Disability Superpowers and Neurodivergent Strengths with Sabeerah Najee
Audio engineering by Hasan Insane
Episode Six of “Dreaming Different” engages DJ and accessibility advocate Sabeerah Najee on the topic of disability superpowers, and how our disabled experiences inform our creative practices.
This conversation examines ways to move through the shame that often comes from feeling different and how to articulate and address the compounding effects of inaccessibility when advocating for a more inclusive future.
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“With being disabled comes an accidental creativity, and an accidental adaptability that we’re forced to have. We have to be creative in order to either make things accessible for ourselves or we have to really think on the fly.”
—Sabeerah Najee
Transcript
Jezz
Welcome to Dreaming Different with Jezz Chung with our special guest Sabeerah Najee! I'm so excited to talk about disability superpowers today! And we'll start with some image descriptions of ourselves. This is Jezz Chung speaking, I am Korean, I have long black hair which is kind of wavy today and it kind of falls right above my butt in the back and I'm currently sitting on my bed because it feels very cloud-like. And I have a purple-pink wall behind me. I have on a kind of cloud-like tie-dye tank top and I have bluish purple eyeshadow and then white squiggly lines above my eyes, which also remind me of clouds.
Sabeerah
Awesome, I need a tutorial on those cloud eyeliners, fire. My name is Sabeerah. Hi y'all, I'm speaking. I am a Black woman with locs, the locs are bleached at the ends, more like kind of mostly blonde. They are probably a little past my neck. I have on a black shirt that has a fried egg on it and it says “this is your brain on Coachella.” It's a Black-owned brand, some friends made it for Coachella specifically and I'm sitting on my couch. It has a gray couch cover because my dog likes to sleep on it and I have on green sweats. And yeah, I'm excited to be here.
Jezz
Very nice. Yayy. Excited to be in conversation with you and how Sabeerah and I met— okay, so it was such a like universe working in synchronicity moment because we met…how long ago was it now?
Sabeerah
It was the first Slut Walk. It was the first Amber Rose Slut Walk, so 6 years ago.
Jezz
It must be, because I've been in New York for 5 years so it must have been longer than that. So we probably met…how did we even start talking? We probably just saw each other and were like hey.
Sabeerah
Yeah, no literally that's how it happened. I remember we were all like dancing and stuff and then we were just like you're dope, you're dope, let's get each other's info and that was it. You stayed in touch ever since, it's crazy right? Yeah.
Jezz
That's right. Yeah yeah, just kind of following each other's moves online and then I was in LA for a job maybe this was in September of 2022.
Sabeerah
Yeah, it was about a month ago.
Jezz
Yeah, about a month ago and because we're recording this in October now and then we ran into each other at SoHo House.
Sabeerah
Yeah, so crazy I had a meeting there with my friend and we were just trying to go over some stuff for next year's workload and man yeah, it was again, another random interaction.
Jezz
Yeah, yes, yes I feel like we were meant to run into each other because then we talked after that we just kind of FaceTimed to catch up and I was so amazed by all the work you've been doing with A+ which I want to hear more about and what you've been doing to bring more disabled people to music festivals which speaks to the importance of accessibility in every space. Especially spaces that center pleasure and joy and fun and play. And yeah I want to hear more about how you got into DJing and everything but before we get into all that, I want to ask you a question that I've been asking every guest and that is: what are you thinking differently about lately?
Sabeerah
What I've been thinking about differently is taking that leap of faith on something and just being okay with taking a risk. Whether it be an opportunity or certain relationships with folks, sometimes it's worth it. There's been times where I've missed certain opportunities because I was just afraid of taking that leap. But I think now, just being okay with trying it and seeing if it works. I've always kind of been like that. But there's certain times where because I didn't see myself in that space, I thought it wasn't for me. But come to find out, you can make it for you. Or you can create those spaces. So yeah, I think that's one of those things.
