The Curb Cut Effect: Why Addressing Disability and Ableism Benefits Everyone

The SHA will be holding an online workshop on Monday, October 30, 2023 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (EDT) entitled “The Curb Cut Effect: Why Addressing Disability and Ableism Benefits Everyone.”  The workshop will be led by Mia L. Carey, Chair of the SHA Gender and Minority Affairs Committee.

Have you ever stopped to think about how something as simple as adding a curb cut has benefitted you at one point or another in your life? No? Well think about your elderly parents or grandparents using mobility devices or parents and guardians pushing their children in strollers. The curb cut design has and continues to benefit everyone, not just people with disabilities. The reality is that at some point in life, almost everyone will temporarily or permanently experience disability. Why not begin to replicate the curb cut effect in archaeology now to prepare ourselves and future generations. 

In this 3-hour workshop, participants will gain a better understanding of:

  • Disability;
  • Ableism; and
  • The meaning of accessibility through an interactive inclusion and equity tool.

Together, we will create practical solutions to address disability and ableism in academia; cultural resource management; hiring, promotion, and retention; professional organizations, including conferences; fieldwork; and training.

The workshop will be conducted by Mia L. Carey, Chair of the SHA Gender and Minority Affairs Committee and founder of Unearthing Our Past Consulting, LLC. Mia is an anthropological archaeologist who earned her doctorate from the University of Florida in 2017. She established Unearthing Our Past Consulting, LLC in March 2021 to continue her current focus on fostering inclusion and equity in archaeology and public history.

Cost: $15 for students and $20 for professionals

The link for the online webinar will be emailed to all registrants prior to the workshop’s start.

Download the SHA 2023 “The Curb Cut Effect” workshop flyer to register. Please complete, save, and email the flyer form to hq@sha.org by Tuesday, October 24, 2023.