Rasheera Dopson on Womanhood, Disability, and Building Inclusive Communities ~ 920

Tim Villegas
I don’t know about where you live, but today is the last day of school for the kids in our neighborhood. Summer is here. So let the late nights begin. And the end of the school year brings with it a lot of emotion for educators and families. So wherever you are right now, just know that you are not alone. I’m so thankful for you and for you being a part of the Think Inclusive Podcast. We couldn’t do it without you.

Today on the pod, we have a fantastic guest, Rasheera Dopson, the host of the WomanHood and Disability podcast. My name is Tim Villegas, and you are listening to the Think Inclusive podcast presented by MCIE.

This podcast exists to build bridges between families, educators, and disability rights advocates to create a shared understanding of inclusive education and what inclusion looks like in the real world. To find out more about who we are and what we do, check us out at thinkinclusive.us or on the socials: Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Today is the last official episode of season nine. We’ve done 20 full episodes and about a dozen bonus episodes this season. Next month in June, we’ll be publishing two remixed episodes, which are previously recorded episodes with additional editing, intros, and even interviews. Look out for those in a couple of weeks.

Looking at our next season, starting in July, we are switching things up just a bit. The Weeklyish, which is the audio version of the newsletter by the same name, will be its own podcast with its very own feed. You can find that over at weeklyish.substack.com and add it to your favorite podcast player. We will still be publishing our bi-weekly podcast Think Inclusive here in this feed.

Okay, that’s all the updates. I am so glad you’re here. Thanks for listening, subscribing, and rating us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And now, our interview with Rasheera Dopson.

Tim Villegas
Okay, today on the Think Inclusive podcast, we have Rasheera Dopson, who is an author, a disability justice activist, researcher, and scholar. Currently, she is pursuing her Master’s Degree in Public Health at Morehouse School of Medicine, where her specific research areas of focus are exploring the intersectionality of race, gender, and disability. Alongside her academic endeavors, she is also a social entrepreneur. In 2016, she launched the Beauty with a Twist brand, an online platform for women and girls with disabilities. Both of Rasheera’s professional and lived experiences in living with a disability and chronic illness have enabled her to speak to audiences around the world. Welcome to the Think Inclusive podcast, Rasheera.

Rasheera Dopson
Hi, everyone. Good to be here.

Tim Villegas
We’re excited to have you. And in case people don’t know, Rasheera, you have been a guest blogger on Think Inclusive. Rasheera and I met a couple of years ago at the Georgia LEND disability seminar, which was great. We love Mark Crenshaw—shout out to Mark Crenshaw at Georgia State.

Rasheera Dopson
I just saw him a couple of days ago, actually.

Tim Villegas
Yeah, I know he listens. So yeah, we’re really excited. But the reason why you’re here is because you have a podcast. And it’s called WomanHood and Disability, right? I’m saying that right. And I wanted to have you on because we want to tell other people about podcasts, especially creators with disabilities. Would you introduce yourself to our audience of educators in case they don’t know you?

Rasheera Dopson
Yes, absolutely. And I first want to say just thank you so much, Tim, for having me on this amazing podcast. Like you said, we met a couple of years ago, and I’ve been following you on Twitter and other social media platforms, and you are always pushing the envelope when it comes to inclusion, especially in our educational system. So that’s always really refreshing to see, especially from a person who was a previous educator. So I’m just really grateful to be here and to share about my podcast, the WomanHood and Disability podcast, and some of the work that I do as an advocate, activist, content creator, and emerging public health professional. I wear many different hats, and depending on which day you get me depends on what’s happening. So today, I’m going to be maybe taking off and putting on a lot of hats in this conversation. It’s nice to be here.

Tim Villegas
Awesome. Well, tell us about your podcast—especially why you started it.

Rasheera Dopson
I launched my podcast last year in June. Someone had told me I should do a podcast, but I didn’t really like the sound of my own voice. I’m used to writing. I wrote a blog for Think Inclusive a few months back. I’m used to pouring out my heart and all my deep 3 a.m. thoughts on paper.

Podcasting was different because it forced me to be more vocal in sharing my experiences and perspective. It made me think more deeply about how I wanted to articulate messages and narratives I was seeing that didn’t have a platform.

I created the WomanHood and Disability podcast because I live at that intersection. I’m a woman and I have a disability. When people read the title, it’s exactly what it sounds like: it’s about womanhood and disability and what it’s like to live at that intersection. As a woman of color, there wasn’t representation of what that looked like in my community.

