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ABA-Wide 21-Day Disability Equity Habit-Building Challenge ©

The ABA Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council is proud to launch a 21-Day Disability Equity Habit Building Challenge syllabus in honor of Disability Pride Month. This Challenge is modeled after the “21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge©,” which was conceived by diversity expert Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr. to advance deeper understandings of the intersections of race, power, privilege, supremacy, and oppression. We are grateful to Dr. Moore for publicly sharing and encouraging others to use this 21-day framework as an educational tool, including to advance learning across myriad diverse communities.

We invite ABA members and non-members, including non-lawyers, to participate in this Disability Equity Habit Building Challenge. Its goal is to assist each of us to become more aware and engaged in the quest for disability equity, and specifically to learn more about the issues that are important to members of the disability community—many of whom are from other marginalized communities—as well as the challenges, barriers, biases, stereotypes, and discrimination they encounter in everyday life. 

How It Works

The Challenge invites participants to complete a syllabus of short assignments (typically take up to 20 minutes) over 21 consecutive days, followed by additional resources and discussion questions. This syllabus is but an introduction to what we hope will be a rewarding journey that extends far beyond the limits of this project. It cannot highlight all the diversity of experiences and opinions within the disability community itself.

Participation is voluntary and shall not be construed as agreement with every word of every assignment nor a commitment by any person to a particular professional position or strategy. Participants are free to opt out of participating along the way. There is no grade at the end of the Challenge.

Disability Identity / Pride / Culture

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. In what ways is disability identity similar to—or different from—other identities based on characteristics or backgrounds like race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, etc.?
  2. How does disability identity build community and activism, and combat stigma, prejudice, and stereotypes?
  3. Are disability identity and pride connected? If so, how?
  4. Why is ASL so important to the Deaf culture? 

Intersectionality

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Why should we care about intersectionality?
  2. What are some ways in which multiply marginalized disabled people experience oppression and inequity?
  3. How does viewing disability with an intersectional lens inform advocacy?

 Ableism / Disability Justice

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. How does ableism harm disabled persons?
  2. In what ways is ableism linked to other systems of oppression?
  3. What ableist language or practices have you inadvertently used/engaged in?
  4. How is disability rights different than disability justice?
  5. How are disability justice and intersectionality connected?

Disability Language / Etiquette

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Why do you think non-disabled people avoid using the term “disability” and instead come up with other terms like “differently abled” or “differently challenged”?
  2. Should we use person-first or identity-first language? Who should we ask?
  3. Why do you think so many negative or pejorative terms are disability-related? (Ex. Blind, deaf, lame, stupid, idiot, moron, dumb, spaz, insane, crazy, retarded, etc.)
  4. Have you ever taken a course on disability etiquette?

Media Representation of Disability

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Can you name a disabled character in a movie or television series you watched?
  2. Should only disabled actors play disabled characters?
  3. How can movies, etc. portray disabled characters in ways that normalize being disabled, rather than having their disability define their character?

Disability Rights Laws

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. What federal and state disability laws are relevant to your profession, legal practice, or area of focus?
  2. Do you view complying with these laws as a floor or a ceiling in disability advocacy?
  3. Why do you think barriers continue to exist in spite of these laws?

Inclusion / Accessibility

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. How can inclusion and accessibility help dismantle inequity?
  2. Why do you think that disability, particularly accessibility, is often an afterthought or left out entirely from the diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts of businesses and employers?
  3. What are some ways accessibility benefits everyone in society?

Voting

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. How can multiply marginalized individuals work together to impact voting changes that improve accessibility for all?
  2. How can voting systems guarantee full confidentiality while also making voting fully accessible to all citizens, including disabled people?
  3. Is voting by mail the definitive answer for fully including disabled individuals in the electoral process?

Housing / Home- and Community-Based Services

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. How can living in their communities empower disabled persons and combat stereotypes, ableism, and discrimination?
  2. What reforms are necessary to ensure that disabled persons have access to fair housing and housing-related accommodations that promote their inclusion in the community while preserving their autonomy?
  3. How do accessible programs and services, including transportation, recreation, and health care, support inclusion of disabled persons in the community? 

Activism

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. When you learned about the civil rights movement, did you learn about people with disabilities and their fight for equal rights?
  2. Are there ways you can support disability activists using the law to implement systemic change? 
  3. How can marginalized communities come together to address shared injustices and fight oppression?
  4. Does society treat disability activism different from other types of activism?

Education

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Were you surprised by any of the current challenges that exist in special education?
  2. Should restraints and seclusion ever be used on disabled students? Why or why not?
  3. How do you think we can interrupt and dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline? 

Employment

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Do you have disability representation at your workplace?
  2. What are some ways that attitudes can be changed around disability and work?
  3. Were you aware that using AI in the hiring process can discriminate against people with disabilities?
  4. What are some things employers can do to make employees feel comfortable disclosing their disabilities? 

Health Care / Equity

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. How does ableism, biases, and stereotypes in the health care system result in inequities for persons with disabilities?
  2. What are some solutions to achieving health care equity for persons with disabilities?
  3. Do persons with disabilities with multiple identities face greater barriers to healthcare?

COVID-19

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Should employers allow remote work as a reasonable accommodation for disabled persons? Under what circumstances?
  2. Were you aware that long Covid may constitute a covered disability under the ADA? 

Victimization of Disabled

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Why do you think crimes against disabled persons, particularly women, are on the rise?
  2. How are hate crimes and violence connected to ableism?
  3. Does your state have hate crime legislation that includes disability?

Police Interactions with People with Disabilities

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Why is it important to view people as having complex identities when discussing police reform?
  2. Should police collect data about incidents involving disabled persons?
  3. Why are crisis intervention teams preferred over police to respond to incidents involving disabled persons?
  4. Where is the intersection between society’s responsibility and police response with respect to incidents involving disabled individuals?  

Prisons and Jails

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Are prisons the “new” institutions for people with mental health conditions?
  2. What steps do jails and prisons need to take to make sure they are accessible and inclusive for disabled individuals?
  3. What diversionary efforts can states employ to disrupt incarceration rates for disabled individuals?

Civil Commitment

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Do you believe that involuntary commitment prevents large-scale violence and keeps society safer?
  2. Is forced treatment helpful or harmful for society at large? For the patient?
  3. Has involuntary commitment become the “solution” to the lack of mental health supports and treatments in the community?
  4. Does involuntary commitment constitute a criminalization of mental health?

Guardianship / Conservatorship / Supported Decision-Making

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Does guardianship and conservatorship reflect society’s ableist views of disability?
  2. Why do you think it is so difficult to terminate guardianships and conservatorships and to have a right to self-determination restored?
  3. How does supported decision-making promote the principle of self-determination?

Reproductive Rights

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Should sexual and reproductive rights be guaranteed to persons with disabilities?
  2. How are women with disabilities impacted by state abortion bans? 

International Disability Rights / Immigration

Additional Resources

Discussion Questions

  1. Do you think the United States should ratify the CRPD? Why or why not?
  2. How can the United States and the international community collaborate and learn from one another in the fight for disability rights?
  3. How does ableism inform U.S. immigration policy?
  4. Were you aware of the plight of disabled refugees?