Please find a description of this workshop below and contact me if you are interested in bringing this learning opportunity to your campus or organization.
Disability Rights vs. Disability Justice for Educators
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 workshop 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.
Facilitator Bio:
Sarah Silverman (she/her) is a teacher and instructional designer currently teaching Disability Studies at University of Michigan – Dearborn. Her teaching and research interests include UDL and accessibility, feminist and disability-informed teaching methods, and anti-surveillance pedagogy. She has studied at McGill University, UC Davis, and City University of New York, and currently resides in New Haven, CT.
Sarah E. Silverman 