Race, Disability, and Technology: A Call to Action for Accessibility Researchers

Examinations of intersectionality and identity dimensions in accessibility research have primarily considered disability separately from a person’s race, ethnicity, and culture. Accessibility work often does not include considerations of race as a construct, or treats race as a shallow demographic variable, if race is mentioned at all, or tends to conflate its designation with other proxies. The lack of attention to race as a construct and its interaction with other factors in accessibility research presents an oversight in our field. By systematically eliminating whole areas of need and vital perspectives from the work we do, this omits critical areas and domains of research inquiry. Further, there has been little focus on the intersection of race and disability within accessibility research, and the relevance of their interplay. When research in race or disability does not mention the other, this work overlooks the potential to better understand the full nuance of marginalized, minoritized, and “otherized” groups. To address this gap, our work highlights the value of considering how constructs of race and disability work alongside each other within accessibility research studies and the designs of socio-technical systems. We offer a framework for engaging the intersection of race and disability throughout the research process and present a series of case studies that showcase the potential of integrating racial equity perspectives into accessibility research. Along with providing recommendations toward establishing this research direction and guiding principles for approaching this intersection, our new analysis reflects on tensions and considerations that arise while pursuing this work.