Lesly St. Louis is the Director of Employment Programs for United Spinal Association, including our popular Work Readiness course. We asked him to reflect upon Black History Month as an African American man who uses a wheelchair.
What does Black History Month mean to you?
Black History Month, like National Disability Employment Month and other similar months, showcases the successes of those who experience stigma.
It’s a time when we’re recognized for who we are as a community, including our challenges and accomplishments. When you bring more voices to the table, there are more opportunities to be innovative and grow.
What success or accomplishment looks like varies depending on the person. Not to be cliché, but some might say my biggest accomplishment is my kids. Some others may say my biggest accomplishment is my business. What we consider an accomplishment is very personal.
What employment challenges are faced by African Americans who use wheelchairs?
In our programmatic events, we talk a lot about the disclosure of disability, ethnicity, and race. Should we disclose and how should we disclose? Those of us in minority groups have a big concern. If I check that box, ‘Person with a Disability’ or ‘African American’, will my application be seen? Or if my name is ‘X’, will my resume even be viewed?
I tell the people I’m working with to prepare for tomorrow and control what they can today. If you go and worry about what this person is doing or worry about legislation that will impact us, if you get caught up in all that whirlwind, you’re not going to accomplish anything.
Focus on that resume. Focus on that interview. Focus on the task and how to be better tomorrow, no matter the circumstances.
When you think of all the great black people in history, who do you admire the most?
I’m very much a family guy, and I don’t look up to any public figure to emulate. So, I guess as far as leaders, the men in my family are the ones I honor.
My father is the number one person as he raised me to have this perspective that I have now. He taught me that even though I was born with spina bifida, I cannot let it control me or dictate my outcomes, and that is my whole mindset.
Whatever I’m trying to accomplish, I will never say I fell short because of my disability. It will never come out of my mouth that I didn’t get the result I wanted because of my disability or the color of my skin. Your self-perspective is the most important perspective that you can have.
As long as you know in your heart that you are putting in maximum effort, you can sleep at night.
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