This seminar will take place entirely online via Teams: if you would like to attend please email arche-fem-soc[at]st-andrews.ac.uk for details. This will be a short work-in-progress presentation, lasting 20 minutes, to leave ample time for discussion.

Title: Zombie Déjà Vu: Haunted histories of rebuilding after the apocalypse

Abstract: We are living in a transitional time as our Western societies move out of crisis mode vis-à-vis the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, different narratives are forming, including those around COVID long-haulers, disability, and “going back to normal”. I am investigating how these narratives are being haunted by the eugenic and ableist attitudes that have shaped our current healthcare system. I am using the figure of the zombie to explore the tension surrounding the inclusion/exclusion of newly (and more) disabled people in our healthcare and public health strategies moving forward.