Catalogue Number
NMLH.2025.4.5
Object Name
leaflet
Title
'Dead people don't claim. #StopAndScrap Universal Credit Before it claims you... DPAC. Disabled People Against Cuts'
Place
UK
People
Conservative Party, Ian Duncan Smith, Department of Work and Pensions, Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC)
Events
Austerity (2010s)
Description
A leaflet with red and white text which reads 'Dead People Don't Claim. "People are dying waiting for their claims." Drew Hendry MP. 'economic murder' British Medical Journal. 'human catastrophe' United Nations. #StopAndScrap Universal Credit Before it claims you'. The DPAC logo - a black downward pointing triangle with four fists extending from it, gripping a multi-coloured circle is in the bottom right corner.
This leaflet was created by the disabled people's activist group Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC), to oppose the introduction of Universal Credit, a new welfare benefit which was introduced in the 2010s that negatively impacted disabled people, as it is paid at lower amounts as a way to force claimants to accept any work - something that is not tailored to accommodate disabled claimants who can't work, as previous benefits like Employment Support Allowance were. The quotes from the British Medical Journal and United Nations highlight the widely known negative impact the ideologically driven benefits reform in the UK was having on disabled people.
DPAC was formed after the 3 October 2010 protest against austerity in Birmingham, England. This was the first mass protest against austerity cuts and the impact they had on disabled people. DPAC is led by disabled people. Their mission statement is: 'Disabled people should not be the scapegoats for the financial mistakes of governments, should not be constantly told that there is no money to support them by millionaire politicians. We will not tolerate further erosion of our living conditions or our human rights, nor will we sit quietly while they try to take our rights away.'
Austerity is a policy of reducing spending on public services, including those relied upon by disabled people to live full and independent lives. It was a major feature of the Conservative government's agenda led by David Cameron, beginning in 2010. The black triangle used by DPAC in their logo was a symbol used by the Nazis to mark out 'anti-social' and 'work-shy' people in concentration camps, a category that included Roma and Sinti people, homeless people, unemployed people who were viewed as evading work, and sex workers. This symbol has been used by disabled activist groups in the UK as they view government policies and rhetoric around forcing disabled people into employment to be deeming them as work shy rather than unable to work due to impairment or societal barriers.
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