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Disability and GLBT Issues Resources
By Dara Schur, PAI and Rosemary French, Benchmark Institute

Web Sites
Annotated Bibliography: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Sexuality and Related Issues by Amy Levine, Megan Anderson and Darlene Torres, Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, (SIECUS) April/May 2001.

This bibliography presents resources on gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender sexuality and related issues. Readers are encouraged to seek out additional resources in bookstores and libraries and by contacting the organizations listed at the end of this bibliography.

Annotated Bibliography: Sexuality and Disability by Amy Levine and Darlene Torres, Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, (SIECUS) April/May 2001.

This annotated bibliography presents resources on physical and mental disability as well as chronic illness. Organizations whose work is related to sexuality and disability are listed at the end of this bibliography.

Bent
Bent is an on-line journal for disabled gay men—"Crip Gay voices," where disability and queerness meet head-on. Archives by category.

Blind Friends of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People
BFLAG betters the lives of those who are visually impaired and GLBT. It offers online newsletter and mailing list to members and supporters.

Deaf Gay and Lesbian Center
The Deaf Gay and Lesbian Center serves the needs of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Communities throughout the San Francisco Bay area.

Deaf Queer Resource Center
The Deaf Queer Resource Center is a national resource center for, by and about the Deaf Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Transsexual, Intersex and Questioning communities.

Disabled Women on the Web
Established by Corbett O’Toole, this site has many resources and links, including a section devoted to Lesbians and Queers with Disabilities. Find out more about Corbett O’Toole and listen to her presentation to advocates click here.

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgendered Disabled Veterans
This site offers resources on GLBT issues, veterans and disabilities—not necessarily in that order.

GLQ: Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies
GLQ publishes scholarship, criticism, and commentary on law, science studies, religion, political science, and literary studies. It offers queer perspectives on all issues touching on sex and sexuality including disability.

Journal of Disability and Sexuality
Journal of Disability and Sexuality is devoted to the psychological and medical aspects of sexuality in rehabilitation and community settings.

Ouch

Ouch, a BBC web site, reflects the lives of disabled people here and now. "We're about personal stuff, minutiae of everyday life and that fantastic dark sense of humour and inevitable cynicism that we disabled people tend to have. Oh, and we don't shy away from subjects that other people might be a bit wary of."

Queer Disability Conference 2002
Materials from the first international gathering of disabled queers, their significant others, friends and allies held at San Francisco State University.

QL: Lesbian/Gay Law Notes

Publication of the Lesbian and Gay Law Association of Greater New York, reports on lesbian/gay and AIDS legal developments. It tracks significant new legislation, reports on new court decisions, administrative rulings, and executive actions, and highlights new publications. It also serves as an information exchange about new job openings in the public interest lesbian/gay rights legal field.

Queers on Wheels
Queers on Wheels is an organization that serves the physically disabled GLBTQ (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or queer) community.

Sexuality and Disability: Education, Advocacy & Support
This site has a bibliography on Sexuality, Disability, and GLBIT/Gender Issues.

Women And Disability: An Annotated Bibliography
Edited by Rachael Zubal-Ruggieri (2006), this bibliography includes resources about lesbians and bisexual women with disabilities. Women and Disability is one of the many bibliographies produced by The Center on Human Policy, Law and Disability Studies at Syracuse University in New York, which distributes a variety of reports and resources on the inclusion of people with disabilities into community on its web site. 

 Books and Articles

LGBT & Disability - General
Anderson, Sandra. "Substance Abuse and Dependency in Gay Men and Lesbians.” The Haworth Press, 1996. 

Blumenfeld, Warren J., (Ed.) Journal of Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Identity, P.O. Box 929, Northampton, MA 01061 (blumenfeld@educ.umass.edu), The Journal devoted an entire volume to the intersections of queer and disability identity.

Charles, Casey. The Sharon Kowalski Case: Lesbian and Gay Rights on Trial, University Press of Kansas (May 2003). Drawing on trial transcripts, medical records, newspaper archives, and personal interviews, attorney Casey Charles goes well beyond Thompson's own highly personal account in Why Can't Sharon Kowalski Come Home? The book is instructional and inspirational for those concerned with civil liberties, especially for lesbians, gay men, and the disabled, in America today.

Corbett, J.  “Proud Label: Exploring The Relationship Between Disability Politics And Gay Pride.”   Disability and Society, 9(3), 343-358, 1994.

