Navigating crisis with Justice Shorter
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Justice Shorter is a skilled organizer and facilitator, disability justice amplifier, and senior advisor on issues at the intersection of race, disability, gender, climate, and crisis. She is a national expert on disability inclusive disaster protections, and emergency management.
And, she is a rare return guest on Down to the Struts. Justice joined the podcast in season one, alongside Conchita Hernandez Legorreta and Melissa Lomax for the episode WOC World, about an online community dedicated to uplifting and supporting blind women of color. On her second visit to the podcast, Justice talks to Qudsiya about her newly published Disaster Justice Guidebook for people of color with disabilities. The book weaves together storytelling, practical advice, and the collective wisdom of six phenomenal people to create a roadmap for environmental crisis response, rooted in and centered on the lived experiences of people of color.
About the guest:
Justice Shorter
Justice Shorter is a skilled organizer/facilitator, Disability Justice amplifier and senior advisor on issues at the intersection of race, disability, gender, climate, and crises. She is a national expert on disability inclusive disaster protections, emergency management and humanitarian crises/conflicts.
She has studied community development in South Africa, Peace & Post-Conflict Reconciliation in Uganda/Rwanda, periodically returned to her childhood community to teach on subjects surrounding social action/communications and earned a B.A. in Journalism with minors in Justice & Peace Studies from Marquette University. While earning her MA in Sustainable Development: International Policy & Management, Justice interned within the White House Office of Public Engagement & Intergovernmental Affairs where she focused on disability outreach efforts, social inclusion policies and federal agency engagement.
In more recent years, Justice served as a Disability Integration Advisor with the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, deploying frequently to disaster areas across America and its territories. She is also the co-creator of a celebrated framework for applying Disability Justice approaches to disaster/humanitarian assistance, a Crisis Management method that acknowledges histories of harm, centers intersectionality and prioritizes leadership by Black, Indigenous & People of Color with disabilities.
As a frequently sought out keynote speaker/facilitator /performer, Justice’s involvement in multiple equity initiatives has allowed her to not only foster inroads with diverse advocates nationwide, but to also increase awareness via conferences and advocacy campaigns concerning pervasive problems that disproportionately impact minoritized and marginalized individuals. She is a steering committee member for the National Human Trafficking & Disability Working group where she has been appointed to advise on training and educational outreach efforts.
Justice is the former National Disaster Protection Advisor for America’s Protection & Advocacy system. Her propensity for leading projects developed alongside people of color with disabilities has made Justice an effective advisor on disability inclusive equity initiatives. Highly experienced at operationalizing strategic plans, her work also features creatively designed events that center access, safety, dignity and belonging.
With a steadfast commitment to international development and inclusive humanitarian assistance, Justice continues to participate in emerging projects as a global advisor and trainer.
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