Disabled and Proud!

By Linda Glevy

“I had a great experience at the event” seems like a pretty simple statement to make. For many disabled members of our community, however, this is quite an uncommon experience, if they are even able to attend an event in the first place. Last year I was so excited to hear “I am really grateful that Pride sees the value in providing a space for disabled and neurodivergent members of the community” and many similar sentiments from attendees, after we added new and improved accessibility services to our events. The joy and surprise I see in attendees’ faces as they realize we have what they need, when they are so often denied that, has shown me the importance of intentional accessibility. I am so grateful to be a part of the Accessibility Team at San Diego Pride, and to be able to work towards continually improving our accessibility services year after year.

As we wrap up this San Diego Pride season, we invite you to continue Making History Now by celebrating Disability Pride Month with us. On July 26, only 34 years ago, the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law. This important step in Disability Justice history came from advocacy efforts led by disabled activists in collaboration with many other activist and community care groups, including the Black Panthers and LGBTQIA+ activists. Our histories of advocacy and justice are and continue to be intertwined.

This month we celebrate this step towards equity while recognizing that there is still much more to be done to achieve the vision these activists had in mind. Especially in the LGBTQIA+ community, where 36% are disabled, compared to 24% of the general population, disabled folks are often left out of LGBTQIA+ spaces. At San Diego Pride, we are dedicated to ensuring everyone in our community can participate in and have a wonderful experience at our events and our year-round programs. We hope you were able to utilize our many Accessibility services at our events this year if you needed them.

If you’d like to get more involved, we have many ways to do so for all members of our community. For Disabled LGBTQIA+ folks, we invite you to join our Disabled LGBTQIA+ Coalition. Established just under a year ago, this group has been a connector and safe place for many folks who have been unable to find a place where they can be their full selves. The Coalition meets monthly on Zoom and has also been able to volunteer together at a puppy adoption event, speak at conferences sharing about Accessibility, create signs together in a park, and participate in the Pride Parade this year! 

To learn more about Disability Justice and the advocacy needed, you can review our resources at sdpride.org/disabilityjustice. Here are some ways you can get involved in advocacy efforts to support our disabled community members:

• Join the Disabled LGBTQIA+ Coalition to attend meetings and receive report backs on legislation and county actions impacting disabled queer and trans people in California.
• Join our Advocacy Team to advocate for important issues all year long.

Lastly, we could use your help on our Accessibility team for our Pride events next year! Email Accessibility@sdpride.org for more information about ways to get involved.

Disabled folks are an important part of our LGBTQIA+ community and deserve to be included in our advocacy, our joy, our planning, our celebration, and our PRIDE!