Jezz
I love that— you can make it for you. Whoa, okay I love that. That is really synchronous to—this is random—but I just watched Princess Diaries again, I hadn't seen it for so long. I forget it was like from 2001, you know most movies don't hold up because there are so many problematic things in it. And there are definitely some problematic things in there. But there was this part when Anne Hathaway's character reads a letter from her dad and there's this quote about how courage is not about not being afraid, it's about deciding that you want something more than the fear. Which makes me think about what you just said. So talk to us about some risks that you've made lately.
Sabeerah
Hell, doing A+ I feel like. In the coolest sense of the word, it was a huge leap of faith and risk because I wasn't sure that I could see myself taking up the position that I have with A+. And doing it has been probably one of the most fulfilling things in my career right now, outside of DJing. Okay, so can I explain what A+ is, if that’s cool?
Jezz
Yes, please! Please tell everyone about how you got into DJing and A+.
Sabeerah
Yeah, because it all kind of leads into that. So, I'll start off with DJing because that's how this all happened. So I worked really closely with my Soulection family, they're a collective of DJs and producers, they also have a radio show with Apple Music and they do their own festivals and things like that. I always went to their shows then we became really cool. They just recognized me and we all just became a family. Basically, I became a family with them. Almost eight years ago now, just about, come February. Yeah, they actually just had their 10 year anniversary. I've been watching them for a long time and at the time I was making music and recording and I was watching them and I was just like, I want to feel that energy again. I wanted to feel that stage energy and what that felt like to receive the same energy that I was getting out. So I just started DJing and they helped me along the way. They told me what equipment to get and I would just watch them. I'd just be on stage turning up and going crazy and getting the crowd hype but at the same time also be in the back watching them do what they do and silently learning. And through that, just by showing up, I went to a protest for a friend of mine, his name is Josh. And he was protesting during the killing of George Floyd. He was in a wheelchair and police officers had grabbed him and arrested him and broke his wheelchair. It was horrible, it was horrible. It was crazy because he was in jail for like 16 hours without any medical supplies, without anything, it was horrible. He eventually got out and we protested that and it was just crazy because he was shocked but it's like, that shouldn't have even happened to you. That shouldn't have happened to George Floyd, so that's the type of stuff that we got involved with and I was at his protest and I got to meet him at that time, that's how we became cool. I asked him, how come you're always out here and what makes you want to keep doing it even after that whole ordeal? He was just like, “I'm for the people.” And that just clicked in my head because yeah, okay same. That makes so much sense. You know what I mean? If you’re for the people then it's just gonna work out. You know what I mean? No matter what, you're gonna be protected. And that made so much sense to me. That's how we became cool. And I took a photo, I guess that photo went viral with him and then the director of Coachella hit up my friend from Soulection who manages the founder of Soulection, his name's Dom and. Oh sorry, that's my dog. Come here, Aubrey. Sorry about that. So yeah, took a photo with Josh and the director of Coachella reached out to my friend Don who manages Joe Kay. Don hit my other friend up, who hit me up and was like Goldenvoice is trying to have a conversation with you and I thought it was for a gig, I'm gonna be completely honest. I was like oh, I'm doing another show, it’s lit, I'm down. And it was not that at all. It was funny because they basically presented it a couple years ago the skeleton of the program and if I wanted to be a part of it. And I was a little skeptical at first because I never saw myself in that space.
Jezz
Like as an organizer?
Sabeerah
Yeah, as an organizer, as a leader, none of those things. Like I said, I didn’t really know what it looked like. And I didn’t know if I was ready for that opportunity at that time. So I thought, maybe if we can do something that’s a little more tangible and create opportunities for our community, I thought then that would be worth it. I just wanted to see myself not even just going to a festival, but like working at one. I’ve been to a lot of festivals, I've DJ’d a lot of festivals, so it was one thing to just go. But it's another to have the opportunity to be working at one and shape the experience. So I knew what that kind of looked like and looking past the leadership part, being able to create that experience for somebody? That's everything to me. I mean I used to go to Soulection shows and bring people backstage, that was my thing. So you know, it was funny.
