In Season 2, Episode 5 of the NYMA podcast, we address the intersectionality of race and disability in America through the eyes of personal accounts. I interviewed my own brother, Wale, about his police stop when he was a teenage boy driving around our little brother, Kunle, also a teenager at the the time.
For those of you who have already been following us on social media and via this podcast, you are aware that Kunle is autistic with an intellectual disability. He is also non-verbal. One of his favorite pastimes, up until this current day, is to be driven around. It typically calms him and has been used countless times to ease his mind by not only Wale, but my parents, various aunts, uncles, cousins, family friends and me.
It would be one day when two teenage black boys, one neurotypical and one with special needs, chose to drive around their own neighborhood. It would be Wale's first traffic stop that would give him pause, make him feel uncomfortable and wonder about his future... it would not be his last as he grew up and eventually became a black man. It would be what happened after his first traffic stop that taught us all valuable life lessons that we would take with us for decades.
Emotional bruises were formed and this story wouldn't be revealed to my parents until much, much later in life. Perhaps it was simply because we didn't want to add on to their stress, but we chose to internalize, until we couldn't anymore.
For more information that addresses issues related to the intersectionality of race , neurodiversity and/or disability, check out The Color of Autism Foundation. For more information on sibling support groups, check out the National Autism Foundation for some more information.
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