Full Description
In this book, Warda Farah brings a fresh perspective to the field of Speech and Language Therapy, challenging traditional approaches and opening crucial conversations about race, culture, and neurodiversity in clinical practice to ensure better outcomes for all children and young people.
Drawing from her unique position as a Black Neurodivergent practitioner, Farah weaves personal insights with professional expertise to illuminate the often-overlooked intersections of identity, communication, and care. She discusses how moving beyond conventional assessment methods to embrace testimonial approaches can transform our understanding of children's communication journeys. Through analysis of historical, societal, and political contexts, the author suggests that systemic biases influence therapeutic practices and outcomes, boldly addressing the culture of silence within the profession.
Essential reading for practicing therapists, educators, and students alike, this book ignites a necessary dialogue about transformation in Speech and Language Therapy. It serves as both a wake-up call and a roadmap for Speech and Language Therapists committed to delivering culturally responsive care in today's diverse society.
Contents
Foreword by Aris Moreno Clemons
Foreword by Tasha Austin
INTRODUCTION
Before He Was Understood, He Was Measured
Mr. Grammarticologylisationalism Is the Boss
Lord Lexicon and the Ministry of Misdiagnosis
Credentialed, But Conditional
Complain, Complain, Complain...
Too Brilliant, Too Black, Too Much
We Were Already Guilty, Just Waiting for the Complaint
Speaking Up While Black
The Frameworks We Inherit, The Futures We Imagine
PART 1
The Politics of Storytelling: Unveiling What Has Always Been
The Disorder Was in the Assessment, Not the Child
Awakenings
The Biopolitics of Voice
Costumes and Corrections: The Early Policing of Voice
Activism or Survival?
One Thoughtful Step at a Time
PART 2
There Is No Racial Justice Without Linguistic Justice
The Issue With Membership Organisations - My Opinion
George Floyd
Aversive Racism
Academia and Research
A Personal Snapshot
Naming the Divide
Environments Matter
Labour in Speech and Language Therapy
The Matrix of Constant Replacement
Communal Lament and Quantum Entanglements
Toward Linguistic and Racial Liberation
So, Where Do We Go From Here?
PART 3
A Critical Reflection on the Foundations of Speech-Language Therapy
A Lens That Narrows Rather Than Illuminates
Whose Language Is 'Standard'?
Epistemic Violence and the Politics of Knowledge
The Bell Curve Baby
From Critical Reflection to Ethical Transformation
Radical Listening, Ethical Commitment
Decolonising Speech Language Therapy
What Is Decolonisation?
Critical Race Theory
Paving the Way for Transformative Change
Five Foundational Concepts for Decolonising Speech-Language Therapy
Embracing the Power of Conversations
RCSLT Summer 2024
It's Not Just the RCSLT
The Urgency of Structural Overhaul
Moving Beyond Rhetoric to Real Change
The Legacy of Orlando Taylor
The Essential Shift Required
The Power of Sisterhood, Spirituality and Divine Order
Self-Check for Genuine Solidarity
Blackness as a Commodity
Speaking Up Is Professional
PART 4
Language as Our Most Powerful Tool for Creation
The Weight of Language and the Question of Practice
30 Million Word Gap
Confronting the Limitations of Standardised Assessment
The Sociohistorical Roots of Standardised Testing & Eugenics
Colonial Legacies in Language Norms
Linguistic Justice Across Space, Time, and Lineage
Time for Testimonies
Testimony: Omari
What Are Testimonies
Therapist's Role in Facilitating Testimonies
Learning from Testimonies
One Last Testimony
When Language Becomes a Site of Surveillance
The Myth of the Neutral Professional
Leo's Story
My Reflections
Noah's Story
Critical Reflections for Practitioners
Muhammad's Story
Critical Reflections for Practitioners
Training Practitioners in Critical Reflexivity
CONCLUSION
Unbecoming, and Imagining Something New
Embracing Uncertainty
The Inclination to Categorise and Compartmentalise
Reinterpreting Our Values in New Ontologies
An Overreliance on Standardised Testing
"I Don't See Colour"
Independent Scholars Matter
Racial Ignorance
Protecting Professional Whiteness
Language as Core Value
Political Identity and Blackness as a Site of Transformation
Creating a More Expansive, Liberatory Praxis
Three Vital Questions
An Alternative Vision Rooted in Agency
Cultivating Collective Strength and Joy
Why Don't You Cite Us?
A Philosophical Approach to Praxis
Decolonise, Destroy and Dream: Thought Experiments
Not "Hard to Reach," but Deliberately Erased
Power at the Core
Being and Becoming
How do we use our present awareness to inform and shape a better future?
Coloniality of Power
Genuine Liberation Matters
Envisioning a New World
The Emergence of Spaces of Reprieve
Index