Jezz
That's what resonated when we talked, when we had our last conversation and you were telling me a lot about this. That you are someone who really moves together, you're very much about the collective. You're very much about what you said you noticed about your friend, it's for the people. That’s what it's about and it sounds like a lot of your creative practices were born from community too, like people saying hey, here's the equipment to get, here's some shows, here's some connects and also even just getting to see because I think about access as information too or information as a source of access, information and experiences as access that a lot of people might not be able to get and the fact that you found a community to kind of move through that with is really cool. And it also brings up this point, a lot of disabled people are, I call it like an accidental advocate or an accidental activist in that we didn't mean to, I'm just speaking for me and I'm just talking about my experiences and then now everyone's asking me about what is it like for all autistic people? And I'm like, I don't know I just only know what it's like for me. I guess for me, I've always been vocal about my experiences because they affect me so deeply and I need to get it out. But what's it been like for you, are you comfortable using your voice now? You've been working with A+ for how long now and what has been the evolution of that and how do you feel like your disabled identity evolved at all as you've been working on this project?
Sabeerah
I'd say so, I'd say so for sure. I guess I can say I've been way more into the executive artist bag. You know what I mean, that kind of half and half ordeal of working on the project and DJing and stuff like that and I think that's definitely shaped how I see it. I've been comfortable lately with being an advocate since being a part of this program. It took a while but I think the past couple years, a little over the past couple years working on this, I've been able to be more vocal and okay with that. There's still a lot to work on but I've been okay with being my own advocate. Like the past few years, I've been able to really grow into who I am and be comfortable with that. With my disabled identity as well. I'm okay or I've accepted, let me say that, I've accepted being okay with being like a leader and being an advocate. I'm okay with that. Granted, I don't want to speak for the whole table. So luckily the way my job description works out, my whole thing is with community and bringing people together, I'm able to do that. Within even my job frame, because I don't like speaking for the table, I like bringing people on who can speak from their experiences and I think the more people that I have come through who can speak on their own experiences, the better we get as a team. So I don't know, that's just kind of how I see it. I don't really like that one person speaking for everybody. It just doesn't make sense. Because they're not all going to know. But for example, the panel that we were watching this morning. There's so many different people, so many different disabilities, who can speak on themselves and their experience with that disability. But then there could be like 5 other people in the room that are like, mine's a little different but I have the same disability, but my experience is a little different. So I like being able to come together and just mend ideas together.
Jezz
And that's what I feel like is one of the superpowers and gifts of being disabled. For me, I know that my practice of empathy is so expansive because of my disabilities and the ways that I've experienced the world and because I know what it's like to feel excluded and I know what it's like to experience the compounding effects of inaccessibility or just being excluded because I'm Asian or because I'm queer or because I’m AFAB [assigned female at birth] or whatever it is, there's just so many intersections. And so I feel like for me, that's one of my disability superpowers. How do you feel like your disabilities affect your creative practice, how do you feel like they make you a better DJ?
Sabeerah
That’s a good question. So I think when it comes to that, I think when it comes to transportation and things like that, those kind of barriers, especially with transportation, I think that prevents me from doing a whole lot of things. However, with being disabled comes an accidental creativity and there's a sense of, like you were saying, the accidental advocate. There's an accidental creativity that we're forced to have and there's an accidental adaptability that we're forced to have. We don't really have a choice with that one. You know what I mean? We have to be creative in order to either make things accessible for ourselves or we have to really think on the fly and I think being able to do that shapes me being a DJ because you're controlling the crowd with music and you decide what to play but not everything is going to resonate with everybody. You have to immediately learn to pivot and things like that and switch up and change the energy and bring it back together. You might lose a couple people but you also might gain the masses that way. So it's just all about working the crowd and controlling the crowd too, to feel that same energy that you’re feeling and in order to do that, you have to be able to adapt and you have to be creative with how you do things and that's just in life too. I'm in an apartment right now and I had to get creative with how we turn on the lights and stuff like that and certain things I need to make my apartment even more accessible. Because this is an accessible apartment but what are some things that I need to make it even more accessible. It could be as simple as a grabber tool. You know what I mean? But you have to think like that and lucky for us, our superpower is creativity.
