I'm tired of hearing "well people are uncomfortable with disability bc they're not exposed to disabled ppl." If disability matters then invest in us. Make it a point to hire us. Make it a point to give us platforms. 1/7
There are so many of us wedged out of the academy from undergrad to grad school and beyond. So many of us who are highly qualified to teach in disability studies related fields. So many of us that WOULD expose students to disabled scholars/mentors/advocates. 2/7
Fight to add Disability Studies departments, minors, and majors at your university. It infuriates me that roughly 20 percent of undergrads are disabled and they don't get to learn about their culture, history, or people. If I had taken #DisHist and #DisabilityStudies courses 3/7
In undergrad maybe I would have felt more secure in my identity as I learned I was disabled. Maybe I would have felt less hopeless about my future. Maybe I would have felt more connected to a whole history of people fighting for #DisabilityRights. 4/7
I wasn't exposed to those resources until I found them myself during my PhD. I didn't get a disabled mentor. I didn't get to learn under disabled scholars. It would have made a difference in the way I saw myself, the disabled community, and my future. I was denied that. 5/7
If we suddenly removed gender studies depts we would say there's a visible gap in our curriculum. If we stopped writing about race or sexuality we'd say that our research is lacking. Why don't we say the same about disability? Why is a DS framework less valid? 6/7
I'm tired of being told my culture is misunderstood because of a lack of presence while I simultaneously watch disabled ppl shoved out of the academy. If you want our perspectives, call us to the table. Or stop pretending you want them at all. 7/7 #AcademicChatter #HigherEd
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