When I was six months old, an ophthalmologist told my mom to "put her in a home and try again." Thirty-seven years and a master's degree later, I am incredibly grateful my parents did not take this advice. Life has not been perfect. Is anyone's? But I am proud of who I am. I know my parents are too.
Growing up as the only blind child in the entire school system had its challenges in the days before anti-bullying campaigns. None of my classmates had ever met a blind person before. Frankly, I had only met a few. For several years, I attended a summer camp for blind kids. There, I was surrounded by kids like me, who understood me but who were also just kids. The rest of the year, there were no blind people to be found, or people with any disability for that matter. No blind classmates, teachers, or strangers on the street. No characters on TV, in movies, or in books.
Disability representation has increased somewhat in recent years thanks to activism and the focus on the Disability Employment Initiative (DEI). However, the shocking 70% unemployment rate among blind people has seemingly not budged in years. October’s National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and other efforts are working to change that, but progress is slow. Blind and disabled people often face discrimination in the job market.
Representation has increased in disability-focused nonprofits, which are realizing that they should employ the people for whom they are supposedly serving. What a novel concept! Disability activists applied the slogan “Nothing about us without us” to the disability rights movement in the 1990s, signaling the idea that disability policies, laws, decisions, or actions should not be enacted without the buy-in of disabled people. A nonprofit whose mission is to serve and positively impact the lives of blind people should employ more than 15% blind people. In my opinion, the majority of an organization’s workforce should come from the demographic that the organization seeks to benefit.
But representation alone is not enough. An organization comprised of 51% disabled people whose leadership team is entirely nondisabled isn’t much better than an organization with only 15% disabled people on staff. It’s equally important, if not more so, that an organization’s board and leadership team be representative of those it serves. The board and the executives make the big decisions that shape the organization's future.
One disabled person on the leadership team is not good enough. One person cannot and should not represent the needs or thoughts of all disabled people, just as one woman cannot represent all women, or one Kentuckian cannot represent all Kentuckians. Multiple voices and different perspectives need to be heard.
We deserve more than just a seat at the table – real equity demands that we sit at the head of the table. Bringing Justice Home is a great example of an organization that is truly committed to equity at all levels.
By: Marissa Slaughter
About: "Born with low vision, I am passionate about empowering all people with disabilities. I've spent most of my career in various nonprofit roles, all with the end goal of full equity for disabled people, especially blind people. Writing in its various forms has been the focus of many of my positions. I've written everything from short and engaging tweets to detailed grant proposals.
In addition to my current role as Senior Grant Writer, I also promote accessibility and advocate for the full inclusion of disabled people. I am particularly passionate about accessibility in the arts. I serve on the Louisville Cultural Accessibility Committee and an internal committee to increase accessibility of museums and other cultural sites for blind visitors. My educational background in history and museums, as well as my status as a blind person with some functional vision, allows me to bring to the table a nuanced understanding of inclusive arts."
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