Dr. Andrew Whitehead joins Brad Onishi to discuss his groundbreaking research revealing a disturbing connection: Christian nationalism is one of the strongest predictors of discrimination against Americans with disabilities. As the Trump administration slashes protections, funding, and civil rights for disabled people, from dismantling DEIA efforts to appointing RFK Jr. to HHS, this conversation exposes the theological and ideological roots of ableism in the Christian nationalist movement. Whitehead's peer-reviewed research shows that those who embrace Christian nationalism are three times more likely to believe we've "done enough" for people with disabilities and twice as likely to say disabled Americans "demand too much." The discussion traces these attitudes through Project 2025, prosperity gospel theology, and the historical fusion of Christian nationalism with free-market capitalism that elevates economic productivity as the measure of human worth.
This episode challenges listeners to confront how certain strains of Christianity have interpreted disability as divine punishment or an opportunity for charity, rather than recognizing structural barriers that demand collective responsibility. From religious school vouchers that exclude disabled students to the dangerous myth that autism is spreading like a disease, Whitehead and Onishi reveal how the imagined "ideal American body" in Christian nationalist ideology is explicitly straight, white, native-born, and able-bodied. The conversation offers a powerful counter-vision through theologians like Nancy Eiesland, who reimagined God as disabled, and calls for Christians to vote for policies that truly value all people, not just prayers, but action.
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