Black Disabled Futures Month Cannot Be a Trend
A few years ago, during the month of February, we started celebrating Black Disabled Futures Month — because Black disabled people deserve to be part of the future. It felt obvious to us then, and it still does now.
Historically, Black History Month is observed by celebrating Black people as a whole. Make no mistake – learning about our rich history and culture is important. But too often, Black disability history is erased. Black Disabled Futures Month is a time to honor and celebrate the rich and radical history at the intersections of Blackness and disability. It’s also a time to honor Black joy — particularly, Black disabled joy — and dream of the future with us as part of it.
“In a world that honestly expects our exhaustion or disappearance, choosing joy is actually a form of resistance.”
This year, with so much erasure, Black futures in general aren’t being celebrated. Black Disabled Futures Month feels quieter already. There’s a lot less attention, and fewer people pretending to care.
But nothing about the lives of Black disabled people has stopped moving forward. We’re still here — at least we’re trying to be. Imagining, creating, building relationships and community, and working, all in ways that reflect who we actually are. Most of it happens without recognition, and it always has.
Black Disabled Futures Month was never about being seen by everyone. It, truthfully, was about declaring who we already are. And we’re still going to do that. We’re not a trend. We’re here, and we’re trying not to go anywhere.