Dark, Okianer Christian. “Incorporating Issues of Race, Gender, Class, Sexual Orientation, and Disability Into Law School Teaching,” 32 Willamette L. Rev. 541 (1996).

Fries, Kenny. "The Imperfections of Beauty: On Being Gay and Disabled."  In Atkins, Dawn. Looking Queer: Body Image and Identity in Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay and Transgender Communities. Haworth Press, 1999.

Gladwin, Maree.  “We’re Counting On Equality: Monitoring Equal Opportunities in the Workplace in Relation to Sex, Race, Disability, Sexuality, HIV/Aids, and Age,”  City Centre, 32-35 Featherstone Street, London, ECIY 8QX.

Hearn, Kirsten.  “Oi! What About Us?”  Radical Records:  Thirty Years of Lesbian & Gay History, Cant, Bob and Hemmings, Susan (Eds.), Routledge, pp. 116-127, 1988.

Kafer, Alison.  “Compulsory Bodies: Reflections on Heterosexuality and Able-bodiedness.”  Journal of Women's History, Volume 15, Number 3, Autumn 2003, pp. 77-89, 2003.

McRurer, Robert. Crip Theory: Cultural Signs of Queerness and Disability. NYU Press June 2006.

Robert McRuer examines how dominant and marginal bodily and sexual identities are composed, and considers the vibrant ways that disability and queerness unsettle and re-write those identities in order to insist that another world is possible.

McRurer, Robert and Abby L. Wilkerson. Desiring Disability 2003: Queer Theory Meets Disability Studies. Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies, Volume 9, Numbers 1-2). Duke University Press (February 2003)

Munson, Peggy.  “(In)Visibility, Recognition, and Marginalization: Queers with Non-apparent Disabilities.” Disabled Women's Alliance, 2003.

O’Toole, Corbett Joan.  “The View From Below: Developing a Knowledge Base About an Unknown Population.” Journal of Sexuality and Disability, 18(3), 207-224, 2000.

Find out more about Corbett O’Toole and listen to her presentation to advocates here.

Panzarino, Connie. The Me in the Mirror. Seal Press, 1994. Panzarino, a severely disabled lesbian activist and art therapist, communicates the frustration, anguish, and turmoil she endured during her fight for education, employment, a usable wheelchair, reliable aides, transportation, accessibility, and, ultimately, a life of her own in which she could realize personal and political growth.

Peterson, K. Jean, DSW (Editor), Health Care for Lesbians and Gay Men, Confronting Homophobia and Heterosexism,  Harrington Park Press, 1996. Educates practitioners about the needs of gay and lesbian patients and how to look critically at the impact of homophobia and heterosexism on care. It suggests how to address these issues in order to guarantee the best care for their patients and clients.

Saad, S.C. "Disability and the lesbian, gay man or bisexual individual" in M. Sipski & C. Alexander (Eds.), Sexual Function in People with Disability and Chronic Illness: A Health Professional’s Guide, pp. 413-427.  Gaithersburg, MD: Aspen Publications, 1997.

Shakespeare, Tom, Gillespie-Sells, Kath, and Davies, Dominic. The Sexual Politics of Disability: Untold Desires, Cassell Academic, 1997.

Sherry, M.  "Queer/Crip Theory: Transgressing the Margins." Berkeley, CA: University of California at Berkeley, 2003.

Wilkerson, A.  "Disability, Sex Radicalism, and Political Agency." NWSA Journal, 14(3) (Fall, 2002), 33-57.
 

Bisexual Issues
Artemis, R., & Maxwell, J. "Lesbian and Bisexual Mothers." In D. W. S. N. Ontario (Ed.), Women With Disabilities And Mothering: Sharing Our Stories, Exploring Our Options. Geneva Park, Ontario, Canada, 1995.

Axtell, S. "Disability and Chronic Illness Identity: Interviews With Lesbians And Bisexual Women And Their Partners." Journal of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Identity, 4(1), 53-72, 1999.

Deaf  Issues
D'aoust, V.  "Complications: The Deaf Community, Disability and Being a Lesbian Mom - A Conversation with Myself" in Brownworth, Victoria A. and Susan Raffo(Eds), Restricted Access: Lesbians on Disability, Seal Press, 1999.