Jezz
Wow. Okay, I'm having a revelation right now in real time as you that. I think a lot about that. How disability superpowers include adaptability, being innovative, being creative because we're forced to. But this idea of reading the room especially as you talk about your DJ practice, you have to always just kind of read what's working and what's not. And for me, one of my autistic traits is that I'm hypersensitive. So when I'm in a room, I'm experiencing on a sensory level, the sights, the smells, the sounds, the lighting, everything on a heightened level. And if someone is experiencing it at a level 2, I'm experiencing it at a level 8. In high school, I started hosting talent shows, I think I hosted the school pageant or something and since then, I've been doing a lot of hosting gigs and stuff and there's something about me when I'm on a stage or in front of an audience and you put a mic in my hand, I just come alive and I know exactly what to say and what to do. It's just this intuitive thing and I never really understood why, I was like I don't know, it’s just… But now I'm realizing that's part of being autistic for me. Because I've always been so hyper attuned to everything in the room. So that of course makes me skillful at hosting and being able to read the room and being able to say what needs to be said and say things that people might not be saying and that people might need to hear. So whoaaa I just had that revelation based on what you said.
Sabeerah
Yeah, no, that's real. That's super real and like me, same. With having spina bifida and having like a powerchair or a manual chair, I'm super hyper sensitive to my spaces and what kind of space I take up and how much. Because on a physical sense, I want to make sure my chair is out the way or yeah, people can move out of the way too, but also I just want to make sure I'm not running anybody over. I try to be hyper sensitive, I try. My friends might say otherwise if I'm running somebody over. But…that's not the point, that's not the point.
Jezz
But with the friends, that's when we can kind of let our guard down.
Sabeerah
Exactly. So it's different. But you know, I'm definitely hyper sensitive to my space. I mean like okay, where's the exit. How tall is that ramp, what's that ramp looking like over there, what does the accessible restroom situation if there is one look like? I'm thinking about everything as soon as I'm in there, where I'm in a space. So I get it, I get you, that’s real.
Jezz
Are there things that you wish people would just know by default instead of you having to repeat all the time?
Sabeerah
Yeah, that’s a good question. So I think now, I don’t have to as much because folks really utilize the internet like they should. So if I tell somebody I have spina bifida, I let them do Google. I don’t really have to explain it as much, or don’t feel the need to explain it as much. Back then, I kinda felt like I had to because as a child there wasn't a whole lot of like research and information on it. So when people asked, I had to be the expert on it. Or at least on me. And it was kind of a thing where me knowing everything about my disability was pushed on me, which it worked out, but I used to kind of shy away from that just to have like I guess some sense of quote unquote, what I thought was normalcy. So I didn't really want to explain it all the time but like it felt necessary so folks understood. And that way, the expectations that were placed upon me didn't exceed what I was trying to do. Or basically, telling somebody that I have spina bifida and then explaining that to someone, that way they had particular expectations of me and not their own which was like, oh let's go do this all the time and let's do this and that and the third. I mean it wasn't always expected of me to just always show up and things like that. Ironically, I always show up now. But you know what I mean, it wasn't super expected which was cool. And I wasn't strained or constrained by those expectations. But I think now, it's cool because I don't have to explain, people can just look it up. I have a best friend from middle school and to this day, we're still best friends and just recently she was like, oh I know what supplies you have. She was like, do you have everything she asked me if we were going out one day or one night, do you have this, do you have this, do you have this? And this is stuff that I never talked to her about ever, my entire life as long as I've known her. I've never asked her, I've never told her about the medical supplies I have, none of that stuff. And she was like Sabeerah, I work for an insurance company, of course I know the supplies you need. Like, the fuck? I'm sorry for cursing but it just blew my mind because you know what I mean, it was just like, HUH? You knew this whole time? You knew this whole time, like yeah what would you expect? And that meant so much to me, she has no idea. That meant a lot because there was a whole other comfortability level that I can now have. Like I'm comfortable with my friends but that's a whole nother comfortability level, you know what I mean? That's like a protected level. That's like a, oh if you don't, let me go back, we can go back to the house and go get your stuff, whatever you're running out on, let's go back before we even do what we're about to do. That's that comfortable level and a safety level that I can now have, which is amazing.
