Positionality in relation to disability: Able-bodied white male 50 years old living in london.
Thompson is discussing in the interview resource the lack of media representation for disabled people of colour. If disabled people of colour don’t see themselves represented in the media they may feel marginalized and invisible. I was reflecting that the only visibly disabled person of colour that I can think of on television is Ade Adepitan. It would be positive to see a fashion or textile designer represented in film or television by a person of colour with a visible disability. This is one way to positively represent this group in society to a large audience. Thompson says in the interview ‘lack of representation really affects one’s self esteem and one’s ability to connect with all of their identities.’ A quick google search has found some really inspirational fashion designers who are disabled people of colour , Kathy D Woods a black disabled fashion designer designing for disabled people and Faduma Farah who creates a wheelchair friendly collection of womenswear. I have also found the Black Disabled creatives database, a site that offers a roster of creatives from all different backgrounds and is currently complying a jobs listing post. These are the sort of references I am going to begin talking to my students about. Thompson says in the interview that she ‘wants to demystify what it means to be of colour and disabled’ and to advocate for the inclusion of disabled voices, this is something that UAL can be actively part of.
Thank you for sharing your discovery of the Black Disabled Creatives database. It prompted me to do some research in my field – photography. And I found out there are of course a lot of disabled photographers who are probably underrepresented. However, there is a famous disabled photographer, Alessandro Capoccetti, who is a director and the photographer for Models of Diversity (https://modelsofdiversity.org) in Italy which works towards the inclusion of ‘diversity’ in the fashion industry. It is very encouraging to see that Capoccetti has formed a network which helps to support and bring in the voices of disabled artists in the fashion industry. However, I don’t think any disabled artists should be excluded in the ‘mainstream’ fashion industry and they should not be the one who have to break the barrier in the first place to foster the representation of disabled artists. Institutions like UAL which promote diversity should take an active role to promote inclusivity in the admission process, critical pedagogy and practice.