We go through different milestones as men and as women, and I didn’t have a blueprint for those milestones within the context of disability. I realized my experience was different from what I was reading on women-led platforms, which often left out a big portion of my lived experience—having a disability and a chronic illness. That can make your life experience very different.

I created the podcast to lift up my experience and create a safe place for myself. In doing that, other people identified with it. It wasn’t just people with disabilities. Other women reached out and said an episode resonated with them. One of my first episodes was about acknowledging milestones and how, as a woman with a disability, I felt behind because disability and chronic illness got in the way of things that might come quickly for nondisabled peers. A doctor messaged me and said she often felt guilty or ashamed that she wasn’t where she needed to be, and listening helped her. She didn’t disclose a disability.

Sharing vulnerable moments reaches women with and without disabilities and shows that we all deal with the same things as people. Creating these spaces not only supports the specific group you’re reaching, but also builds allyship and community. That’s important to me—community that isn’t just for disabled people, though it’s created by a disabled person—so it helps bridge groups.

Tim Villegas
You do both solo podcasts and interviews. Was it difficult to do the solo podcasts, or did that seem natural?

Rasheera Dopson
It felt natural. Interviewing people is natural for me, too. I’m inquisitive and curious. I like to ask hard questions and not just surface questions. I frame episodes as genuine conversations—no agenda—trying to get to the bottom of topics I want to know more about.

In one episode on women’s health, I brought on a friend who is a women’s health practitioner. She doesn’t have a disability. I asked, “What’s one thing women should be thinking about when it comes to their health that we aren’t showcasing?” She said: pain.

Women—especially Black women—may be dealing with pain and ignoring those signals because they’re busy or stressed or not taking time for themselves. Asking, “Where is this pain coming from? How do I know if it’s pain or if I’m overthinking it?” leads to real answers.

It’s funny—maybe I was always meant to have a podcast, even if I didn’t see myself as a “podcaster.” It seems to work, so I’m going with it until it doesn’t.

Tim Villegas
That’s great. You just started your second season. I took a look at what you put out last year. Once you get past ten episodes, you’re way beyond the vast majority of people who say they have a podcast—so well done.

Rasheera Dopson
I didn’t know that. That makes me feel better.

Tim Villegas
Take it from someone who once published only one episode in a year—it’s hard to stay consistent. Well done. Would you recap season one for our listeners? Did you have a theme or certain topics you wanted to hit?

Rasheera Dopson
Some episodes I wanted to do, I didn’t get to record—hopefully this season. A lot of inspiration came from daily life and what was going on in society. Some episodes were just my perspective. I brought in a few people who could add value. Some were planned; some were spontaneous. I’d have an experience and think, “I need to make an episode about this.”

I’m analytical—which shows in my public health work—so I’m always critically thinking. That helps me creatively address serious topics like racism. Some people won’t receive “Racism is defined A, B, C, D, E.” They need a conversation or a story—what ableism feels like.

In the first season, I wanted to narrate experiences of ableism I encountered at school, in the classroom, and in my community—and how they made me feel. We talk about these things on the surface, but not how they feel. Talking about feelings humanizes the experience and shows that statements and actions impact a person on the other end. For every action there’s a consequence; for every statement, someone is impacted.

I focused on forms of ableism we see but don’t recognize, and microaggressions we need to identify so we can change behavior.

Tim Villegas
You said you don’t necessarily have a schedule or themes, but as you look ahead, what are your hopes and dreams for WomanHood and Disability?

Rasheera Dopson
I do have a schedule in the sense of aiming to record episodes within a quarter and hit certain things. For season two, I have an introductory episode on body positivity. Since February is Black History Month, I’ll dive into Black disability—what that looks like culturally and personally—and those intersectional conversations.

Our culture is very themed—February is Black History Month and Valentine’s Day; October is Disability Employment Awareness Month. I try to connect to what’s already trending and add my perspective, bringing in people who add value. For season two: Black disability, intersectionality, body positivity.

I may repeat conversations from a different angle. Some conversations don’t have a single “one-and-done” episode; they’re continual. Inclusion in special education, for example, can’t be covered in one episode—it might take a lifetime. As long as we keep the conversation going and stay open to all angles, we learn, we grow, and we build community.

Tim Villegas
Do you have a wish list of people you’d want to interview?

