Cripping reproduction: The intersections of pregnancy and disability

This chapter covers the global expansion of prenatal and childhood genetic testing, the disability paradox, and shadow eugenics. The complexities of accessing and using prenatal genetic testing vary across social and cultural worlds. Feminist disability scholars and activists have voiced spirited disability rights critiques of prenatal genetic testing since the late twentieth century. Insisting on this important conversation, the disability bioethicist Adrienne Asch consistently asked genetic counselors to consider the intersection of disability rights and genetic counseling. Provider fear is one of several barriers that disrupt and delay maternity care for disabled women. Medical racism shapes care for many: a disproportionate number of younger disabled women are Black and Indigenous, more likely to suffer from the accidents, chronic diseases and malnutrition associated with poverty and discrimination associated with the continued legacies of slavery and colonialism.