What is the Disability Pride Flag and What Does It Symbolize?
Designed by Ann Magill in 2019 and updated in 2021, the disability pride flag symbolizes the diversity of the disabled community. The black background represents the mourning and loss that disabled people have experienced throughout history. It also symbolizes the rebellion and protest of disabled people fighting for their human rights. The diagonal lines symbolizes the barriers disabled people experience in society and the ingenuity disabled people illustrate when navigating those barriers. The five colors represent the variety of needs and experiences: Mental Illness, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Invisible and Undiagnosed Disabilities, Physical Disabilities, and Sensory Disabilities. Ann Magill waived all rights to the flag design, so you can find Disability Pride swag across the internet. Of course, here at Book Riot we have a lot of different content on Disability Literature. Margaret Kingsbury has written posts like The Current State of Disability representation in Children’s Books and 9 Ableist Tropes in Fiction I Could Live Without. Grace Lapointe wrote about 5 of the Best Introductory U.S. Disability History Books, and Nina Grauer recommended 16 Wonderful #OwnVoices YA Books About Disability. You can also help disabled folks on the bookish internet by ensuring that your content is as accessible as possible. Caption your videos and add image descriptions to your Instagram posts — whatever it takes to make sure disabled people have equal access. If you’re nondisabled, it’s important to remember that this month isn’t about educating ablebodied people. Disability Pride is first and foremost about centering and celebrating disabled people. You can find more information about the readathon over on their website. And if you are looking for recommendations for the next readathon, check out 8 Audiobook Recommendations for the Disability Readathon.
