Experiencing and Interpreting Disability (Studies) in the Post-Socialist Era — Hungarian scholars in international disability (studies) discourses

Abstract

Introduction

Although the powerful slogan "Nothing About Us Without Us!" originates from Central-Eastern Europe (Charlton, 2000), most scholars in the area arrived significantly later in the international disability studies arena. Despite some exceptions (see Prof. Dr. György Könczei, n.d.), scholars first entered the international disability studies discourse around the beginning of the 2000s. Nowadays, numerous resources provide several reasons for the delay, for example, Petri & Hruskó (2024), Hoffmann & Flamich (2024), Mladenov & Petri (2019), and Hoffmann & Flamich (2015). This paper is not intended to be one of them. In this paper, rather than seeking further explanations, we highlight aspects and ideas that Hungarian scholars have contributed to the theories and practices of multifaceted disability studies. 

This article features scholars who represented Hungary at the 13th ALTER conference, held at the University of Innsbruck from July 8 to 10, 2025.  However, before getting acquainted with the scholars and their talks, we take a closer look at ALTER, its brief history, aims, and philosophy.