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Paper Presentation

African Americans and the African Diaspora

Session: Can We Talk? Reframing Conversations about Belonging

Examining Americans with Disabilities in Social Welfare History

    Presenter(s)

  • Robert L. Cosby, PhD, MSW, MPhil

    Assistant Dean of Administration; Director Multidisciplinary Gerontology Center; Associate Professor
    Howard University School of Social Work

Examining Americans with Disabilities in Social Welfare History - explores how social welfare affects African Americans with disabilities. Despite federal protections African Americans with disabilities still experience systemic exclusion in education, employment, and community participation. Addressing these disparities requires culturally responsive social work practice while dismantling structural barriers to inclusion.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this session, attendees should be able to:
  1. 1. Identify four major historical developments in social welfare that have impacted African Americans with disabilities.
  2. 2. Analyze three key legal frameworks (ADA, Section 504, Social Security Act) that protect the rights of persons with disabilities and demonstrate social work practice competence.
  3. 3. Examine the disproportionate impact of housing and transportation inequities on African Americans with disabilities and their broader implications for teaching social work students and demonstrate how to identify disability information in social work practice.