Langholtz, Daniel J. and Rendon, Marie Egbert.  "The Deaf Gay/Lesbian Client: Some Perspectives," Journal of American Deafness & Rehabilitation, Vol. 25(3), P31-34, 1991-92.

The role of the gay/lesbian person in the deaf culture and communication problems which contribute to or interfere with self acceptance as well as family or community acceptance are the focal points for this article.  Changes that have been made in the deaf culture and in the culture at large in respect to sexual identity issues and the comparison of communities (deaf to gay/lesbian) are also outlined.

Developmental Disabled Issues
Allen, John D.  Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender People With Developmental Disabilities And Mental Retardation: Stories of The Rainbow Support Group. Harrington Park Press, 2003

This book describes the founding, achievements, and history of a unique group providing support for GLBT people with developmental disabilities or intellectual disabilities. Read the contents, preface and Chapter 1 here.
 

Clare, Eli. Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation, South End Press, 1999. “In these interconnected essays, Eli Clare describes the "rednecks" and clearcuts she grew up among, the "freak shows" of the nineteenth century, and the "transgender warriors" of today. Her intelligence and wit illuminate her ruminations on cerebral palsy, child abuse, nature, pornography, sexuality, and class." Publisher’s description here.
 

Hingsburger, D.  “Staff Attitudes, Homosexuality and Developmental Disability: A Minority within a Minority.”  Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 2(1), 19-22, 1993.

Dave Hingsburger, a therapist, educator, lecturer and author, actively campaigns for the sexual rights of people with developmental disabilities. Read an interview with him by David Steinberg and Helen Behar, a social worker working with people with developmental disabilities on Differences, Sex and Power. Find some of Hingsburger’s books at Diverse City Press.

Gay Men Issues
Fries, Kenny.  Body, Remember: A Memoir, University of Wisconsin Press, 2003.  Fries’ reflections on growing up Jewish, gay and disabled.

Bob Guter and John R. Killacky Eds. Queer Crips: Disabled Gay Men and Their Stories. Harrington Park Press, 2004. Queer Crips features more than 30 first-hand accounts illuminating the everyday struggles disabled gay men face in a culture obsessed with conformist good looks. Includes rejection, love, sex, dating rituals, gay crip married life, and the profound difference between growing up queer and disabled, and suffering a life-altering injury or illness in adulthood. Learn more about this book and read an excerpt.

Schwartz, Martin.  "Gay Men and the Health Care System."  The Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services. The Haworth Press, 1996.

Lesbian Issues
Appleby, Yvon.  "Access Limited: An Exploration Into Why Disabled Lesbians Are So Invisible Within The Lesbian Community," Staffordshire Polytechnic, January 1990.

Artemis, R., & Maxwell, J. "Lesbian and Bisexual Mothers."  In D. W. S. N. Ontario (Ed.), Women With Disabilities And Mothering: Sharing Our Stories, Exploring Our Options. Geneva Park, Ontario, Canada, 1995.

Axtell, S. "Disability and Chronic Illness Identity: Interviews With Lesbians And Bisexual Women And Their Partners." Journal of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Identity, 4(1), 53-72, 1999.

Brownworth, Victoria A. and Susan Raffo(Eds), Restricted Access: Lesbians on Disability, Seal Press, 1999.

Marginalized by their sexuality and their disability, the contributors explore the complications that arise at the intersection of these two identities. Find the table of contents, reviews and the essay about Sharon Kowalski, "Home Among The Trees: A Visit with Karen Thompson, Sharon Kowalski and Patty Bresser." by Marjory Schneider here.

Charles, Casey. The Sharon Kowalski Case: Lesbian and Gay Rights on Trial, University Press of Kansas (May 2003). Drawing on trial transcripts, medical records, newspaper archives, and personal interviews, attorney Casey Charles goes well beyond Thompson's own highly personal account in Why Can't Sharon Kowalski Come Home? The book is instructional and inspirational for those concerned with civil liberties, especially for lesbians, gay men, and the disabled, in America today.

Clare, Eli. Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation, South End Press, 1999. “In these interconnected essays, Eli Clare describes the "rednecks" and clearcuts she grew up among, the "freak shows" of the nineteenth century, and the "transgender warriors" of today. Her intelligence and wit illuminate her ruminations on cerebral palsy, child abuse, nature, pornography, sexuality, and class." Publisher’s description here.

Clunis, D. Merilee and Green, C. Dorsey.  "Disability," Lesbian Couples, Seal Press, pp. 202-218, 1988.

