

Evan Calder Williams: On Paralysis
Jul 29, 2025
Evan Calder Williams, an associate professor at Bard College and author of several influential books, delves into the nuanced concept of paralysis. He discusses its dual role as both a physical condition and a political tactic in protest movements. The conversation explores how paralysis intersects with labor crises and resistance within capitalist systems, as well as its implications for both able-bodiedness and disability in a technological age. Williams also reflects on how contemporary art challenges societal expectations around paralysis, revealing deeper cultural narratives.
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Paralysis as Strategic Refusal
- Paralysis acts as a deliberate, strategic form of immobility and refusal in political and infrastructural contexts.
- It embodies a powerful negative expressivity that challenges normal flows and circulation.
Rethinking Breakdown's Revelations
- Breakdown does not necessarily lead to new insight or knowledge.
- Overreliance on crisis visibility can obscure ongoing, less visible processes vital to systems and support.
Labor's Complex Paralysis and Sabotage
- Labor struggles use paralysis and sabotage as tactical interventions within systems they seek to disrupt.
- Sabotage reveals the internal contradictions of work processes, blending resistance with systemic inefficiencies.