Sarah E. Silverman

Date: Friday September 22 | Time: 12pm-1:15pm Eastern US/ 11am Central/ 10am Mountain/ 9am Pacific

Have you seen the phrases “Disability Rights” and “Disability Justice” and wondered what they mean? Even though these phrases are often used interchangeably, the framework of Disability Justice actually emerged as a critique of Disability Rights. While the Disability Rights movement helped win major victories in terms of employment and access to public accommodations, it focuses on individual rights and disability as a “single issue.” Disabled activists of color coined Disability Justice to denote an approach to disability activism that is explicitly intersectional and focused on the experiences of multiply marginalized disabled people who are less likely to be included in a legal or rights-based framework.

This session will provide participants an overview of the emergence of Disability Justice and current areas of Disability Justice activism, along with some commentary on how Disability Justice could transform educational spaces. The session will conclude with discussion prompts and a discussion space with multiple ways to participate.

Access notes: This event is remote, and will be held on Zoom. All materials will be provided ahead of time in an accessible format. Chat will be enabled for the Zoom meeting, and cameras will not be required. We will also have live captioning. Breakout rooms will not be used. There will be one scheduled break during the event. At the end of the talk there will be 30 minutes reserved for discussion, with many ways of participating encouraged (including but not limited to speech, text, and working in a an accessible collaborative online space). Please let me know about any access needs using my contact form.

Timing and recording: I am planning this session to be a brief 45 min introduction to the topic, with 30 minutes planned for discussion and reflection after the talk. I am happy to make a recording for those interested.

Please register for the event on Zoom.

This event is free, but a $10 donation is appreciated to help cover the costs of live transcription and my time. Please send donations to @sarah-silverman-6 on Venmo or @silvermansarah on PayPal.