D'aoust, V.  "Complications: The Deaf Community, Disability and Being a Lesbian Mom - A Conversation with Myself."  Restricted Access: Lesbians on Disability.   V. Brownworth and S. Raffo. Seattle, Seal Press, 1999.

D’Auost, Vicky.  "On Competency and Autonomy: Experiences of a Lesbian Mother with Disabilities," Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, Vol. 13, No. 3, 1994.

Hepburn, Cuca and Gutierrez, Bonnie.  "Disability," Alive & Well, A Lesbian Health Guide, The Crossing Press, pp. 211-214, 1988.

Huegel, Kelly. "Taking Care of Our Own: How well does lesbian community deal with disability?" Curve Volume 12, No. 2 (2002)

Ketz, K. "An Examination of Sexual Self-concept and Body Image in Predominantly Caucasian Lesbian and Heterosexual Women with Physical  Disabilities."  Division 44, American Psychological Association, Society for the Study of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Issues, Newsletter, vol. 17, #3, Fall 2001.

Loulan, Joann.  "Specific Issues on Sex and Disability."  Lesbian! Sex, Spinsters Ink, pp. 275-288, 1984.

Mohin, Lilian.  "Strangling Little Mary Sunshine, a Review of 'With the Power of Each Breath,'" A Disabled Women's Anthology, Gossip No. 1, Only Women Press, pp. 54-59, 1986.

O’Toole, Corbett Joan.  "Disabled Lesbians: Challenging Monocultural Constructs."  Knotoski, Nosek & Turk (Eds.) Women with Physical Disabilities, London: Paul Brookes Publishing, 1996. Find out more about Corbett O'Toole and listen to her presentation to advocates here.

O’Toole, Corbett Joan, and Bregante, Jennifer L.  “Lesbians With Disabilities,” Journal of Sexuality and Disability, Vol. 10 (3), P 163-172, 1999.

This paper discusses the issues of being lesbian and disabled as well as the unique attitudes of health care workers toward both disability and homosexuality. Find out more about Corbett O’Toole and listen to her presentation to advocates here.

O'Toole, Corbett Joan, & D'aoust, V. “Fit for Motherhood: Towards a Recognition of Multiplicity in Disabled Lesbian Mothers.”  Disability Studies Quarterly, 20(2), 145-154, 2003. Find out more about Corbett O’Toole and listen to her presentation to here.

Solarz, A.L. Lesbian Health: Current Assessment and Directions for the Future, Institute of Medicine, National Academy Press, Washington, DC, 1999.

Peterson, K. Jean, and Bricker-Jenkins, Mary.  "Lesbians and the Health Care System." The Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services, The Haworth Press, 1996.

Sells, Kath Gillespie, "Vulnerable in the Hands of Our Carers," Women's Health Information Centre Newsletter, Autumn 1987.

Tremain, Shelley (Ed.) Pushing The Limits: Disabled Dykes Produce Culture, Toronto: Women's Press, 1996.  (Anthology of fiction, personal narrative, poetry, song, and artwork by disabled dykes.)

Waite, Rosie.  "They Didn't Know What to Say to Me," A Disabled Women's Anthology, Gossip No. 1, Only Women Press, 1986, pp. 46-53, 1986.

Mental Health Issues.
O'Toole, Corbett Joan & Brown, A.  "No Reflection in the Mirror: Challenges for Disabled Lesbians Accessing Mental Health Services."  in
Mental Health Issues for Sexual Minority Women: Redefining Women’s Mental Health. (Ed. Tonda L. Hughes, Carrol Smith, and Alice Dan). Harrington Park Press. 2003, pp. 35-49]. Find out more about Corbett O’Toole and listen to her presentation to Protection & Advocacy here.

O'Toole, Corbett Joan, & D'aoust, V. "Fit for Motherhood: Towards a Recognition of Multiplicity in Disabled Lesbian Mothers."  Disability Studies Quarterly, 20(2), 145-154, 2003. Find out more about Corbett O'Toole and listen to her presentation to advocates here.

Scholinski, Daphne, After-Wards, 48 Hastings L.J. 1195 (1997)Personal testimony about the impact of psychiatric incarceration on lesbian/gay/bi/trans youth.Scholinski, Daphne.  The Last Time I Wore A Dress. Riverhead Books/Penguin Putnam, New York, NY 1997. A young woman tells the tale of her repeated incarceration by her parents because her gender was not what they thought it ought to be. A shocking tale of intelligence in the face of weighty oppression. Read a description with links.