Jezz
I just learned language that describes this for me from Mia Mingus’s blog and it’s called “access intimacy,” this intimacy that you feel when someone you love meets your access needs. And sometimes it happens when you don't even say something or they've just known you for so long that they just kind of intuitively meet them and that level of intimacy, because there's so many different forms of intimacy, from what you're saying provides a sense of safety and comfort that then leads to greater connection, deeper conversation, and just more fun in general too.
Sabeerah
Yeah, no literally and it's cool because I can now have that with a lot of my friends. That kind of sparked other relationships with my friends where I'm able to be like oh yeah, I got to get my supplies before we leave. I got to make sure I have this, and I'm comfortable with saying that. That in turn made me comfortable. I went to a festival one time with my friend and it was a similar situation. She's another one of my best friends and I went to a festival with her. It was Smoking Groove. And I just needed help with some stuff and she just intuitively knew and that's from again, watching me do everything, it was just so quick. And I was shocked because we never had those types of conversations about my access needs and she just knew. And it was just like wow, okay. So 2 for 2 on that one. So those in turn created the comfortability level that I have now with my friends which is awesome.
Jezz
Okay, that makes me think. I have a new theory that one of the disability superpowers is this ability to deeply listen. And I think also disability superpower involves anyone who's around disabled people too because then we're kind of like sharing these superpowers with each other but how we're talking about our intuition is heightened, we're hyper aware of spaces, that is a superpower. To be able to listen to body language, to be able to listen to these subtle languages that isn't always verbal or said. Which then again just leads to greater experiences, richer experiences, deeper experiences, more fulfilling experiences.
Sabeerah
Yeah, yeah, exactly exactly. So yeah I would say listening and I think being able to really communicate and be intentional about ourselves and our time and the amount of energy that we exude. I think that's another one [disability superpower] because I think we're intentional about who we're friends with to even create that comfort level. You know what I mean? And I think with us being so hyper aware, we intentionally seek out people that will either immediately understand us or want to so much that eventually our relationship becomes that of access intimacy or what have you where eventually our relationship becomes intuitive with certain things. And I think we're really intentional with that. We try to find folks, and I mean I'm just speaking for me, but I feel like we try to find folks that can either get us or we want to work on getting us and understanding us. And we're also intentional about our time because we have to consider things like transportation, because we have to consider all these different things, I feel like we're extremely intentional with our time and our energy because if it’s too much, it’s too much. And one thing that I've learned recently is, it's okay to be like no I'm not gonna do that or I'm gonna have to pass on going to this, it's just going to be too much for me. And being okay with doing that and saying that is definitely a new thing but it feels good for sure.
Jezz
Yes, that's definitely another superpower: intentionality. I definitely feel that. Because yeah, it might be more, speaking for me, because I'm autistic, neurodivergent, it takes a lot more energy than maybe someone who's neuronormative so I'm going to be very intentional about the things that I go to, the people that I meet up with, conversations that I have. And also I'm realizing this lately, but not everyone says what they mean and means what they say.
Sabeerah
Ah, yeah, right.
