A Portrait of Black Mother Advocacy for Children on the Autism Spectrum

• In Event: Convergences: Locating Advocacy and Justice

Abstract

In this exploratory study, the qualitative method of Portraiture was used to recognize the characteristics associated with parent advocacy among Black mothers of children on the autism spectrum in California, Pennsylvania, and New York. Liberating methodologies rooted in critical race and feminist frameworks and humanistic research strategies were used to co-construct portrait narratives of seven mothers illustrating the resources they used to navigate service-delivery systems (e.g., early intervention, special education) after their child’s diagnosis. Additionally, how those resources contributed to their advocacy skills are described. The preliminary results of this study determined that Black mothers used 1) internal resources (i.e., non-dominant cultural capital) to navigate service-delivery systems, and 2) intentionally disseminated similar advocacy strategies to parents they coached.

Author

• Elizabeth Holliday Morgan, California State University - Sacramento