My social justice project is to provide an equitable visitor experience for the disabled community at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (an educational institution and a museum. This page is dedicated to introducing the audience to myself and highlight some of the the identities I possess.
First, I am a husband and a father of three little girls. I am a Black man who is college educated and a museum professional. I am here to “Educate the present about the past in order to enhance the future.” As a historian this is my professional philosophy and something that I have been able to apply to my life and career as a museum professional at an educational institution. As a communication and information professional the integration of diversity and inclusion is very important in my career and professional journey. To properly tell the American story, all the different histories and experiences must be included in the overall narrative. As information continues to become mainstream and more and more people are beginning to understand that the textbooks from our k-12 experience did not tell the whole story and many times purposely left out pertinent information because either it highlighted someone who was not a WASP or showed the dehumanizing aspects of White Supremacy. As our world becomes more diverse it is necessary for organizations like mine to be reflective of the struggles, oppression, triumphs, and overcoming of all peoples worldwide and their contributions to the history of the world. Thus, in essence we are exploring our differences to come to realize our similarities.
Disability rights are Civil Rights. Fifteen percent of the worlds population has a disability (www.worldbank.org). This is the largest minority group in the world. The problem is that they do not function as the largest minority group in the world. If these groups could and would come together as a mass organization then they could collectively have their interests fulfilled. This minority group has the most diverse demographic and permeates every aspect of society. Focusing on this population gaining equity and using universal design to be inclusive would bridge the ableism gap in the world.
I am the Education Director and Trainer at my organization the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and I am responsible for outreach and educational programming. My organization is a museum and educational institute, with a 68,000 square foot permanent gallery. I feel that disability rights is the Civil Rights issue of our time and every disabled individual should have what they need to be successful and in a museum setting to have a comparable experience to any non-disabled person.
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