New disability activists not only think about disability as something that’s caused by society, but also as something that’s caused by other systems of oppression, like sexism, homophobia, and racism. Considering how a person’s many identities affects their experiences is called intersectionality. Women, LQBTQ+ people, people of color, poor people, and other marginalized folks were all considered Disabled at one point in history, under the umbrella of feeble-minded and degenerate.

Activists that consider intersectionality are also critical of certain groups’ attempts to distance themselves from the disability community. For example, some members of the Deaf community have claimed that they “are a linguistic minority. We think and experience the world differently. We are not Disabled. There is nothing wrong with us.” Activists see this as a problem because there is nothing wrong with being disabled to begin with.