ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the significance of children's toys to disability and popular culture. It aims to trace the social, cultural, and medical history of disability toys to explore what they communicate about society's view of disability, from ableist representations to social inclusion. The chapter discusses Gramscian approach to popular culture to recognise and interrogate both the problematic and subversive aspects of disability and popular culture using children's toys as a case study. It draws several cultural artefacts including online forums and blogs to illustrate the shifting nature of disability representation in children's toys. The chapter is concerned with children's toys as an important site of disability and popular culture, beginning with the polio epidemic and the ways mass-produced items were manipulated to reflect the realities of children experiencing polio. Despite a history of problematic representations, people with disability integrate popular culture in creative ways in their everyday lives.
