upon the tyrannous principle that the genetically 'unclean' are to be erased. In this nightmarish scenario a high priesthood of doctors and clinicians will see to it that the non-disabled are freed of the hereditary pollution presented by the disabled population.

This is a frightening prospect, but not impossible. Genetic screening is now commonplace in much of the developed world; and discrimination against the disabled is still manifest in many states and cultures. Whether this discrimination is manifested in terms which are social or economic, medical or political, Shaban voices the concern of many in the disabled community that the awful craft of eugenics, as practiced by the Nazi regime, will slowly but surely come to pass once more.

It will be reached by no less than the most insidious path, which will witness the disabled citizen become increasingly marginalised until sterilisation proposals and euthanasia programmes are welcomed as the most loving of things to do.

Avoiding this deadly trajectory and encouraging open and frank debate

on the nature of disability is part and parcel of Shaban's campaigning on disabled rights. It is a campaign which is at once personal and professional.

In 1980 he co-founded the disabled theatre company Graeae to help bring about his ambition to become a professional actor; it was an achievement which has had lasting consequences. As a skilled thespian on both stage and screen he has helped to raise the profile of disabled citizens' rights, providing much needed momentum for the ongoing struggle for genuine equality.

As much a philosopher of society as a shrewd playwright, Shaban has long since extended the remit of his influence to the field of documentary making. In 1989 he visited the Roman Catholic pilgrimage site at