North Carolina U.S. Representative-elect Madison Cawthorn, who uses a wheelchair due to a spinal cord injury he experienced when he was 18, made headlines in August when he stood using a walker at the Republican National Convention.
Cawthorn won his election on Tuesday, and is now the youngest Republican ever elected to Congress. With Cawthorn’s spotlight comes not only an increased duty to represent his constituents, including disabled people, but also more scrutiny, as many advocates argue that his campaign has perpetuated damaging narratives about disability.
Specifically, disability advocates have asserted that his messaging amounts to “inspiration porn,” the concept that disabled people exist to be inspirational and should use their
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