This Black History Month, we are reflecting upon the fact that Black liberation and disability justice frameworks have always been linked. Concepts of race and disability have been used to justify discrimination throughout history. Bodies and their perceived functionality were weaponized to uphold slavery in the Trans-Atlantic slave trade; false notions of black peoples’ inferior intellectual capabilities meant that Black people were legally considered less than human. Time and again, Black people have been harmed by medical and societal institutions[1].

Here in Canada, we have a similar history of the deployment of racism and ableism as tools to perpetuate harms. The Alberta Sterilization Act[2], repealed in 1972, predominantly impacted Black and Indigenous women with disabilities, and allowed for sterilization to occur without their will, knowledge, or consent. Today, Black and racialized people with disabilities have some of the highest unemployment rates[3]. Many are forced to live in legislated poverty with social assistance rates that are below the poverty line. Though these conditions impact Canadians with disabilities of all races, its impact can particularly be felt amongst Black and Indigenous Canadians with disabilities. Black and Indigenous Canadians with disabilities also have disproportionate amounts of fatal interactions with policing institutions and corrections, many of which start off as mental health calls.[4] Specifically, D’Andre Campbell[5], Abdirahman Abdi[6], and Soliman Faqiri[7] come to mind as examples.

Ableism also disproportionately impacts racialized people on a global scale. Across the world, wars and genocides in countries including Palestine, Sudan, and Congo will result in mass disability rates.

Black people with disabilities have always been leaders in resistance. Many Black freedom fighters, like Harriet Tubman, were known to live with disabilities that were often caused by their enslavement. In her case, she lived with a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and was instrumental in freeing hundreds of slaves through the underground railroad [8]. During the civil rights movement, the 504 protests occurred, where people with disabilities occupied a federal building for over a month to push for the adoption of legislation that would protect the public rights of people with disabilities. During these protests, the Black Panthers, a Black focused movement based civil rights organizations, supported the 504 protests by providing food and resources to the protesters [9]. The Black Panthers also focused on health and disability rights advocacy, leading nation-wide screenings for Sickle Cell Anemia in the Black community, inspiring calls for Federal funding and research for a cure [10].

Lastly, the creation of disability justice as a framework is an example of the link between Black and disability-based resistance work. Disability Justice as a framework was created by Black and racialized, disabled and queer artists in San Francisco. [11]. The creation of this framework paved the way for disability rights work to move away from rights-based analyses and created the move toward a justice-based analyses with inclusion-based frameworks in relation to disability organizing. 

Racism and its historical context cannot be separated from systemic ableism and its historical context.  This connection has also linked the struggles of Black and racialized disabled people throughout history and has forever linked Black liberation and disability justice organizing today, both in Canada and across the world. Black people with disabilities are a large part of the disability community. It is our role as advocates for racial and disability justice to acknowledge the intersections that continue to intertwine our movements for an ableism-free world together.

To learn more about these connections, check out the following books:

• Black Disability Politics by Samantha Dawn Schalk
• Black skin, white masks by Frantz Fanon
• DisCrit : disability studies and critical race theory in education by David J. Connor, Beth A. Ferri, and Subini A. Annamma, editors.
• The Right to Maim: Debility, Capacity, Disability Hardcover by Jasbir K Puar
• Blackness and disability: critical examinations and cultural interventions edited by Christopher M. Bell.
• Embodied injustice: race, disability, and health by Mary Crossley.

[1] What Was Drapetomania? The Racist Pseudoscience of Slavery-Era America — Simply Put Psych

[2] Sterilization of Indigenous Women in Canada | The Canadian Encyclopedia

[3] Research — Race and Disability Canada

[4] Tracking (In)Justice: Documenting Fatal Encounters with Police in Canada | Canadian Journal of Law and Society / La Revue Canadienne Droit et Société | Cambridge Core

[5] D’Andre Campbell fatally shot by police in Brampton home after calling for help, family says | Globalnews.ca

[6] The Abdirahman Abdi inquest: A day-by-day guide | CBC News

[7] ‘No longer any doubt,’ says Soleiman Faqiri’s family as inquest deems Ontario jail death a homicide | CBC News

[8] The Tragic Injury Harriet Tubman Never Recovered From

[9] The 504 Protests and the Black Panther Party – Disability Social History Project

[10] Beyond Berets: The Black Panthers as Health Activists – PMC

[11] 10 Principles of Disability Justice | Sins Invalid

From curb cuts to bus routes to public space accessibility, decisions made at city hall impact the lives of people living with disabilities daily. Women Transforming Cities (WTC), a grassroots organization working to reshape who cities are built by and for is partnering with Live Educate Transform Society (LET’S), a nonprofit organization active in the disability, neurodivergent and 2SLGBTQIA+ communities to co-deliver a 90-minute interactive workshop on Disability Justice and local government.

To demystify what happens in our local governments, the workshop will cover:

• Important terms and key people at City Hall
• Ten principles of Disability Justice and discussion of how they apply to civic engagement
• How local decisions that affect the disability community are made and ways to influence those decisions
• Feedback channels to have your needs heard
• Resources available to reduce the barriers to civic engagement

Together, we will explore the issues that matter to you and how to advocate for Disability Justice at City Hall.

When: November 4th, 1 pm PT
Where: Zoom
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/mJ8kpOxIQzm_WkfJgXyjjA

Co-Facilitators

(L-R: Florence Li, Heather McCain)

Florence Li (she/her) is the Education Coordinator at Women Transforming Cities. She is an educator with a background in grassroots organizing and anti-racist advocacy. From facilitating in college classrooms and community settings to parenting two young children, as Education Coordinator at Women Transforming Cities (WTC), she strives to cultivate safer spaces that allow for curiosity and critical thinking to thrive. Through building civic literacy and knowledge sharing, she hopes to inspire participants to incite systemic change.

Heather McCain (they/them) is Executive Director of Live Educate Transform Society (LET’S), a non-profit they founded in 2005. Heather’s own experiences as an asexual, disabled, neurodivergent, queer, trans person led them to become a well-known and respected advocate, educator, and speaker. Heather is proudest to be called a Crip Doula. This is a community given Disability Justice term for someone who helps disabled people navigate our complex systems, providing resources, support, and building community. This title was gifted by community members who have felt the positive effects of Heather’s work.