ABSTRACT
The aim of this chapter is to discuss more directly hostility towards disability in higher education. Here, I will also analyse disability hostile aspects of higher education as culture and as work environment for students, faculty members, and staff. 15–20% of the general population live with a disability, but this number is lower among faculty and staff at universities. Still today, 20 years after the adoption of the CRPD, few professors and other employees in higher education live with disability. Hostility towards disability as an individual experience, identity, and a part of human diversity can lead to fear of disclosing disability among students and faculty.
The chapter starts by presenting and discussing ableist aspects of higher education. Next, these aspects are linked to micro and meso levels. Friction, barriers, and exclusionary mechanisms are often experienced at the micro level but must be addressed at the meso level, where the institutional responsibilities work. A neglect of disability-based discrimination is discussed as an ableist mechanism.
