More than ever, workplaces are incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives into the operations framework of their organization. DEI becomes a guideline for employing a workforce comprised of individuals with a range of differences, most commonly identified as gender, religion, race, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, education, and others. The statistics on the positive impact…
Ableism is more than a definition. More insidious. More careless. More divisive. _________ Ableism is being told directly: You are not “disabled enough.” I don’t see you “that way.” People with disabilities are “deformed”, “defective”, “crippled”, “handicapped”. “Even as a white woman with a disability, you have no place in the diversity conversation.” “Disability doesn’t…
I had the incredible opportunity to do a TEDx talk this month. The theme for TEDxDupreePark was “Seeds of Greatness”; I shared my Idea Worth Spreading: When I Stopped Hiding, I Found Freedom. But, even more, significant than my speaking opportunity, was what I gained personally from my experience that day. My 3 Lessons: 1)…
On Saturday, I found myself outside of City Hall in NYC with hundreds of others rallying for Reproductive Rights. We were there to protest Texas’ very polarizing abortion law, which severely limits a woman’s access to own her healthcare. The law makes it nearly impossible to terminate a pregnancy after six weeks no matter the…
Is there room in our conversations about diversity for disability? When I have asked whether people see me as diverse, the answer I usually get is related to my gender, not my limb difference. During a presentation I gave a couple of years ago, an audience member questioned whether disability really belongs in conversations of…
The Internet was abuzz this weekend with the new video by Childish Gambino. This is America pointedly represents the serious tragedies and resilience in the face of oppression and violence–it is deep and heavy, courageous, and filled with subtle and not so subtle messages. In 2018, I wonder who dares to stand up, express outrage,…
