“Solely centering Black disabled voices is an intentional, unapologetic action, one that is long overdue to occur and is strongly needed for us to truly be seen and heard without concerning the gazes of others.”
- Vilissa Thompson, Founder, Ramp Your Voice!
Speakers & Talent
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Abiodun Oyewole
My name is Abi or Bibi. I have many disabilities. My pronouns are she/they. I've been advocating for disability issues for over 4 years now. I run a small business called Bibipins that focuses on compression items, pins & more all in fun designs.
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Amaranthia Sepia & Claire Jones
Claire Jones and her daughter, Amaranthia Sepia, are a Black, invisibly disabled mother-daughter duo who are the co-founders of the grassroots project (not a non-profit!) Sista Creatives Rising (SCR).
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Andraéa LaVant
Andraéa LaVant is a nationally and internationally sought-after disability inclusion expert. She is widely recognized for spearheading a global disability justice movement as impact producer for Netflix’s Oscar-nominated film, Crip Camp, executive produced by President Barack and Mrs. Michelle Obama.
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Anita Cameron
Anita Cameron is a disability justice activist who has been involved in social change activism and community organizing for 42 years.
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Anna LaQuawn Hinton
Dr. Anna LaQawn Hinton is an Assistant professor of Disability Studies and Black Literature & Culture in the English Department at the University of North Texas. She has published in the Journal of Literary and Cultural Disability Studies (JLCDS) and CLA Journal.
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Arielle Gray
Arielle Gray is a journalist, writer and artist currently based in Boston. She is a reporter at WBUR, Boston's NPR station, where she covers Black and brown communities through the lens of art and culture.
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Candace Coleman
Candace Coleman is a black disabled woman from the South Side of Chicago. She works closely with disabled people affected by the justice system to organize around racial justice and disability.
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Cara Reedy
Cara Reedy is the Founder and Director of the Disabled Journalists Association. She spent ten years of her career at CNN producing documentaries as well as writing for various verticals including Eatocracy and CNN Business.
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Chelsea House
Chelsea (@TheBlackDisabledFemme) is a consultant, researcher, designer, community builder, and Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC).
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Clarkisha Kent
Clarkisha Kent is a Nigerian American writer, culture critic, former columnist, and author of Fat Off, Fat On: A Big Bitch Manifesto. Her writing has been featured in outlets like Entertainment Weekly, Essence, gal-dem, PAPER, BET, HuffPost, MTV News, The Root, and more.
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Dawn Marie Gibson
Dawn is a former youth and young adult Lay Chaplain turned writer, health advocate, and family caregiver for dementia, skin cancer, and end of life.
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Dr. Subini Annamma
Subini Ancy Annamma, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at Stanford University whose research critically examines the mutually constitutive nature of racism and ableism and how they interlock with other marginalizing oppressions.
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Ellice Patterson
Ellice Patterson is the founder/ executive and artistic director of Abilities Dance, a Boston-based dance company that welcomes artists with and without disabilities.
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Eris Eady
Eris Eady (She|They) is a Black, Bisexual, Non-binary & Disabled consultant, advocate, artist and writer from Cleveland, Ohio. They have organized, facilitated, performed, presented, and curated collaborative spaces all over the country.
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Jen White-Johnson
Jen White-Johnson (she/they) is an Afro-Latina disabled and neurodivergent art activist, designer, and educator whose visual work explores the intersection of content and caregiving, emphasizing redesigning ableist visual culture.
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Jess Moore Matthews
Jess Moore Matthews is the founder and Chief Good Troublemaker at Backbone Digital Leaders, a digital marketing and organizing agency of Black women spearheading a revolution at the ballot box and beyond through digital accessibility.
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Jumoke Abdullahi & Kym Oliver
The dynamic duo, Kym Oliver & Jumoke Abdullahi, were frustrated with the lack of representation and unaddressed discrimination faced by Black and non-Black People of Colour living with disabilities. They joined forces and created a platform to increase visibility & highlight the narratives of this “invisible population, within an invisible population”!
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Kayla Smith
A disability justice activist who focuses on the intersectionality within neurodiversity especially autism. I have been doing advocacy work since 2018. I am the creator of hashtag #BlackAutisticPride.
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Lachi
Lachi is an award-winning internationally touring creative artist and personality, Grammys Board Governor and Founder and President of the U.N. recognized RAMPD.org – a global network of music creators and professionals with disabilities.
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Luticha Andre Doucette
Luticha André Doucette is the author of the groundbreaking book: Cultivating An Intersectional Mindset. She graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology with a degree in Bioinformatics where she developed protein surface prediction algorithms.
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Morénike Giwa Onaiwu
Morénike Giwa Onaiwu, PhD is a global human rights and disability justice activist-scholar, consultant, advocate, author, educator, and parent in a neurodiverse, multicultural, twice-exceptional serodifferent biological and adoptive family.
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Mx Pucks A' Plenty
Mx. Pucks A'Plenty is a Black, Queer, Fat, Nonbinary, Polyamours, Disabled ThemDom and Goddexx based in Seattle, Washington. They are also the founder of Diadem-Events, a FemDom lifestyle events brand that produces play parties, vendor fairs, workshops, and conferences.
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Natasha Nelson
Natasha Nelson is a disability advocate, Certified Positive Discipline Educator(CPDE), highly decorated veteran, nonprofit founder, and Autistic mother to two autistic Black girls.
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Sabeerah Najee
Sabeerah has DJ’d the second annual Soulection Experience at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, has opened for legendary EDM producer Mr.Carmack on his tour, DJ’d Coachella’s 3 times, to name a few. Sabeerah also booked events for Edleman, Reddit and Live Nation.
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Sarah Thomas
Meet Sarah Thomas, a seasoned yogi who, inspired by her mother's prenatal yoga classes, embarked on a lifelong journey of yoga and meditation. Guided by her first teacher, she developed a deep passion for the art.
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Stephanie Williams
Stephanie, a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago, has made a remarkable journey from a scientist to a comic book creator
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T. S. Banks
T. S. Banks (he/him) is a Black & QTDisabled, non-binary teaching artist, poet, and playwright from Madison, WI. He is the Founder of Loud ‘N UnChained Theater Co and LNU Publishing House, which is home to Black QT Mad-Krip, neuro-expansive, and chronically ill authors and teaching-artists.
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TaMeicka “Ifasina” Clear
TaMeicka "Ifasina" Clear (pronouns they/them/Ifasina) is a fat, Black, genderqueer person from Texas living in North Carolina. Ifasina is a Master Trainer and space holder who has over 20 years of experience working with intergenerational and directly impacted groups and teams to lead, process, and make decisions together.
Our Mission
This conference will intentionally center Black disabled perspectives and create spaces to candidly discuss the topics that matter to us, as well as learn about the talented individuals who are a part of our dynamic community.
Our Purpose
At the Ramp Your Voice Conference we will make the unseen seen and form new connections across fields and endeavors, to lift up and support the intellectual, creative, and joyful talent that runs right through our powerful community.
Help Us Promote Our Mission and Purpose
Advisory Board
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Dr. Sami Schalk
Associate Professor of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
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Heather Watkins
Disability rights advocate, author, mother, speaker, and consultant.
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Keah Brown
Award winning journalist, author, studying actress, and screenwriter.
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Sandy Ho
Program Director of the Disability Inclusion Fund at Borealis Philanthropy.
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Sarah Blahovec
Co-Founder and President of Disability Victory. Chronically ill and queer disability civic engagement expert.
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S.E. Smith
Northern California-based journalist, essayist, and editor.