Disability Advocacy in the Church: 6 Practical Actions
Content note: There is a discussion within the disability community related to using identity-first (“disabled person”) or person-first (“person with disabilities”) language. Additionally, some people reject the language of disability entirely and prefer terms such as “differently abled.” I strongly encourage referring to a person in the manner they ask to be referred to, but for referring to the community at large, the conversation gets more complex. For this post, I as the author have opted to use identity-first language as that is what I use in my daily life as a disabled person.
As we discussed last week, an attitude of full inclusion is vital to creating spaces of belonging for disabled people. Perhaps you are part of a church that has pursued forms of LGBTQ+ justice and inclusion in your communities. If so, you will recognize that the work of full inclusion starts with this first step: treat every person with the dignity they inherently have as a fully included child of God.
From that perspective of dignity, we can then build out a model of ways to include previously marginalized or excluded community members in our churches and faith communities. This piece discusses 6 practical ways we can move toward that justice and full inclusion, specifically for disabled community members (see if you can spot some similarities between this model of disability justice and LGBTQ+ justice in churches!).
For all congregation members:
If you are not disabled, adjust your perspective on disability.
Recognize that disability is not a monolith. People can be disabled at different times, in different ways, and will have varied types of lived experience, perspectives, and opinions.
Recognize also that disability is not always visible. There are likely disabled community members all around your church without you knowing it!
Recognize that disability is not limited to a category of “ministry” that able-bodied members opt-in to serving. Accommodations are not optional, they are necessary adjustments that we all make to ensure all children of God have equitable access to faith communities.
Get educated on how different disabilities affect different people within those communities.
Even if you live with one or more disabilities yourself, there is likely another disability or condition you don’t know much about. Look for resources created by a person that has lived experience of the disability you are researching. For example, the lived-experience resources on autism that can be found here were incredibly helpful for me as I sought a diagnosis, while other resources that did not come from autistic people were often misleading and presented autistic experience as a monolith.
Advocate for full inclusion of disabled people at all levels of church leadership.
Disabled community members have historically been treated as incapable of leadership in church environments. Watch this video for more information on how this discrimination negatively impacts disabled community members (and the churches they are part of!). Remember that disabled community members ought to be able to serve in all areas of the church, including leadership. This is not only a needed perspective shift, but a blessing that many churches are missing out on.
Ask your church leadership to complete an accessibility audit for your church.
An accessibility audit is a great way to see how accessible your space, congregation, and services are in relation to various forms of disabilities. Encourage your pastor, eldership, or vestry to complete an audit not only of your building, but for physical items in your space and the attitude of your community. A sample audit can be found here.
For ministers and leaders who work in a church or faith community:
Complete an accessibility audit for your building, congregation, and services, and raise funds to make needed adjustments.
Yes, allyship requires financial commitment. Take the self-education work you have been doing and put it into action by learning how accommodating your space, community, and services are. A sample audit can be found here. Once you have completed your audit, take time and money to financially prioritize physical adjustments that need to be made to your space and other items such as bulletins, lighting, and assisted listening devices (ALDs).
Make your church website accessible—and communicate the accessibility levels of your physical spaces online.
Take the time to make sure your website can be accessed by disabled community members. Some suggestions on how to improve the accessibility of your website design can be found here. Additionally, make sure your website communicates clearly the physical accessibility of your church building, based off of the audit you completed. If not all of your spaces are accessible: Don’t panic! Communicate clearly what is accessible and what isn’t so that disabled community members are not surprised by your situation. Strive towards growth and communicate what still needs work in your community.
These are just a few ways that churches can continue the work of justice for disabled community members. Personally, I am grateful that you have begun this work by reading this piece! Now I challenge you to take one action this week, whether it’s on this list or not, at your church to promote inclusion for our community.
