Black Disabled Lives Matter

Jermaine Greaves, the founder of Black Disabled Lives Matter (BDLM) and creative behind the brand “Not Like the Other Kids”, discusses the mission and development of BDLM, his experience as an activist, and his work for brands and events.

*Show Notes*
Follow Jermaine:

• Website: https://jermainegreaves.com/
• Twitter: @Jermainesay -- https://twitter.com/Jermainesay?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
• Instagram: @jermainegreaves -https://www.instagram.com/jermainegreaves/?hl=en
• TikTok: @jermainegreaves -https://www.tiktok.com/@jermainegreaves?lang=en

Black Disabled Lives Matter:

• Twitter: @Blackdisabledl2 -https://twitter.com/Blackdisabledl2
• Instagram: @blackdisabledlivesmatter  -https://www.instagram.com/blackdisabledlivesmatters/?hl=en

Not Like the Other Kids: https://www.stereotypeco.com/

Diversability 2022 "D-30 Disability Impact List": https://mydiversability.com/d30-2022-honorees/jermaine-greaves

Transcript

- This is Katrin with Disability Rights New York. Welcome to our podcast, "Empire State of Rights," where we bring you information on the most relevant topics regarding disability rights and advocacy. Today, we welcome Jermaine Greaves, the founder of Black Disabled Lives Matter, a prominent self-advocate and the creative behind the brand Not Like Other Kids. He's here to discuss the mission and development of Black Disabled Lives Matter and his experience as an activist and his work as a creative for brands and events. Jermaine, thank you so much for joining us today.

- Yeah, thank you so much for having me guys. It is amazing to be here and to be on this podcast about disability and rights and all the things I love to talk about. So this is amazing for me. So who am I? For those who don't know, my name is Jermaine Greaves. I've been a creative for about 12 years now. I've done music festivals like Afro Punk and the Brooklyn Music Festival. I'm the founder of Black Disabled Lives Matter and I'm an actor, I'm a dancer, I'm a creative, I'm just an overall activist and I feel like my whole life I've been an activist because I live with my disability. I have two disabilities known as cerebral palsy and hidradenitis suppurativa, which is a chronic skin condition that I live with currently. But you know, my whole life is about speaking to my disability and living out loud.

- And it sounds like you use your stance as an actor and a dancer and really being a creator as part of your advocacy. Let's talk a little bit about how you began your journey as a self-advocate and what is it that called you to this work? As you said, you are living your life every day with a disability but what is it that brought you to your self-advocacy?

- I think it's really my mother. I always say that in every interview. Like she was the one who I saw really advocating for me and then I just picked up on whatever she was doing. Like seeing her on the phone, talking to doctors, me going to school and her advocating for certain things I would need. It means a lot to me. And also realizing that she didn't really sit there and let anyone take advantage of me was really the reason I became this amazing self-advocate. I also think like watching other people in my life advocate for me, I picked up on things.

- It sounds like you had a lot of great role models growing up and and that leads me to really asking about how the Black Disabled Lives Matter movement started. I mean there have been a lot of different movements that have started over the last several years and they're all necessary. Let's talk about why this particular movement was necessary and why you were so passionate about starting it.

- Ok, so my reason for starting Black Disabled Lives Matter was because I went to a protest in 2020, June of 2020 and there was no accessibility there. I just felt like I was one of many people that were disabled in the crowd that was finding it really difficult to do this, to march, to go out there and protest for George Floyd at the time and feel like it was safe for me. It felt very unsafe as I went out there and marched and protest and it began to feel like I'm just one of what? And it just became this thing that was like I'm here protesting for George Floyd but there's no accessibility for me. So that's where it came from.

- And those events, there were a lot of people there. They were certainly very crowded and safety was an issue all around. So I imagine that not having accessibility in that space must have felt like you really needed to do something so that you were able to not only participate but also have other people feel like they were able to participate as well.

- Yeah, that's true. But also, I'm gonna say this, I think as an event planner and somebody who's been in the event space, I wanted to shake the table of activism because prior to this, you know, we had Judy Heumann, like we're going back in history a little bit, Judy Heumann and the Black Panthers who were doing this. But outside of that, nobody else was doing this. So I think the problem I had was, you know, I'm disabled and I'm the only one trying to really break the fourth wall of understanding what disability is. Even down to the fact that nobody in the activism space was thinking about people with disabilities at all. I'm going through history and I'm barely seeing marches with disabled people in it. So I had to be the first to break that history and make it known that there's someone like me that's out here in the modern era that wants to change the trajectories of these marches.

