Impact of Intersectionality

We also need to consider that not everyone with a disability experiences their disability similarly. There are obvious ways that this manifests for people with ID, as illuminated in the previous section, but there are others. Crenshaw (1989) coined the term intersectionality to describe the experience of Black womanhood. Being Black and female are separate aspects of identity. Neither can be considered in isolation. Put differently, every person’s identity intersects to make them who they are and how they experience the world. These other identities that a person has in addition to their disability impact how they experience their disability, and how people perceive and treat them.

To illustrate how intersecting patterns of oppression target students at the margins of Whiteness and ability, let us return to Emily Ladau (2022). She shares, “I’m a disabled, straight, w hite, Jewish, cisgender woman (meaning I identify as the gender that I was assigned at birth), so the ways I experience life are different from the experiences of disabled people who are, to name just a few examples, Black, or transgender, or Muslim, or Indigenous. I’m actually what many people might envision when they consider disability at surface level: a w hite, cisgender, wheelchair-using woman.” As a White disabled person, Emily is afforded privileges that people of color (both disabled and nondisabled) are not. Because her disability does not impact her ability to communicate verbally, she experiences privileges not shared with people who do not communicate verbally.

Many of those who began their professional lives working in special education, like me, recognized how students of color fared far less well than their White counterparts in schools. I also saw how disability functioned to “other” students whose differences were viewed from a deficit lens. With that in mind, disability is often a political identity, socially constructed in tandem with race and class, with a heteronormative lens rather than in objective ways. The field of special education often ignores these issues, collectively and individually, resulting in the overrepresentation of children of color in special education, achievement/opportunity gaps, the school-to-prison pipeline, and discrepancies in the outcomes of disabled students of color (e.g., graduation, employment, college) (Annamma et al., 2018).

The tragic story of Wanda Jean Allen exemplifies how the intersecting patterns of oppression target students at the margins of Whiteness and ability, sometimes even leading to death. Goodwin (2003) shares that Wanda Jean was “Black, LGBTQ+, intellectually disabled, and poor,” which intersected in ways that caused her to be convicted and put to death for killing her girlfriend despite minimal evidence, a problematic defense, and her low IQ.  Given that an increasing number of girls are arrested for violent behavior in their homes, Wanda Jean’s story is even more concerning. Researchers have attributed this increase to mandatory arrest or pro-arrest policies in cases of family-based assault. As a result of these policies, many girls are arrested for fights in their homes when defending themselves against victimization or as part of a pattern of violence among family members. Although some defend detaining victimized girls because juvenile detention can provide protection or services, access to adequate services is severely limited; moreover, the system’s processes can re-traumatize girls, and some incarcerated girls report that they experience new incidents of abuse while in detention (Saar et al., 2015). Additionally, 40% of girls in juvenile detention identify as lesbian, bisexual, questioning/gender non-conforming, or transgender (LBQ/GNCT), and 85% of LBQ/GNCT girls in juvenile detention are girls of color. A California study found that 38% of LBQ/GNCT girls in detention had been removed from their homes because someone was hurting them, compared with 25% of their peers who do not identify as LBQ/GNCT (Sherman et al., 2015).

To prevent future tragedies and improve outcomes for all people, it is crucial to investigate new frameworks to learn more about intersecting patterns of oppression that target students at the margins of Whiteness, class, ability, and sexual orientation. Scholars and practitioners have since used disability critical race theory (DisCrit), rooted in intersectionality, to expose and dismantle entrenched educational inequities (Annamma et al., 2018). The aim is to fully account for how racism and ableism are interconnected and collusive normalizing processes. With that information, these systems can be dismantled, and others that are anti-racist can be created. To learn more about DisCrit, listen to the talk below given by Subini Annamma, an expert in the field.

Video: Excavating Possibilities: Disability Critical Race Theory (DisCrit) in Education (52:23)

Note. From the Othering and Belonging Institute.

Intersectionality has opened promising lines of inquiry for dismantling interlocking systems of oppression in education. Privilege and lack thereof take many forms, and we cannot discuss disability without constantly acknowledging the fact that humans are complex, with overlapping, intersecting identities and opportunities that influence how they perceive the world and how the world perceives them. As we prepare to consider educational programming for students with ID, be sure to pause and consider who they are as a whole person – every one of their identities that makes them who they are. Be cognizant of the impact of privilege and systemic inequities on these identities and their educational experiences.