Sunday, January 26, 2020

I am lucky enough to be an intern at Sins Invalid in Berkeley. Sins Invalid is an incredible disability justice performance project, led by disabled people of color and disabled people that identity as LGBTQ. Recently, Sins Invalid, directed by the amazing Patricia Berne, has published the magnificent disability justice book, entitled Skin, Tooth, and Bone: The Basis of Movement is Our People. This work clearly defines the ten principles of Disability Justice, including intersectionality, leadership of those most impacted, and collective access. “Skin, Tooth, and Bone” also has a great section on suggestions for access. Too frequently when members of society want to make events accessible, they only consider whether a person who uses a wheelchair can easily access it. We need to think about accessibility more broadly. When we are planning an event, we need to ensure we have ASL interpreters for people who are Deaf, documents written in Braille with image description for people who are blind or visually impaired. Additionally, we must think into consideration the needs of people who have sensitivity to environmental and sensory factors. This should be done by providing a low scented setting in addition to a quiet room where people can go to decompress. For more tips about making society more accessible, you can buy the second edition of “Skin, Tooth, and Bone” at https://www.sinsinvalid.org/disabilityjusticeprimer