEARD (Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of Deaf Communities). HEARD
is the only organization in the nation that works to correct and prevent
wrongful convictions of D/deaf and hard of hearing individuals.
In a commitment to affordability and accessibility, the
anthology will be available in the following formats: epub, mobi, text, pdf,
and online reader via Smashwords.
People can find out more about Resistance and Hope on my website.
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