On December 2nd, Ki’tay Davidson passed away in his sleep in Los Angeles, CA. The fact that so many of you knew Ki’tay is a testament to the leadership, outreach, and love he showed to the movement. For those of you that did not, Ki’tay was a young, African-American, transgender man with a disability who was out and proud. He worked across movements to connect the disability rights movement with the LGBTQA communities, people of color, young people, and more. Ki’tay recognized that, like himself, many individuals are members of multiple communities and that we must work together to be inclusive and make change. Just 22 years old, Ki’tay had already made himself indispensable to our movement.
Ki’tay created #DisabilitySolidarity and the @dissolidarity twitter account in the wake of Michael Brown’s killing in Ferguson, MO. Through @dissolidarity, his presence across social media, and tireless work, Ki’tay was instrumental in creating conversation around the intersection between disability and people of color. He worked on these issues with so much passion and confidence because he knew there was no other way. He knew that people with disabilities who are also people or color and / or LGBTQA, and / or other multiply-marginalized communities are much more likely to face violence in their lives, including at the hands of law enforcement. He reminded us that these vast, festering problems are disability rights issues.
In his honor, we pledge to be a part of these conversations and support the work of all disability advocates. If you would like to show your respect for Ki’tay, please visit the For the Love of Ki’tay D. Davidson GiveForward page and consider donating to support his family by contributing to his memorial services. Please also visit @dissolidarity on Twitter, check out #DisabilitySolidarity, and be a part of the conversation. Ki’tay had begun a lifetime of tremendous work. We must all be a part of it and do our piece if we are to achieve his vision that #LoveWins.
