Ramping Up Rights: An Unfinished History of British Disability Activism

by Rachel Charlton-Dailey

From the ‘crippled suffragette’ to 1980s punks chaining themselves to buses, from resisting government policies to changing the media narrative, this book celebrates the amazing activists, protest actions and campaigns that have fought in the UK for disabled people’s rights to live.

In Ramping Up Rights, Rachel Charlton-Dailey highlights a shockingly overlooked 100 years of struggle for disability rights. She unpacks what has gone so wrong with British attitudes and policy in the twenty-first century, and interviews campaigners and disabled people about how they have reclaimed power, from the inclusivity of online activism to the importance of intersectionality. She explores the live frontiers in this ongoing battle for civil rights—from the scandalous inaccessibility of our education and transport systems, to the existential debates about neurodiversity, genetic screening and ‘the right to die’.

These angry, thoughtful, hopeful pages show for the first time how a look at disability activism’s past can become a call to action for the future. As rights continue to be eroded for political gain, this urgent, powerful book will show readers how hard, and how often, disabled people and their allies have fought and won—and will give them the energy to keep fighting back.

Genres: Disability

288 pages, Paperback

Published September 15, 2025

Reviews

[Siobhan]

I don't rate my non-fiction reads, but I really want to take a moment to emphasise just how important and truly enlightening this book is. I'm disabled myself (with multiple disabilities, both neurodivergent and physical) and yet even I was unaware of much of the history Rachel explored so brilliantly in this book. I think this is an incredibly important read not just for disabled people, but also (and perhaps even more so) for non-disabled people, to truly learn and see and understand how ingrained ableism is in modern society, how often disabled people are pushed to the margins, to listen to the voices of disabled people, and to challenge their own inherently ableist perceptions. It really emphasised to me how badly ignored and sidelined disabled people are. For example, one of my topics for study in A-Level History (which for context I sat my exam for in 2023), was on British history in the 1900s, and yet we weren't taught about a single thing I learned in this book!

I think this book is an excellent, yet harrowing and deeply important read, whilst also being a very accessible read too. I implore everyone to pick this one up and learn more about disability history, whether you are disabled or not, and listen to our desperate yet hopeful voices. We will never stop fighting.

[Laura Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly important book, tracing the much-overlooked history of how disability rights have been fought for, won, and lost in the UK over the last century, and how the fight is continuing. This should be required reading in schools across the country.

[liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely so important that this book exists. tbh I found the 'today' section hard to read, but it's truth that needs to be told.

[James Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read for my PhD on the history of disability art activism in Wales.