- And so as you started organizing the different events what were your outcome indicators that were, you were deciding this is what's making this successful. How were you gauging that as you were organizing these events?

- As a New Yorker, we know how the trends are. We know how the buses are. I had to go from my own experience as a disabled person and traveling. What's most accessible? What's most safe? What will allow disabled people to feel like they can participate without making them feel too tired? You know, I'm just thinking along those lines because I know how I felt as a disabled person traveling in the city. You know, long distances can wear me out. So we had to shorten our distance we had to make it accessible so everyone feels comfortable. We had to do stops in the middle of it so people could rest. Those are the things I'm thinking about as somebody who organizes events and just creates accessible spaces.

- Yeah, as we know, transportation in and of itself is a huge hurdle just to get to, whether it's an event or just to see a friend or an appointment, transportation is something that is not reliable either. And so when we think about the events that you have planned and what you're planning, what's coming up, let's talk about BDLM'S goals for the upcoming year. Are there any upcoming events that you're working on right now?

- I know for me, because of my current physical condition, I'm definitely leaning towards doing more virtual stuff because it's a little bit difficult for me to do the stuff in person, do the marches. I know how to do them, I'm not gonna do them as much. Or I'll do them like sporadically because of where I am physically, currently. But I also know that I'm leaning towards doing more virtual actions, expanding on that. I was working with several groups before doing virtual actions and they were greatly successful for those who felt like they couldn't participate in the actions or the marches. So I'll go back into that space and try to expand on it. Doing more panels for sure. Doing more speaking engagements. Just leaning into the community aspect of this. I've done the marches, I've done the articles I've done the big publication stuff. Now it's just making it more community based. I do wanna eventually make it into some type of organization because I see that's where more of the dollars can come in and more of the funding can come in to really help my community. So the disabled community needs a lot of help. And if I can, my next goal in the future is like legislation and making laws and different things for disabled people so they can feel like they have a space.

- And as we talk about organizations, BDLM is not the first advocacy organization that you've led. Talk to us a little bit about the other work that you've done with Not Like the Other Kids.

- Okay, so Not Like the Other Kids is a nonprofit I started because at the time I needed a wheelchair. That's a story. And I started that on the basis of, it's a nonprofit. I started with me and my friend Dave Nodles and we've done things like pay for a leukemia patient surgery, gave a patient the trip of a lifetime, did Puerto Rican disaster relief efforts. Just did a lot of community work. And my reason for doing that was because I wanted to turn my pain into purpose, or an issue I saw in the community, into a purpose. It seems like when I see an issue I create something. That seems to be my thing.

- Well it does seem to be your thing and certainly your creative efforts have done quite a bit thus far. So talk to us a little bit about where you see your creative efforts going in the future. And are you searching for opportunities as a brand developer and an event planner?

- I'm always searching, but lately they've been coming to me so it's, I don't have to search too hard. Thank God, you know, I've... The opportunities have been showing up. I'm just tricky about what I choose to do because it's I have to think, does this make sense for my brand? I don't choose as many opportunities as I used to 'cause I realize I have a disability, and also oddly enough I can Google myself. I couldn't do that before. You know, when you kind of realize you can search yourself on Google, do you really need to find people or do people need to just find you? So I think it's leaning into the resources I do have and building on those resources, which is what I've really been doing the last couple of years. 'Cause I think a lot of people are like how have you built such a profile in like four years?

- And so when we think about the work that you are doing and building a substantial portfolio and having a huge profile, talk about how you're empowering other people to become self-advocates. And what advice do you have for those who are thinking you know, I think I wanna do what he's doing and how do I get started? What advice do you have?

- I think-- let's be honest, in the disabled space there is no blueprint for self advocacy. So it's really difficult to say this is the way your self advocacy is gonna look like, because there's no blueprint there. I would say, if you wanna become a self-advocate and you're disabled, start talking to those who can actually help you. But if it's difficult, then I would suggest learning, finding out about disability history, Judy Heumann, Crip Camp, the Black Panthers, anybody that's an advocate even going as far back as like Martin Luther King or Malcolm X or even people that have done this work in the past that are leaders and build on what they're doing to find their own self-advocacy voice.

