Poverty, Class, and Disability: A Historical, Social, and Political Perspective

Although this is a special education publication, in this article I engage the broader topic of creation of social hierarchy. Disability-which is subsumed under the generic construct "losing in stratified relations"-may be somewhat hidden from view. Moreover, for the purpose of clarity of argument, I intentionally oversimplify political positioning by referring to two inclusive sides, "leftists" and "rightists," a framing that challenges the neutrality of most people. Although this may seem to have little relevance to special educators, insights gained from a "big picture" view can shed light on current practice. I use graduation exit ("gateway") exams to show how social class relations are manifest _in school practice. After deconstructing the negative, I put forward ideas for reform and ask readers to join in a movement to transform hierarchical and excluding relations in school and society. Admittedly, these ideas are utopian, but so as not to drift toward unintended places and so that our daily efforts as professionals and citizens allow progress toward prized goals, an ideal community must be imagined (Anderson, 1983).