‘You’re always fighting to be recognized’: a young blind man’s journey of upward mobility and intersectional activism

Abstract

The author presents a case study of an in-depth interview conducted with David, a young blind man who has faced multiple and interacting forms of inequity. David’s experiences of blindness have carved out a path of upward economic mobility, as he gained cultural capital through a blind person’s organization in the United States. In addition, David’s experience of developing a political perspective on his disability was formative in shaping his process of coming out as queer and becoming active in Latinx issues and politics. David has gained critical skills in bringing intersectional perspectives to multiple activist communities to which he belongs. The author illuminates the importance of recognizing how culture matters in shaping the life trajectories of individuals with disabilities, which go beyond additive models of oppression.

Points of interest

• Disabled people belong to multiple communities, but researchers have too often treated disability as a singular identity.

• Activist communities have also been slow to recognize that people’s backgrounds interact with disability.

• The participant’s journey to developing a positive disability identity had a profound impact on other aspects of his identity, including his social class position, his gay identity, and his advocacy around immigration issues.

• The participant’s experiences and advocacy within activist communities illuminates how various forms of inequity intersect.

Keywords:

• Blind
• intersectionality
• Latinx
• USA

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.