- I think that's great. And you know, as we talk about the other work that you've done and how your visibility is part of your portfolio, you also were just nominated for an award for through Diversibility. Talk a little bit about that and how the work that you're doing with that group how is it meaningful and how is it really pushing your message forward?

- I mean, Diversibility giving me an award in 2022, it let me know that the work I was doing was meaningful. It's visible and I've been here and they see it and they acknowledge it. And it's valuable work that's up there with like big organizations. I mean, it means a lot to have an organization like that see my work. And it means a lot that your community sees your work because a lot of times, you know in the disabled community we see each other's work but there's really no acknowledgement for it. And to be acknowledged in this way that the work that I'm doing is touching lives. And in the midst of my own like issues I'm still able to motivate people and touch people. It means a lot.

- And you know, I was watching your YouTube video last week and you said something in it about this is your responsibility and you said it a couple of times that you feel it is your responsibility to be an advocate and to do the work that you're doing. Why is that so important to you? And talk to us about what that means to you, that it's your responsibility. How did you come to that and how does that come out in the work that you're doing?

- Because when I let other people take care of my own issues, it didn't look so good. Letting other adults or letting other advocates or letting other people who were able bodied handle my issues for me, it didn't end up so well or they didn't push the needle as quickly as I did for my needs. That's why I said it's my responsibility. But also it's like disabled people have had to fight for basic rights to be independent, to live. When we look at the history of disability we were institutionalized first. They didn't see us as people. We were kind of "Othered." So, and it's even worse when you're marginalized like you know, you're Black, you're disabled you're other things, you're trans, you're disabled you're whatever labels you are, those "Otherings" make it difficult for you to exist in society. And for me, creating Black Disabled Lives Matter and doing all the work I do outside of that is because I wanna open the door and create the space I didn't see growing up as a kid.

- I think that's so important and thank you so much for all the work that you're doing being visible and like you said, allowing other children, especially, coming up being able to see someone like them makes all the difference. And to that end, let's talk about the way that the people in our audience can follow you and the organizations you support. Tell us about your websites and social media tags and certainly we'll put them in the notes of the podcast but talk to us a little bit about your platforms.

- There's so many. My website, www.jermainegreaves.com. That's my regular website where you can find me and find all the work I do there. There's also Not Like the Other Kids that's a clothing brand the nonprofit, everything's there. There's also, what else? Black Disabled Lives Matter on Twitter and Instagram, that's up and running and happening. There's a bunch of mutual aid on there that I actively post as well as events we're gonna put together. But right now we're focusing on mutual aid and community-based stuff because that seems to be a thing. You know? Other than that, I am just really glad that the work I'm doing is touching lives. I have never, I would've never thought, you know with everything I have going on in my life and how the last year was for me, which was not exactly the easiest year, that people would love on me in this way. To see that love, to see that appreciation, to see the constant support for whatever work I do and even for my own personal needs, it's beyond, it lets me know that the work I'm doing is touching lives and that my work does not go unnoticed. And I'm very much visible in here and present in a lot of people's lives.

- Well, we're so glad that you were able to join us today. And before we sign off, is there anything else that you wanna share with our audience?

- Well, I do wanna share about Not Like the Other Kids. The clothing brand is definitely up and running. And my website for Jermaine Greaves is live and still live. And I'm just looking for more, for me at the moment. I would love to do more like speaking engagements in the disability space. It's been a bit slow because of COVID and the pandemic and stuff like that. But I would love to speak at colleges, universities, different disability organizations about my experiences as a disabled person and in the medical industrial complex. But aside from that, I wanna continue to be just this positive person who's sharing about my disability fearlessly.

- Well, I wanna thank you for fearlessly sharing with us. This has been a great conversation. I cannot wait to see what you're going to do next and we look forward to speaking with you again.

- Absolutely. There's a lot more stuff coming.

- Thank you, Jermaine.

- Thank you. Bye-bye.

- [Narrator] "Empire State of Rights" has been brought to you by Disability Rights New York your source for disability rights and advocacy. If you enjoyed our program make sure to subscribe, like, and share this post. The video for this episode is available on our YouTube channel with closed captioning and ASL interpretation. If there is a subject you would like us to discuss please email podcast@drny.org or comment below. For more "Empire State of Rights" follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.