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Syracuse University’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion hosted around 20 faculty, staff and students in Hendricks Chapel to discuss microaggressions faced by the disability community for the first event of its ongoing ODI “Lunch and Learn” series Tuesday afternoon.

The discussion was part of an initiative initially introduced during the university’s inaugural Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility symposium on Oct. 3. At the event, ODI pledged to hold several “Lunch and Learn” sessions in spring 2024, each featuring students, staff and faculty to highlight the perspectives of underrepresented groups.

At the first of nine “Lunch and Learn” sessions of the spring semester, Caroline Ridge and Katarina Sako, co-presidents of SU’s chapter of Best Buddies International, presented common forms of microaggressions people of the disabled community have faced.

Best Buddies is an international nonprofit dedicated to ending the social, physical and economic isolation of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Sako said. SU’s chapter was founded in the fall of 2018 and held its first meeting in the following spring semester.

The Best Buddies program focuses on four pillars: inclusive friendships, jobs, living and leadership, according to its mission statement. Ridge said the organization aims to facilitate the building of friendships within the disability community, securing jobs and financial stability for people with disabilities and empowering these individuals to serve as leaders.

While Sako said the group ran into issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, they were able to further their ties with SU, growing the club’s membership to 40 members and raising over $1,000 to further the organization’s mission.

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The event began with Sako presenting the “two ways” to engage in the discourse surrounding disability — as a member of the community or as an “ally.” She said she wanted to emphasize people who “actively support” the disability advocacy but are not disabled themselves, should not identify as being part of the disability community.

“When referring to the disability community, we usually mean a smaller group of people with disabilities with some degree of unity,” Sako said.

After presenting background information on the Best Buddies organization and introducing its definition of disability, the two students discussed microaggressions, which Ridge described as one of the main problems the disabled community faces.

The speakers defined a microaggression as a comment or action that unintentionally expresses a prejudiced attitude toward a member of a marginalized group, citing a Merriam-Webster entry.

Throughout the presentation, Ridge and Sako described the different ways microaggressions occur and emphasized how they are more common than not.

“Not everyone in the disability community might consider these microaggressions,” Ridge said. “What might be a microaggression is decided on the individual level, but we’re listing these common occurrences so that everyone is educated and can try to avoid these behaviors as much as possible.”

The first form of microaggression discussed was examples of “outdated” terminology used in everyday life. Ridge said while words like “moron” and “idiot” are more obvious examples of insensitive language, other terms, such as “handicap” and “special needs” can be equally as harmful.

“This closely aligns with the sentimentality or the tendency to view all aspects of disability in terms of deeply emotional narratives of sadness and suffering versus perseverance and triumph,” Ridge said.

Sako said non-disabled people often use these terms intending to be “uplifting or less negative” but do not recognize the “evolving” nature of language.

“The words and phrases people use to talk about disabilities signal where they might be thinking, and over time channels their thinking about disability in certain directions,” said Ridge. “Language and speech habits offer clues and nudges in certain directions, whether good or bad.”

Sako also said she wanted to emphasize microaggressions against disabled people expand beyond language uses. She said people will often inadvertently discriminate against the community by using non-verbal communication, such as talking down to people and infantilizing them.

“It’s an old habit that many people just can’t seem to break — speaking to a person with a disability like a child, using a soft, slow, high-pitched voice,” Sako said.

While the presentation only highlighted two forms of microaggressions, Ridge said there are many more forms the disability community faces. She said Best Buddies seeks to combat discrimination by creating a “platform” for students to share their struggles and experiences.

“At the heart of this body’s mission is advocacy for students with disabilities. We recognize that our advocacy is not determined by you, the student has broken because of their disability,” Ridge said. “The major takeaway from my presentation this afternoon is that through education, we can work together to promote the inclusion of all people regardless of ability.”

Kira McCrary, manager at the Intercultural Collective, said she attended the event primarily because she feels like disability is often ignored in conversations surrounding D.E.I.A.

“The disability community isn’t always the first thought when we’re doing events,” McCrary said. “I just wanted to be more educated and to try to use that to be at the forefront of my mind.”

Throughout the event, Ridge and Sako highlighted the importance of “being open-minded” when engaging in the discourse surrounding the disability community, calling it the “No. 1” thing people can do to be an ally for people with disabilities.

The Best Buddies organization is open to all SU students, Ridge said. She also said students can find information about Best Buddies’ future events on its social media.

“Finding experiences like Best Buddies where you can directly engage with students with disabilities and learn about important topics like the disability language is the best way to get away from hate in a world caused by misinformation,” Ridge said.

CLARIFICATION: ODI’s future Lunch and Learn sessions will involve students and student groups, but not necessarily registered student organizations.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated Kira McCrary’s title as an office coordinator for SU’s Student Outreach and Support team. This was incorrect. She is now the manager at the Intercultural Collective. A previous version of this article also said Ridge and Sako were members of the disabled community. This is incorrect. Neither Ridge or Sako identify as members of the disabled community. The Daily Orange regrets these errors.

Published on January 30, 2024 at 10:54 pm

Contact Ally: akgoelz@syr.edu