Typed Words, Loud Voices

Publisher Marketing: "I'd like coffee, please." "No. I don't believe you. How do I know it is really you who wants coffee and not your friend there subliminally transmitting that to you by touching your shoulder?" Imagine a world where you had to prove you knew your own mind even to get a cup of coffee, where it was generally assumed that you could have no thoughts of your own, so if you did express your thoughts, it must be some trick. What would you do? Would you give up, or demand to be heard? Sadly, this world is not imaginary for many of the writers in this book, who have chosen the path of demanding to be heard. Their best (and sometimes only) mode of communication is sometimes called "discredited" because it was "tested" in ways that make no sense. Typed Words, Loud Voices is written by a coalition of writers who type to talk and believe it is neither logical nor fair that some people should be expected to prove themselves every time they have something to say. Read our arguments and hear us. Help us change the world. "Getting your attention that I want to "voice" something is my first challenge. ... However, if you calm your leap to judge, you may find that since we know we take more effort to "listen" to, we make sure you "hear" something memorable..." - Devva Kasnitz, PhD. CUNY-Disability Studies "This groundbreaking book is a must read for anyone who truly cares about equality and it gives you a new perspective about what it means to have a 'voice'." - Matthew Wangeman, MCP. NAU - Disability Studies "Ibby, Amy, and the other authors here speak from the heart, because they live it, all day, every day. I've learned from them in ways that can't be measured over the past couple of years - their words and thinking have literally changed my life. They'll change yours, too. Read this, now." - Phil Smith, Professor, Eastern Michigan University