KRISTIN WALKER, M.A.Pronouns: she/her/hers
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Research Statement:
My research is grounded in a strengths-based perspective, emphasizing the inherent value of differences in fostering human diversity. It aims to: 1) better understand the experiences of the d/Deaf and hard of hearing, as well as autistic communities, with a special focus on the intersectionality of these identities, and 2) identify and address disparities experienced by the disability community. |
Positionality Statement:
I am a hearing, allistic (non-autistic), biracial (Black and White) researcher and clinician. I emphasize the criticalness of prioritizing community stakeholders’ perspectives and aim to collaborate at all stages of my work. I am committed to neurodiversity and Disability Justice frameworks. With a neurodiversity framework, I recognize the importance of the infinite diversity of different minds and believe that this diversity is valuable and essential to humanity. Importantly, I recognize the inequities individuals with neurodivergent minds face in being accepted for who they are. Disability Justice expands and diverges from the conceptualizations of the Disability Rights Movement to recognize the specific importance of an intersectional framework that upholds the idea that everyone has unique, essential bodies whose needs must be met and sustained. With a Disability Justice framework, I recognize, and aim to disrupt, the interplay of intersectionality (such as race, gender, sex, class, and more) and systems of oppression. My work aims to understand and support communities, not “normalize” them. To respect the communities I work with and the rights of everyone to choose the language that is affirming to them, I use a mix of language choices. I capitalize the term ‘Deaf’ when I talk about individuals who identify as culturally Deaf and are members of the sign language-using community and lowercase ‘deaf’ when I talk about other members of the deaf community with a diagnosis of hearing loss. Crucial conversations regarding ableist language have led to identity-first language becoming most prominently accepted as the affirming language in the autistic community (read Bottema-Beutel and colleagues’ (2021) article that suggests identity-first language for autism researchers). Therefore, I predominantly use identity-first language (e.g., autistic) when I talk about the autism community. I also recognize the importance of neurodiversity-affirming language in relation to autism and the broader range of neurodivergence. I promise to continue learning from the communities and movements with which I engage and as part of my own journey as an individual, community member, clinician, and researcher. This means that my positionality and values will continue to grow and evolve. I will update this statement accordingly as there are changes. Last edited on 01/03/2024. |