2014 Workshop

Samee Sulaiman

Ph.D. in Medical Anthropology at Brown University

Disability and the Reconstruction of Life in Gaza: Present Realities and Future Speculations

This paper investigates the intersection of disability, war, and reconstruction in Gaza, focusing on the ongoing war and its aftermath. It aims to contribute to scholarly conversations on disability studies, Palestinian resistance, and the broader implications of war on human mobility and social rebuilding. By foregrounding the lived experiences of disabled individuals, the paper centers the often-overlooked perspectives of those whose bodies and lives have been profoundly shaped by violence and displacement. Disability presents us with an opportunity to reconsider how corporeal vulnerabilities reshape aspects of life such as mobility and access. Disabled people are much more vulnerable to violence and immobility in the midst of war, siege, and genocide, as they often lack the means to flee or access essential resources during crises. At the same time, disability can, ironically, sometimes enable certain kinds of mobility and access to resources that non-disabled people do not have. For example, disabled individuals may be prioritized for humanitarian aid, rehabilitation services, or evacuation processes, offering unique opportunities for agency and resilience within constrained environments.

The generational practices of reclamation, reconstitution, revitalization, and rebuilding inherent to the modern Palestinian condition take on unique dimensions when viewed through the lens of disability. This paper will argue that disabled Palestinians, particularly those in Gaza, embody a critical site for understanding the intertwined processes of erasure and resilience. War not only produces disability but also reconfigures social relationships, mobility, and the possibilities for collective rebuilding. In this context, disability becomes both a consequence of and a site of resistance to the ongoing processes of dispossession and violence.

Drawing from publicly available interviews, news coverage, testimonies, reports by international organizations, and my research on disability in Lebanon—including disabled Palestinians in Lebanon—the paper will unfold in two parts.

The first part will focus on the present realities in Gaza. The ongoing war has resulted in mass casualties, with a significant number of survivors acquiring disabilities due to bombings, infrastructure collapse, and lack of medical resources. This section will examine how these new disabilities are being navigated within a besieged environment marked by scarcity, political neglect, and the continuous threat of violence. By analyzing testimonies and reports, it will highlight the immediate challenges faced by disabled individuals, including access to medical care, rehabilitation services, and basic resources. It will also explore how families and communities work to integrate disabled members into collective survival strategies, even as they face systemic erasure and dehumanization.

The second part of the paper will speculate on a future where the reconstruction of Gaza is undertaken with disabled people in mind. It will consider the complex relationship between disability and mobility, imagining urban and social infrastructures that prioritize accessibility, inclusivity, and rehabilitation. Drawing from disability studies and Palestinian scholarship, this section will explore what a rebuilt Gaza could look like if its physical and social landscapes were shaped by the needs and contributions of disabled individuals. This speculative approach will also address the potential for solidarity networks and international support to reframe disability as a central concern in post-conflict reconstruction.

The paper situates itself within ongoing scholarly conversations on disability and war, contributing to the growing body of work that interrogates how violence and displacement produce new forms of embodiment and community. It also engages with critical Palestinian studies, emphasizing the role of disabled individuals in the broader struggles for self-determination, justice, and survival. By focusing on Gaza, the paper underscores the urgency of addressing disability not as a marginal issue but as integral to the processes of reclamation and rebuilding in the face of ongoing genocide.

In centering the experiences of disabled Palestinians, this paper aims to expand the scholarly understanding of how war reshapes human lives and relationships, offering new frameworks for imagining resistance and reconstruction in contexts of prolonged conflict and dispossession.

Samee Sulaiman is a medical and political anthropologist studying the ways in which experiences of disability and disablement shape political subjectivity and political discourse in Lebanon, Palestine, and the broader Middle East. His current research project explores the history and contemporary practices of the Lebanese disability rights movement and how the disability rights framework fits or doesn't fit in post-colonial settings of near constant crisis and war. His work pushes us to think about disability, politics, and sovereignty through everyday experiences of doubt. Finally, he considers the ways in which disability both disables and enables different forms of mobility and politics.