USyd Catholic Society censured for 'ableist' and 'disgusting' Life Week poster

Fabian Robertson reports.

USyd Catholic Society have been widely condemned for displaying an ableist installation on Eastern Avenue. The installation featured a poster asking “Are disabled people a burden on society?”, with cups labelled ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ placed on either side of paddle pop sticks to encourage responses. The stunt was part of the Catholic Society’s ongoing and controversial ‘Life Week’ from Monday to Thursday this week - four days dedicated to promoting the pro-life movement.

SRC Disability Officer Margot Beavon-Collin called the stunt “callous and disgusting."

“Regardless of the intentions behind the stunt, it was poorly thought out and ultimately harmful. There are so many disabled students on campus, and passing signs asking any students to weigh in on the worth of your existence is incredibly confronting. Distilling our lives down to a question of whether or not we are a burden is simply dehumanising. It reflects the value-driven Capitalist ethos of a society that struggles to understand a person’s worth beyond what they produce for the boss,” she said.

USU Disability Portfolio holder Ruby Lotz called the poster “discriminatory, ableist, and blatantly offensive”.

“It alienates students with disabilities, seeks to create divisions in our University community, and goes directly against the values of the USU,” she said.

SRC Interfaith Officers Jayfel Tulabing and Antoine Nguyen Khanh provided the following statement.

“We condemn such ableists and sophistic posturing in the strongest possible terms. We do not think this is conducive to a productive debate or argument and only diminishes the real-life experiences of disabled people and students, expressing nothing but bigotry, contempt or ignorance.”

A member of the USyd Catholic Society attempted to backpedal on the poster via Facebook messenger.

“To clarify, we definitely do not think disabled people are a burden on society. [We hoped] to engage with those who think they are a burden to society and convince them of the value of all life, especially those with disability. We apologise for the misconception caused by the wording.” 

The poster was taken down after backlash from the university community.

The SRC Disabilities Collective & Caregivers Network is holding a speak-out at 2pm tomorrow outside Fisher Library to demand an official apology from the Catholic Society.