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Advocates from the disability community highlight why a disability lens is essential to all of our social justice work and what you can do to accelerate our collective impact and build a fully inclusive world.


Video discussion guide

This video seeks to galvanize our understanding of disability identity, connect disability to other issues of identity, and spark interest in disability-inclusive changes in social justice organizations. The video is open-source and available for anyone to share within their organization as part of a learning agenda.

Social Justice: What’s disability got to do with it?

Video Discussion Guide

The following questions can help facilitate small group discussions after viewing the video. There are no “right” answers—open dialogue and ongoing learning, however, are key. Feel free to pick and choose the questions your group finds most relevant.

Discussion questions

  • How does disability show up in your life? Is it something you find yourself thinking about?
  • How did the video make you feel about disability identity? Are there ideas or concepts that feel uncomfortable to you and why do you think that is?
  • How do you think disability identity is socially constructed, as opposed to simply a diagnosis? How might that impact your work?
  • In what ways is disability identity similar to other identities? In what ways is it different?
  • What are the different factors that might make disability self-disclosure difficult? How does that affect our work together toward social justice?

Toward organizational action

  • In what ways does our organization perpetuate ableism (intentionally or not)? How would we identify these policies, practices, and behaviors?
  • How might we begin to disaggregate data by disability or track our work with the disability community?
  • What is one change we can each commit to, given our roles in this organization?
  • What are the things you want to know more about?

Resources

Interested in learning more? Check out these resources:

  • Listen to Disability Rights Are Civil Rights, a podcast from the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
  • Read the report Civic Engagement and People with Disabilities: A Way Forward through Cross-Movement Building published by the Lurie Institute for Disability Policy.
  • Read about the Disability Justice framework in the book Skin, Tooth, and Bone by Patty Berne and Sins Invalid or the article “What is Disability Justice?”. Sins Invalid also offers political workshops on issues such as Ableism and Disability Justice for Allies.
  • Read the Black Disabled Woman Syllabus, compiled by Ramp Your Voice’s Villisa Thompson, to find resources, readings, and additional information at the nexus of race, gender, and disability.
  • Learn about the Inclusion@Work Framework from the Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN), which outlines the key components of a disability-inclusive workplace, along with strategies to achieve them.
  • Explore inclusive employment resources and advice on how to make meetings and events more accessible, collated by the Presidents’ Council on Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy.
  • Follow disability twitter hashtags like #CripTheVote, #SpoonieChat, and #NoBodyIsDisposable to track what the community is discussing.

We encourage you to share Social Justice: What’s Disability Got to Do with It? using the hashtag #DisabilityDemandsJustice​. To continue your learning journey around disability inclusion, please visit There Is No Justice without Disability.

This piece is part of Disability Demands Justice, a dynamic, ever-evolving hub to deepen our understanding of how disability intersects with social justice.

Explore the stories

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Keri Gray, a young black woman with a prosthetic limb that is metal near the top and foam-covered blow, blending in with her skin tone. She’s wearing a red romper with a black headwrap. Next to her is copy in a black circle that reads "We're fighting for all of you, not just some of you."

Intersectionality & Disability, featuring Keri Gray, the Keri Gray Group

Around the globe, people living with disabilities experience inequality in all its forms. Understanding intersectionality is essential to true inclusion. By centering those most marginalized and taking an intersectional approach in designing solutions, we can advance justice for all.

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Left to right: Keri Gray, Sara Minkara, Alice Wong, Ryan Easterly, and Lawrence Carter-Long.

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Sara Minkara, a blind Lebanese-American woman wearing a white headscarf, holds her cane with both hands to her right while seated. Next to her is copy in a black circle that reads, "Disability is a beautiful part of our society. It's an asset."

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Dessa Cosma, a white disabled woman in a wheelchair with her hands gently collapsed in her lap. Next to her is copy in a black circle that reads "Everything that's wrong in our society was a set of choices. The beautiful thing is we can make different choices."

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Alice Wong, an Asian American woman in a wheelchair wearing a mask over her nose attached to a tube for a BiPAP machine that helps her breathe. She is wearing a navy striped shirt and dark pants. Next to her is copy in a black circle that reads "All people need to exercise their right to speak out."

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Rebecca Cokley has shoulder-length reddish hair, is wearing a black blazer over a burgundy dress, and is sitting on a chair. Next to her is copy in a black circle that reads, "This is not a call-out. This is a call-in."

Your Values & Disability, featuring Rebecca Cokley, Center for American Progress

Disability needs to be included in the work of social justice. Through a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and establishing organizational policies and practices, we can address challenges to accessibility and create an inclusive future.