Jezz
Right? But then I talk to my disabled friends and we all kind of are on the same page about say what you mean and mean what you say, but that's not the norm. It's not the norm. Wow, okay, well I want to wrap up this conversation but before we do, is there anything that you would say to someone who's kind of moving through that feeling that you were talking about earlier about like, do I belong here? Can I do this? Especially asking for access needs, someone who might be like, I don't know if I'm allowed to ask for this? I'm kind of ashamed of asking for this. What would you tell them?
Sabeerah
Yeah, it's funny, I'm still working on that. I called you the other day because I was trying to figure out how to even ask for that? You know, full honesty, that's a tough one because I'm still trying to figure that out myself. I'm not completely sure but I think one thing is knowing exactly what you need firsthand and then just asking for it. You know what I mean? Just get more comfortable with yourself to ask because it's what you need. And that's something you taught me and we've talked about, just really being comfortable with, again that intentionality of what you need and also how you need it. I think if you're intentional about what you need, you know how you're going to use it or utilize the opportunity or utilize what you need, that's important. That's probably how you're gonna be able to be comfortable with asking. Because there's things that are like big asks I learned and then there's also little asks. Those little questions here and there, those are kind of easy for folks to do and something in return could be as simple as just having a conversation with someone or hanging out with them. I don't want to say everything is transactional but there's two sides to it. There's an equivalent exchange between you asking and then them in return maybe asking just for a minute of your time, just to vent, just to talk. Those kinds of exchanges, those intentional meaningful exchanges are dope. But I think when you're asking for big asks, try not to be afraid because I think you have to realize your skills and what you're capable of and what you bring to the table and the more you remember that, the more you realize those big asks are also little asks as well.
Jezz
Ah I love that. Those big asks turn into little asks once you realize what you're bringing to the table. That's very very very important wisdom. Is there a specific, like the last time you asked for one of your access needs to be met, what's specific language that you used?
Sabeerah
So I think one thing when I asked for something recently, I asked for a few things. I hit up Nike for some stuff and I hit up some plugs, dealing with GoldenVoice and we were asking about some more access needs and some more opportunities that we want bring to A+ and importance was one of the words that we used a lot and why it’s important to us to expand the experience that we've created this year with A+. We really really focused on the importance of things. I think when I spoke with Nike, I spoke with them about the importance of what we're trying to accomplish and what I can do and what our program can do for the community and the importance of that. I think those are a couple of the things that we really really wanted to highlight, importance and capacity too. That's another one that I wanted to bring up. What we learned that we may not have had the capacity for, now we do and we want to create that capacity. So those are the two words that I would say when it comes to advocacy language that I recently used, whether or not I have the capacity for something and whether or not we have the capacity to do something. Bandwidth, those go hand in hand and importance and what was important to us.
Jezz
Love that. Importance and impact. I would I would throw in impact too.
Sabeerah
Oh that too. Let me throw that in. Yeah, bandwidth, capacity is kind of the same thing and importance and impact, those are main things. Just because with the importance of it comes the impact behind it. Also, I think I feel like manifestation gets thrown out a lot but it’s real. I think that's another word that I would say I use a lot. I have a tendency and a lot of the people that I work with which is cool that I'm friends with, have a tendency to speak everything that they say into existence. Everything they say they want to do, they do. And that's just kind of how we all move. We just put it out there, but then we also do the work to get there and make sure that everything we said we were gonna do we did or we're doing.
Jezz
Yes, yes, and especially as people of different, various oppressed identities or non-dominant identities, we're taught that what we want is too much, that we're asking for too much. Especially disabled folks I think we're kind of just fed that myth and that false narrative and belief all the time.
Sabeerah
Yeah yeah, a hundred percent.
Jezz
So every time we are bold enough to ask for what we want and understand that we get to manifest things too, we get to want for things. I feel like that's something I've really learned, I get to want for different experiences, safer experiences, more inclusive experiences, more accessible experiences, all of that.
