Martin Luther King Jr. Day, celebrated this year on January 20, is a day to look back on the movement for civil rights in the United States and its achievements, and reflect on the goals of the movement that have not yet been reached. For the disability community, Dr. King’s life and work can serve as both an inspiration and a cautionary tale.
The fight for Black equality is still unfinished, but through the bravery of countless people throughout the last century, our country has come closer to Dr. King’s dream. Similarly, the fight for equality for people with disabilities and a world where everyone can be Known, Valued, and Included continues.
When Rev. Dr. King said that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice anywhere,” he summed up his beliefs about how to organize for change. Central to this is the idea of solidarity: standing with a person or group that you yourself may not be a part of or from which you may not benefit. Dr. King’s focus in his life was on the civil, legal, and economic rights of Black Americans, but over and over he reached out to, and formed coalitions with, other groups that had different stated goals, such as sanitation workers on strike in Memphis, the American Jewish community, and indigenous people in the United States.
By helping other groups take steps towards their own goals, the civil rights movement shows us that all of these struggles are shared and come from a common source. As Dr. King said, “It is not possible to be in favor of justice for some people and not be in favor of justice for all people.”
The disability community is unique because a person with a disability can be any race, gender, age, or sexuality. “Person with a disability” is the only group that anybody can join at any time, which is one reason it is so important for everyone to make sure that people with disabilities have equal access, treatment, and opportunities.
When a person with a disability is also a racial minority or a member of some other marginalized group, their struggle can be even more complicated. By making sure that people with disabilities have equal rights and treatment, we can help the social movement towards the equal rights and treatment of all people. Dr. King’s life and work are inspirational to anyone struggling for justice!
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