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Black History Month

Highlighting African Americans with Disabilities in Honor of Black History Month

Headshot of Daymon John in grayscale with text: #RespectTheAbility, “I see the world in a different way than most people and for me, that’s been a positive thing.” - Daymond John, Black History Month 2018

“I see the world in a different way than most people and for me, that’s been a positive thing.” – Shark Tank star and businessman Daymond John, who has Dyslexia

View 2021 Release: https://www.respectability.org/2021/02/black-history-month-2021.

Rockville Md., Feb. 5 – As we celebrate Black History Month, which takes place every February, RespectAbility recognizes the contributions made and the important presence of African Americans to the United States. It is important to note this includes more than 5.6 million African Americans living with a disability in the U.S., 3.4 million of which are working-age African Americans with disabilities. Therefore, we would like to reflect on the realities and challenges that continue to shape the lives of African Americans with disabilities.

Only 28.7 percent of working-age African Americans with disabilities are employed in the U.S. compared to 72 percent of working-age African Americans without disabilities. This is in line with the rest of the country, with fully one-in-five Americans having a disability and just 30 percent of those who are working-age being employed, despite polls showing that most of them want to work. This leads to approximately 40 percent of African Americans with disabilities living in poverty compared to 22 percent of African Americans without disabilities.

headshot of Haben Girma wearing a blue dress and pearls

Deafblind lawyer Haben Girma advocates for inclusion in both education and Hollywood.

For many of the 1,199,743 black students (K-12) with disabilities in America today, the deck is stacked against them. Frequently “invisible disabilities” such as ADHD are not diagnosed and students do not get the supports they need to achieve. Frustrated, they can act out and become suspended. African American students with disabilities are disproportionately impacted by suspension in schools, with more than one in four boys of color with disabilities — and nearly one in five girls of color with disabilities — receiving an out-of-school suspension.

Studies show that when students miss too many days, either for being truant or just being absent, they get so far behind in class that it can lead to them dropping out of school. As documented in Disability & Criminal Justice Reform: Keys to Success, this can lead to the school-to-prison pipeline. Today there are more than 750,000 people with disabilities behind bars in America. Many of them do not have high school diplomas, are functionally illiterate and are people of color.

Harriet Tubman standing and posing for a picture wearing a long dress

Harriet Tubman did not let her epileptic seizures stop her from risking her life to free slaves through the underground railroad.

Overall, only 65 percent of students with disabilities graduate high school compared to 84 percent of students without disabilities. However, only 57 percent of black students with disabilities graduate high school compared to 74.6 percent of black students without disabilities.

Some celebrities and business leaders are using their voice to share their stories, educating people about both visible and invisible disabilities. They are defying the statistics and have remained highly successful with their disabilities. These role models make a big difference in setting high expectations for youth with disabilities. People with disabilities of all backgrounds can be amongst the highest achievers on earth. Harriet Tubman had Epilepsy, actress Halle Berry lives with diabetes, business leader and Shark Tank superstar Daymond John is dyslexic and Stevie Wonder is blind. Each of them is a positive role model for success. They are perfect candidates for RespectAbility’s #RespectTheAbility campaign, which is shining a light on individuals with disabilities who are succeeding in their chosen careers.

Halle Berry headshot smiling facing the camera with gold hoop earrings

Well-known actress Halle Berry has both Type One Diabetes and hearing loss.

Our nation’s economy is strongest when it is inclusive of the value that diverse talent brings to the workplace. These celebrities are making a difference in how audiences perceive disability. However, companies including Amazon, Starbucks, Pepsi, J.P. MorganChase, Walmart and others exemplify these values and have specific programs to hire, cultivate and promote people with disabilities. What these businesses have found is that employees with disabilities are loyal, successful and help them make more money.

The celebrities mentioned above are especially important to acknowledge during Black History Month. However, their work should be valued and appreciated year-round. RespectAbility will be highlighting additional African American celebrities, as well as those who have made important policy advancements, with disabilities throughout the entire month.

View https://www.respectability.org/category/respecttheability/ for more.

Meet the Author

Lauren Appelbaum

Lauren Appelbaum is the VP, Communications and Entertainment & News Media, of RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities so all people with disabilities can fully participate in every aspect of community. As an individual with an acquired nonvisible disability – Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy – she works at the intersection of disability, employment, Hollywood and politics. She regularly conducts trainings on the why and how to be more inclusive and accessible for entertainment executives throughout the industry. Appelbaum partners with studios, production companies and writers’ rooms to create equitable and accessible opportunities to increase the number of people with lived disability experience throughout the overall story-telling process. These initiatives increase diverse and authentic representation of disabled people on screen, leading to systemic change in how society views and values people with disabilities. She has consulted on more than 100 TV episodes and films with A&E, Bunim-Murray Productions, NBCUniversal, Netflix, ViacomCBS, and The Walt Disney Company, among others. She represents RespectAbility on the CAA Full Story Initiative Advisory Council, Disney+ Content Advisory Council, MTV Entertainment Group Culture Code and Sundance Institute’s Allied Organization Initiative. She is the author of The Hollywood Disability Inclusion Toolkit and the creator of an innovative Lab Program for entertainment professionals with disabilities working in development, production and post-production. She is a recipient of the 2020 Roddenberry Foundation Impact Award for this Lab. To reach her, email LaurenA@RespectAbility.org.

11 comments… add one
  • Yvette Mar 20, 2018, 10:32 am

    Thank you for posting this and for all you do! I’ve already shared this with our (global) Special Populations audience. As a woman of color with a (newly acquired) disAbility, I’m a triple threat to many and asset to some. In either case, I use my Intersection of #SuperPowers for good. As such, I’d like to SHARE a similar Respectability article for (differently-abled) Women’s HerStory Month on my social media platforms.
    ~ Yvette P.

  • Angela Feb 28, 2019, 9:12 am

    Please consider updating your list to include US Olympic Hall of Fame Olympian Wilma Rudolph.

  • Lindsay Moeletsi Dunn Mar 16, 2020, 6:06 pm

    You might want to look up Dr. Glenn Anderson the first African American Deaf person to earn a doctorate degree. Dr. Anderson is a truly extraordinary gentleman and you would certainly enjoy interviewing him about his remarkable career. Dr Shirley Allen was the first Deaf woman to earn her doctorate. Also the remarkable McCaskill sisters, Drs. Carolyn and Angela McCaskill. Dr. Carolyn McCaskill is one of the co authors of the book Black ASL which gives a historical account of the sign language used among Black Deaf people during segregation. I believe they are the first Black Deaf siblings to earn doctorate degrees.

  • Michelle Smith Feb 1, 2022, 10:07 am

    Thank you. This is awesome!

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