Rasheera Dopson
There are disability advocates I look up to. (And I’m thinking, I need the courage to ask them!) People like Haben Girma. “Cloggy Borman”—she was the first Black Deaf woman attorney and worked as the White House correspondent for the disability engagement community. (I might be getting the title mixed up, but if you Google her, you’ll know who she is.) People like Rebecca Cofely—I follow her work; she does policy and posts about her kids, which is hilarious.

From the nondisabled community, I’d love to partner with brands like Dove and bring in people advocating for beauty inclusivity and ask, “How do you talk about disability? How can we collaborate?”

My goal is a platform where it’s not either/or. Disabled people can’t be the only ones talking about disability; nondisabled counterparts need to be part of it. And nondisabled people can’t be the only ones talking about non-disability topics; disabled people need to be in those conversations.

I didn’t grow up in a disability-friendly society; I grew up in a very able-bodied environment where “disability” wasn’t even said. Integration is important. Inclusion isn’t separating—it’s combining.

Tim Villegas
It’s funny you don’t think of yourself as a creative, because you are. You can be both. You’ve written a book, started Beauty with a Twist, you’re a writer, and a podcaster—so yes, you’re a creative. You wear other hats, too. I’d love to know more about your internships. You interned with Jon Ossoff and you’re currently interning with AAPD. What was it like to intern for the Senator? Was he a Senator at the time?

Rasheera Dopson
He was. I was a summer intern in 2021. He was newly elected, which was historic for Georgia. It was really cool. I was supposed to be in D.C., but because of the pandemic it was virtual. I feel like I missed the full D.C. experience—maybe a little bitter, but I was happy to intern in a historic office.

Senator Ossoff is really nice and young, which was different from other political spaces I’ve worked in. The office buzzed with innovation, with young people ready to make a difference in the state. That was impressionable. I bring the disability community with me into spaces, so representation mattered. I asked him what he would do for disabled Georgians, and he said I could write him a letter—I plan to follow up.

Interning with AAPD—the American Association of People with Disabilities—has also been great. It’s one of the largest disability-led organizations in the U.S., focused on disability policy, technology, accessibility, voting rights, and holding leaders accountable. As a student intern now, it’s refreshing. In most spaces I’m the only Black or only disabled person. At AAPD, it just clicks. I don’t have to explain disability; they get it. The President and CEO is a woman with a disability, which is empowering. Shout out to Maria Town—she’s inspirational. I know I’ll look back and see this as pivotal. It reminds me that disability matters—and will always matter.

Tim Villegas
What’s next for you after you graduate? What would be your dream job?

Rasheera Dopson
I want to work at the White House. It’s ambitious, but I love high-level policy. What we do at that level impacts states and trickles down. If I can speak on behalf of my community and bring others with me—leave the door open—and influence disability policy and visibility at that level, it would make me smile on the inside.

Tim Villegas
We wish you the best of luck. We’re claiming that for you. In a few years, we’ll interview you at the White House. Where can people find you?

Rasheera Dopson
My name is pretty easy to find—there aren’t many Rasheeras.

• Twitter: @Rasheera-d-i-a-r-a
• Instagram: @RasheerhaDopson
• Facebook: @RasheeraDopson (I mostly use Instagram and Twitter; Facebook is for family.)
• LinkedIn for professional connections.
• Website: www.beautywithatwist.org (you can read my book there or purchase on Amazon).
• The WomanHood & Disability podcast is on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast platforms.

Tim Villegas
We’re so happy that Rasheera Dopson stopped by to be on the Think Inclusive podcast. Thanks for your time.

Tim Villegas
That will do it for this episode of the Think Inclusive podcast. Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, the Anchor app, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Have a question or comment? Email us at podcast@thinkinclusive.us. We’d love to know you’re listening.

Thank you to patrons Veronica E., Sonia A., Pamela P., Mark C., Kathy B., Kathleen T., and Jarett T. for their continued support. When you become a patron, your contribution helps with the cost of audio production, transcription, and promotion of the Think Inclusive podcast—and you could get a shout-out like the fine people we just mentioned. Go to patreon.com/thinkinclusivepodcast to become a patron today and get access to all our unedited interviews, including the conversation you heard today.

Thank you for helping us equip more people to promote and sustain inclusive education. This podcast is a production of MCIE, where we envision a society where neighborhood schools welcome all learners and create the foundation for inclusive communities. Learn more at MCIE.org.

We’ll be back next month with two remixed Think Inclusive episodes. Thank you for your time and attention and for listening. Until next time, remember: inclusion always works.