Lydia X. Z. Brown
Laboring for disability justice
“The next generation of neurodivergent, sick, mad, and disabled kids might learn that it’s possible and okay to exist as they are. That there are movements that celebrate our existence, our worth, our value, our magnificence in a way I was never given a chance to. And that’s powerful.”
Lydia (they/them) is a community organizer, writer, speaker, educator, attorney, and advocate for disability justice. They were born in Jiangsu, China in 1993 and are currently a Justice Catalyst Fellow at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, and Founder/Co-Director of the Autistic People of Color Fund at the Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network. They work to disrupt and end all forms of systemic and interpersonal violence targeting disabled people at the margins of the margins. Lydia fights for love, liberation, and community care.
“Disability justice is relevant to all people of all ages because it teaches us to honor our bodies, minds, and the many different ways we exist in the world.”
Photo by Thomas Yang.
“It’s also important for young people to understand how ableism is not just connected to racism and capitalism, but also so deeply connected to ageism and the oppression of youth. One way that disabled people are silenced and controlled in society is by treating disabled adults as though we are permanently children.”
The Organization
Lydia is currently a Justice Catalyst Fellow with the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, which advocates for the civil rights, full inclusion, and equality of adults and children with mental disabilities. The Center was instrumental in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990. Over the last decade, it has worked to address unnecessary institutionalization in public facilities and remedy segregation in nursing homes, schools and classrooms.
Visit Website
