Crises of Identifying

Although there has been an increase in literature regarding children of color with disabilities it mainlyfocuses on their experiences in one social context. Crises of Identifying: Negotiating and Mediating RaceGender and Disability within Family and Schools includes narratives on the familial and educational experiencesin public private and institutional educational settings of five African American adults who havedisabilities associated with blindness cerebral palsy and speech impairment. As a deaf African Americanfemale the author and researcher also highlights her familial and educational experiences throughout thebook as a frame of analysis. This book can serve as a literary resource to academics and educational programsand/or institutions as well as an informational guide to parents teachers administrators and paraprofessionals/caregivers of children with disabilities regarding the significance of leadership advocacy activism and identification developmentwithin familial and educational contexts on the experiences of children including the impact of complex dynamics that exist within and between familiesand schools.Hopefully this book will provide parents teachers administrators and paraprofessionals with an understanding and comprehension of complexitiesconcerning disability gender and race within family and schools including their association with crises of identifying essentialist discourses as wellas power and privilege dynamics. This book consists of nine chapters which are organized into three parts. Part I focuses on background rationaletheoretical and methodological underpinnings of the research this book is based on. Part II introduces the reader to the narratives of five African Americanswith disabilities. Each narrative provides insights into the lived experiences and leadership qualitiesof two males and three females. Part III presents the concluding chapters of the book and highlightsthe significance of this research for the educational field including disability studies teacher educationprograms and special education.