The display case in the university library, directly opposite the service counter, has been restocked and has contained literature on the topic of social participation and social access since June 2025. The literature collection was compiled by the Diversity Department of the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar in cooperation with the University Library as part of the 2025 thematic focus on »Classism«. New acquisitions by the University Library have significantly expanded the collection on this topic.
Under the heading Social participation and access and the question: »Who has access to what? And what factors facilitate or prevent access?« the literature in the display case and the digital collection brings together the aspects of disadvantage and discrimination on the basis of social status/origin (classism) and on the basis of impairment and chronic illness (ableism).
Classism is based on the valuation/devaluation of different lifestyles and the resulting different forms of expression and behaviour in society; ableism is based on standardized notions of bodies and the valuation or devaluation of certain physical or mental abilities and constitutions. Social background or social status, an impairment or chronic illness have a significant influence on the extent to which people can actively participate in social and societal life. The social environment, the available (financial and other) resources and the barriers that people face determine, for example, which educational path they can take, what support and encouragement they receive and what opportunities they have to shape their own lives.
The collection invites you to engage with the topics of social participation and social access with a focus on social background and impairment/chronic illness and to integrate them into teaching, research and art. We look forward to working with you to further expand the collection of literature on the subject of social participation and social access. If you have any suggestions for acquisitions, please send them to us.
All books in the display case can be used, borrowed or reserved in the university library. The e-books in the digital literature collection can be read online or downloaded.
Digital Literature Collection