In disability activism, which description best captures how it challenges medical models and promotes the social model?

• A. It centers on accessibility, rights, and societal barriers; pushes for accommodation rather than cure.
• B. It supports increasing hospital-based care for disabled individuals.
• C. It rejects any medical involvement in disability.
• D. It focuses on curing disability through surgical interventions exclusively.

Answer: (A)

The main idea tested is how disability activism aligns with the social model by framing disability as produced by social and environmental barriers, not just a medical condition. The description that centers on accessibility, rights, and societal barriers—and emphasizes accommodation instead of cure—embodies this view. It highlights tangible changes like removing physical and communication barriers, protecting against discrimination, and ensuring inclusive design so people with disabilities can participate fully in daily life. Activism here seeks to transform structures and norms, not just treat or “fix” an individual.

This contrasts with options that lean toward medical solutions: increasing hospital-based care reinforces a medical model that views disability primarily as something to be cured or managed medically. Rejecting medical involvement ignores the nuanced reality that medicine can address health needs while the social model still centers barrier removal and inclusion. Focusing on curing through surgical interventions exclusively again prioritizes a cure over social participation, which misses the activist goal of removing barriers that disable people in everyday life.