Diversity and Anti-Oppression Rider

Diversity, Inclusion, and Anti-Oppression Rider

I am committed to creating a space that not only embraces diversity but actively works to dismantle oppression in all its forms. I recognise the impact of systemic inequalities on individuals and communities, and I strive to make my services a place where everyone is seen, heard, and valued.

Through my consultations and services, I endeavour to:

Listen and Learn: I am dedicated to ongoing self-reflection and education around issues of privilege, power, and oppression, ensuring that my work evolves and I reflect on my own assumptions and unconscious biases to continually improve the way I work. My aim is to always treat everyone with the respect and understanding they deserve.
Challenge Inequities: I will actively work to address and challenge inequities within the environments we discuss, recognising how systemic barriers impact neurodivergent individuals and others with intersecting identities.
Tailor Services: My approach is informed by a developing understanding of how factors such as race, gender, sexuality, disability, and class intersect with neurodivergence. I will work with you to ensure that your needs are understood in this wider context.
Provide Accessible, Inclusive Spaces: I am committed to making my consultations and resources accessible and inclusive. If you have specific access needs or requests, I invite you to share them, and I will do my best to accommodate them.
Sharing Knowledge: Helping other professionals learn how to support people in ways that are inclusive, fair, and responsive to their cultural and personal needs.

My commitment to anti-racism includes:

Advocacy for Equity: Where possible and appropriate to do so, I advocate for equity through amplifying the experiences of marginalised groups in clinical practice, training, and consultation to challenge systemic inequities and prioritise equity.
Reflective Practice: I continuously reflect on and address my own biases, privileges, and positionality to ensure my work aligns with anti-oppressive principles.
Education and Collaboration: I maintain a commitment to reading, listening and learning from diverse perspectives, to build my anti-racist practice and dismantle internalised racism. Wherever possible, I raise awareness of intersectional identities within the field of neurodiversity-affirming practice.
Intersectional Action: I acknowledge the overlapping oppressions of racism, ableism, heteronormativity, and other forms of discrimination, and advocate for systemic changes that address these intersections.

Through my work, I aim to create spaces where everyone feels valued, their unique needs are understood, and they are supported to thrive. I endeavour to support my clients, colleagues, and communities in building practices that honour cultural and linguistic diversity, challenge oppressive norms, and foster environments where everyone can thrive authentically. I believe that together, we can work toward professions that are not only inclusive but actively restorative and just.

I recognise that with my lived experience comes privilege. I hope to use it wisely and to dismantling my own oppressive patterns and cultural conditioning. I will no doubt make mistakes and therefore welcome feedback to reflect on and learn from.

Note on invitations to speak at events

I get invited to speak at events on topics related to neurodiversity-affirming practice, e.g, within the Speech and Language Therapy profession, often. I am actively developing my skills around challenging the whiteness of narratives in the field and shift in paradigm.

I will therefore ask for information on the confirmed speakers, specifically how many and if numerous, how many are of the Global Majority; queer; non-speaking or AAC users, etc. On occasion, I may decline invitations to speak where there is a lack of diversity amongst speakers and consideration for the underpinnings of neurodiversity-affirming practice.

Diversity, Inclusion, and Anti-Oppression Rider

​I am committed to creating a space that not only embraces diversity but actively works to dismantle oppression in all its forms. I recognise the impact of systemic inequalities on individuals and communities, and I strive to make my services a place where everyone is seen, heard, and valued.

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I am committed to creating a space that not only embraces diversity but actively works to dismantle oppression in all its forms. I recognise the impact of systemic inequalities on individuals and communities, and I strive to make my services a place where everyone is seen, heard, and valued.