The Intersection of Blackness, Disability, & Gender

This is an emerging subject area. We aim to bridge the knowledge and service gap with critical research and partnerships centring Disability Justice and the unique experiences of Black Canadians with disabilities.

The Ase Community is well positioned to support organizations that work with Black Canadians with disabilities. We are focused on working to collectively advance their overall well-being, economic engagement, and full participation.

Ase Community is committed to collaborating with both community and institutional partners to mobilize research and services to develop a holistic understanding of the intersectional experiences of Black Canadians with disabilities; as well as develop inclusive and culturally responsive services.

We Believe

The Black Diaspora & Disability

The Black Diaspora in Canada, including individual and collective experiences are uniquely diverse and intersectional. This also includes Black folk with disabilities - both visible and invisible (diverse learning, mental health and disorders, and chronic illness including sickle cell disease and Lupus).

Our approaches, definitions, and policies are rooted in lived intersectional experiences and Black-led research and community, and will be reviewed and updated periodically.

Our values, strategic goals, policies, and work are grounded in these equity-seeking approaches and concepts, centring Blackness and Disability Justice.

Frameworks

We strategically centre our work around the experiences of Black people with disabilities and work from a “For us, By us” approach that engages our community at all levels of our organization. We are rooted in the values of interconnectedness and collective liberation, drawing on intersectional frameworks including Critical Race Theory, Disability Justice, Black Feminist Theory, and Gender Based Analysis +. We are working toward developing a Canadian approach to a critical Black Disability Feminist framework.