‘Yas Queen!’ The Fab Five are back with their hit Netflix series Queer Eye and, if like me you are a super fan, it couldn’t have come soon enough.

For those of you who aren’t familiar, Queer Eye is a show all about love, acceptance, tolerance and personal growth, which sees a group of five gay men help people improve every element of their lives.

The fourth season brought something I was eagerly anticipating – the first ever visually disabled ‘inspirational’ participant.

The episode, which features Wesley Hamilton, a wheelchair user, community activist and adaptive athlete, is called Disabled But Not Really. And, while it is named after Wesley’s own organisation, this title left me bewildered.




Queer Eye is all about embracing who you are and feeling empowered so to perpetuate the idea that disability is a bad thing feels hypocritical.

I am not in any way trying to attack Wesley for naming his organisation this. It makes sense to him after becoming disabled through gang warfare, being shot and having his whole life change in a split second.

I am, however, disappointed by the show’s ignorance for failing to realise most of the community is proud of being ‘disabled’ and that it’s an identity, not something that needs to be overcome or ‘cured’.

Queer Eye is all about embracing who you are and feeling empowered (Picture: Netflix/ Austin Hargrave)

To really grasp what ‘disabled’ means, I’d have liked to have seen the Queer Eye team consult with the wider disabled community. The show has a responsibility to the wider community of activists and campaigners working so hard to change the narrative around disability.

The hashtag #SayTheWord springs to mind when looking at this episode. Coined by activist Lawrence Carter-Young, it highlighted the communal sense of pride within the disabled community.

He says: ‘If you ‘see the person not the disability’ you’re only getting half the picture. Broaden your perspective. You might be surprised by everything you’ve missed. DISABLED. #SayTheWord.’

The show also focused heavily on the co-dependent relationship Wesley had with his mother. Wesley’s mother had, according to him, put her life on hold for seven years following his accident and now, with the Fab Five’s help, she could go and live her life as before.

This idea disabled people can only be independent through interdependence was really pushed throughout the episode, feeding the stereotype that all disabled people need to be cared for and are a ‘burden’ to the ones that love them.

I used to have a co-dependent relationship with my own mother and this derived from love and a fear of letting go. My mother needed me just as much as I needed her and she wasn’t disabled. With the proper infrastructure in place, disabled people like me and Wesley can live independently and it is important that message gets out there.

Looking at Twitter and other social media platforms after Wesley’s episode aired it’s clear we still have a long way to go before non-disabled people have a sound grasp on what it truly means to be disabled.

I still loved the episode and will remain a die-hard Fab Five fan (Picture: Netflix)

Most non-disabled fans where inspired by Wesley not letting his ‘horrible’ disability stop him from achieving, whereas many disabled viewers saw it as inspiration porn and a missed opportunity to depict an authentic onscreen representation.



Queer Eye stuck to a narrative that distanced itself from the wider disabled community and culture – opting to show how we’re made to change to fit into society.

Of course, due to the show following one individual’s journey per episode, it would have been implausible to feature multiple experiences. However, I do still feel the episode missed a trick.

I would have loved to see the Fab Five reach out in the episode to a disabled interior or fashion designer to help collaborate or maybe seen Wesley engage with other members of the disabled community to share their stories.

Despite my reservations, it did bring me joy to turn on the television and see someone who looks like me on it, even when the narrative is somewhat misguided. The episode was, in many ways, heartwarming and powerful, especially when Wesley confronted his shooter, and his relationship with his daughter brought a tear or two to my eyes.

I still loved the episode and will remain a die-hard Fab Five fan. I’m just hoping the next inclusive episode does the disabled community and culture more justice.

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