Sabeerah
Exactly, exactly. I definitely agree with that because I feel like nothing that we're asking for is too much. I think the thing is the lack of empathy that folks have causes them to project that energy on us. That's why these laws are set up the way they're set up, to kind of create this forced poverty on disabled folks. It's because you can't see past your lens that what we're asking is literally the same as just inclusivity and accessibility. It’s really simple when you break it down but I think folks see how much work that goes into it, which doesn't feel like a lot to us. But they feel like they can't do it themselves so that's why, especially even in our family, that's why we get that flak or we feel kind of gaslit to feel like what we're asking for is too much. Because I feel like it always starts in the home first. But I don't know for me I've had those experiences but it kind of goes back and forth where it's like I feel like I'm asking for too much but then at the same time my family’s gonna do it. It's just like where is that balance of, is this really too much or are they just tripping because they feel like they can't do it right now. And then once you're able to identify that, then I think that's when I feel like you can fully be okay with asking. Because when it comes to how I was raised, my parents never felt like I was always asking for too much. Which is cool, which is super cool. And my grandparents never made me feel like that. So that helped. But then, I think in other family settings, where I think that because of the outside world and asking people for stuff, it was very external because with family it was easy but outside of that dealing with strangers and asking them for help, I think how they responded to me affected how I asked or whether or not I even asked myself.
Jezz
I feel that, I feel that a lot. Also I think I would say for anyone who's listening who is in event production or organizing a space or an experience, putting an experience together and they feel like making the experience accessible feels like a burden in some way, if they're like oh we have to get an interpreter, we have to make sure there's a ramp, we have to make sure all these things. Know that actually, it elevates the experience for everybody. Whether you're disabled or not, whether the people attending are disabled or not, it elevates the experience for everyone. It makes everything better and then raises the bar and I hope we collectively come to that understanding more and more.
Sabeerah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, completely. I want to shout out my friend Austin Whitney um who runs this company called Ten Fifty Entertainment and that's literally his job and he's also in a wheelchair and those kind of access needs are just like a no brainer for him because he gets it and that's his company. Like you were saying, some folks will be like oh man now I have to get an interpreter. For him, it's like you need it. What do you mean? It just needs to happen because how else are you going to call yourself inclusive without any of these access needs? It doesn't make sense. Yeah, making it a necessity.
Jezz
Yeah, make it a necessity.
Sabeerah
And he forces you to do that and I love that. That's actually who we partner with for A+, with him and his company. He's also Director of Accessibility over at Coachella, that's all him and his company. And it's a necessity for him some folks don't even realize the importance until he's at your booth and at your installation like hey, how come this ramp isn't done? And he's auditing you and you're like oh man but it should have been done. If you had that mindset to begin with, I mean how are you a brand calling yourself inclusive if this isn't done? For him, it's such a no brainer and creating those spaces not just for himself but for other folks with disabilities is his passion and that's mine too. Creating experiences.
Jezz
Yeah, we're not asking for too much. We're asking for the bare minimum. It's the bare minimum.
Sabeerah
It's the bare minimum and that's the crazy part. It's the bare minimum and why make us feel like shit for asking little to nothing.
Jezz
Right. Well this brings me to my last question, which is something I think about a lot when I practice visualizing where it's like meditation but I really try to visualize what it feels like, what it smells like, what the textures, the whole experience of an accessible future. What is a safe experience for me or what's my ideal social experience etc. So that's my question. What do you want the future to feel like?
