To Be a Problem: A Black Woman’s Survival in the Racist Disability Rights Movement

A searing critique of the disability rights movement from within, and a call for collective liberation that is pro-Black and centers disabled people of color

For over twenty years, Dara Baldwin has often been the only person of color in the room when significant disability policy decisions are made. Disenfranchisement of people of color and multi-marginalized communities within the disability rights community is not new and has left many inside the community feeling frustrated and erased.

In To Be a Problem, Baldwin candidly shares her journey to becoming a disability activist and policymaker in DC while critiquing the disability rights community. She reveals the reality of erasure for many Black people and people of color in the disability movement and argues that, in turn, many white disabled people center themselves within the work without addressing their own white privilege.

Disability rights groups have been centering white, straight, cisgender people while racial justice groups often fail to center disabled people, leading many Black and Brown disabled people to start their own Disability Justice organizations. Drawing from her unique vantage point, Baldwin calls readers to understand the shortcomings of the disability rights movement while inspiring us to push all movements towards a more inclusive and authentic liberation.

Dara Baldwin is an activist, scholar, and author with over twenty years of experience in policy and social justice work. She currently runs her own equity consulting firm DMadrina, LLC. She formerly held the position of Director of National Policy for the Center for Disability Rights, Inc. (CDR). Baldwin has led multiple national and international advocacy campaigns as an expert in disability laws and policy. She works on Housing and Transportation equity, Criminal Justice, and many other issue areas.