Abstract

Disability involves a question of justice touching the very foundation of the social bond: why do we have any special responsibilities towards disadvantaged people? Liberal-contractarian theories, focused on the citizens' autonomy, do not consider handicap as a priority of justice, while the capability approach, the ethics of care and disability studies have paid attention to the problem. There is, however, a deeper anthropological issue underlying the political one. Any progress in favor of disabled people concerns our understanding of humanity. To answer the call for justice coming from disability, we have to rethink the way we see human condition, highlighting vulnerability as a common feature of all human beings.