Sabeerah
I want the future to feel like a few things. I want to feel like asking for more than the bare minimum is okay, asking for some sense of comfortability is okay. I'm thinking about a conversation that I had with my cousin and it goes back to language and he was talking about a company or an organization that he was speaking to and he was like yeah, they're surprised when I have a conversation with them that I'm intelligent, because he has CP [cerebral palsy] and I'm like huh? They’re surprised? That's not okay bro. I told him, don't gauge your intelligence based on the way other people are perceiving you. And I think that whole mindset that he has, which was like oh because I have CP they think that I'm not going to be intelligent and that's a backhanded compliment. That's a fucking insult to be honest with you. That's fucked up. That's not okay. I'm like dude, you've been on, you've been intelligent. 90% of the time, I’m like bro you have more experience than what they have in the field they’re in. You probably have way more experience. So how do you allow them to gauge how smart you are, how are they surprised? That's fucked up. They wouldn't tell that to anybody else. So I think the future looks like being able to call that out and have folks one, not even say shit like that but not even think that way. I don't ever want to hear something like that again, I don't ever want to hear somebody tell him some shit like that. Because then I'm gonna go off. Like fuck, you don't know him, what do you mean? So I think that right there. And being able to realize that type of mentality ain't it. No limitations. And him being okay to call that out and him being even comfortable to call out and realize like nah, there's literally nothing holding it back. None of this shit means anything. It means something to me in a sense of how I operate, but whatever limitations you have are the ones that you're trying to put on me that aren't sticking to me. That doesn't mean anything to me. Yeah I have certain limitations but those are just access needs.
Jezz
Yep, Disability is not a deficit. It's a difference.
Sabeerah
It's not a deficit, it's a difference and that's it. That’s all it is. So the future for me looks like people like him being able to recognize their power and being able to call that out and defend themselves when that power is threatened or tried or limited. So yeah, I think the future looks like that.
Jezz
Wow! Love. Okay, wow. Amazing. So how can people support you and your work, where can they find you, anything you want to plug, anything coming up?
Sabeerah
You guys can find me at @SabeerahNajee on Instagram. Spelled S-A-B-E-E-R-A-H-N-A-J-E-E and then that's also my SoundCloud as well, same @, same everything, find me on there. And then for show updates, that's pretty much all on my Instagram if you want to check out some mixes that I have that's all on SoundCloud.
Jezz
Awesomeee! Thank youuu.
Jezz
Thanks for tuning into Dreaming Different, hosted by Jezz Chung for Deem Journal’s Audio Series. If there’s anything in this episode that resonated with you, we invite you to be a part of our exploration in collective dreaming by sharing Dreaming Different with people you know and leaving a review on any podcast platform. Reviews are immensely helpful for our reach and impact. Also as a neurodivergent tip, I find that I process information more deeply when I listen or read something for a second time after I’ve had some time to digest it. Sometimes I even listen on 1.5 or 2x speed and that feels really good for my brain. Sharing those tips in case they can support you in processing all of this delicious information.
Big thanks to the entire team at Deem: Alexis Aceves Garcia, Jun Lin, Jorge Vallecillos, Alice Grandoit-Sutka, Isabel Flower, Nu Goteh, Jorge Porras, and Amy Mae Garrett for their contributions to the ideation and production of this series. Special thank you to Nu Goteh for composing the dreamy music you hear throughout the series. It took so many conversations, iterations, and practices of spaciousness to bring Dreaming Different to you and we hope it helps expand your ideas of the future, the world, and the possibilities we can create together.
If you’re new to Dreaming Different, we recommend checking out the introductory episode, which lays out the origins of this series, what we intend to explore throughout the episodes, and my personal journey with the neurodiversity paradigm. Episode 1 also includes some somatic and mindfulness tools to use if you feel any discomfort or tension while listening.
You can find the complete series including transcripts and show notes at deemjournal.com/audio and Deem Journal on Instagram at @deemjournal. I’m Jezz Chung, you can find me @jezzchung across social media, and I hope you do something to take care of yourself today and all the days ahead.
Thank you for dreaming with me.
Show Notes
Sabeerah Najee
www.instagram.com/sabeerahnajee
soundcloud.com/sabeerah_najee
Coachella’s Accessible+ (A+) Programwww.coachella.com/accessibleplus
Access Intimacy by Mia Mingusleavingevidence.wordpress.com/2011/05/05/access-intimacy-the-missing-link/
Ten Fifty Entertainment
