One thought on “Ouch! interview with Robert Softley on Girl X”

  1. This is a pretty amazing interview–thanks for posting it Huahima. The bit that sticks with me is this:

    At the time of Ashley X, I was involved in a lot of debates on the web around the moral and ethical issues. The striking divide was between the disability rights groups who thought this was a horrific abuse of power and the wider public who felt that we had no right to interfere with parental decision-making. The latter group could see the benefits for Ashley and felt that disabled people were getting overly emotional about a treatment that could genuinely help her. We took the contents of those internet forums as a starting point for the play. A lot of what is said in the play seems outrageous because it is said directly to my face, but it came from forums, where people are less guarded. In the real world, the moment a disabled person says something about disability, they’ve automatically got authority. This can often quieten other arguments down. On the internet though, you can say you are disabled even if you’re not, or you can say you’re a young woman when you’re an old man.

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