Traumatic Brain Injury Issues
Brownworth, Victoria A. and Susan Raffo, Restricted Access: Lesbians on Disability Seal Press, 1999.

Marginalized by their sexuality and their disability, the contributors explore the complications that arise at the intersection of these two identities. Find the table of contents, reviews and the essay about Sharon Kowalski, "Home Among The Trees: A Visit with Karen Thompson, Sharon Kowalski and Patty Bresser." by Marjory Schneider here.

Charles, Casey. The Sharon Kowalski Case: Lesbian and Gay Rights on Trial, University Press of Kansas (May 2003). Drawing on trial transcripts, medical records, newspaper archives, and personal interviews, attorney Casey Charles goes well beyond Thompson's own highly personal account in Why Can't Sharon Kowalski Come Home? The book is instructional and inspirational for those concerned with civil liberties, especially for lesbians, gay men, and the disabled, in America today.

Mapou, Robert J. "Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation with Gay and Lesbian Individuals."  Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, Vol. 5(2), P67-72, 1999.

Rehabilitation professionals frequently assume that an individual in a brain-injury program is hetero-sexual without having asked direct questions about life style.  Benign neglect of issues germane to sexual orientation may impede progress and lead to depression, decreased self-esteem, and decreased self-confidence.  This article provides an introduction to issues with which professionals working in brain-injury rehabilitation programs should be familiar when treating gay or lesbian individuals.

Thompson, K., & Andrezejewski, J.  Why Can't Sharon Kowalski Come Home?  San Francisco: Spinsters Ink, 1988.

Sharon Kowalski was brain-damaged in a 1984 automobile accident. Kowalski's partner. Karen Thompson, filed for guardianship, opposed by Kowalski’s parents and denied by one doctor's statement that the patient would be exposed "to a high risk of sexual abuse" if Thompson were allowed to visit. This story chronicles Thompson's uphill struggle against the sexism and homophobia that permeate this country's institutions.

Transgender Issues
Clare, Eli. Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation, South End Press, 1999. "In these interconnected essays, Eli Clare describes the "rednecks" and clearcuts she grew up among, the "freak shows" of the nineteenth century, and the "transgender warriors" of today. Her intelligence and wit illuminate her ruminations on cerebral palsy, child abuse, nature, pornography, sexuality, and class." Publisher’s description here.

Fries, Kenny. "The Imperfections of Beauty: On Being Gay and Disabled."  In Atkins, Dawn. Looking Queer: Body Image and Identity in Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay and Transgender Communities.
Haworth Press, 1999.

Scholinski, Daphne.  The Last Time I Wore A Dress. Riverhead Books/Penguin Putnam, New York, NY 1997. A young woman tells the tale of her repeated incarceration by her parents because her gender was not what they thought it ought to be. A shocking tale of intelligence in the face of weighty oppression. Read a description with links.

GLBT Youth & Parenting Issues
Artemis, R., & Maxwell, J. "Lesbian and Bisexual Mothers."  In D. W. S. N. Ontario (Ed.), Women With Disabilities And Mothering: Sharing Our Stories, Exploring Our Options. Geneva Park, Ontario, Canada, 1995.

D’Auost, Vicky.  "On Competency and Autonomy: Experiences of a Lesbian Mother with Disabilities," Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, Vol. 13, No. 3, 1994.

Gochros, Harvey, and Bidwell, Robert. "Lesbian and Gay Youth in a Straight World: Implications for Health Care Workers." The Haworth Press, 1996.
Goishi, Miye A.  "Unlocking the Closet Door: Protecting Children From Involuntary Civil Commitment Because of Their Sexual Orientation," 48 Hastings L.J. 1137 (Aug. 1997).

Hicks, Karolyn Ann, "Reparative" Therapy: Whether Parental Attempts To Change A Child's Sexual Orientation Can Legally Constitute Child Abuse," 49 American University Law Review, pp. 505 - 547, 1999.

Scholinski, Daphne.  The Last Time I Wore A Dress. Riverhead Books/Penguin Putnam, New York, NY 1997. A young woman tells the tale of her repeated incarceration by her parents because her gender was not what they thought it ought to be. A shocking tale of intelligence in the face of weighty oppression. Read a description with links.