Barriers to inclusion and equity: a mother-son critical reflection and lessons learned

This study is an exploration of DisCrit Mothering, of education, research, and activism, rooted in our radical love for our children facing barriers and injustices due to intersectional oppressions in schools. We employ critical duoethnography to discuss and analyze our experiences, understandings, and lessons learned in our mother-son educational journey through counter-storytelling of four pivotal events to counter implicit bias and majoritarian narratives. We identify patterns of racism, ableism, and exclusion in our stories and share our lessons learned. We identify the need for a better understanding of dis/ability, timely identification, a rejection of deficit-focused approaches, and student and family involvement in IEPs. We make ourselves vulnerable to share our stories, using our lessons learned to urge educators to question their perceptions of multiply-marginalized students and to focus on care and equity versus discipline.