Unapologetic Advocacy…
…was built out of frustration. The systems are broken. Advocacy has become watered down. There is a constant expectation that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), their supports, and their families should be grateful for services that don’t work. We are all expected to accept these excuses…
We reject that.
People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) , their supports, and their families deserve dignity and respect.
This unnecessarily complex system keeps the people that should be involved out of the decision-making and protects systems from scrutiny. We want that wall broken down.
Our mission is simple:
- First, we will break down how the overly complex and often inaccessible disability systems work in Tennessee. Policies, programs, and services shouldn’t require an doctorate degree to understand. We will work to provide clear guidance on rules and service navigation, by creating practical information so individuals and families can confidently navigate their options and understand their rights.
- Second, we will provide and support pathways for action. Unapologetic Advocacy will equip individuals, families, and allies with the tools they need to mobilize, organize, and push for systemic change. Our work will center on accountability by ensuring disability services and decision-makers are responsive, transparent, and effective.
But information alone isn’t enough.
Historically families (communities, nonprofits, you name it…) have been subjected to the Divide-and-Conquer strategy: where shifts in funding and veiled promises to help one have come at the cost of the another; pitting families and others against each other preventing a unified front.
We want to work together as a united front.
Our Values
Accountability
Systems that control funding, services, and affect lives must answer to the people they impact. We push for transparency, responsibility, and consequences when those systems fail.
Access
Advocacy should not be gate-kept. Information, tools, and opportunities to lead must be accessible to everyone, regardless of education, income, or insider status.
Lived Experience
Those most impacted by disability policy belong at the center of advocacy and decision-making. We prioritize real-world experience over titles, credentials, or proximity to power.
Justice
Our work recognizes that disability intersects with every identity and experience. We are not interested in surface-level reform or performative inclusion, systemic change is a shared responsibility. Every person’s needs are valid, and everyone deserves to have those needs met
Unapologetic Advocacy is about moving people from understanding to action. It is a grassroots advocacy campaign that will work to create clear pathways for individuals, families, and allies to organize, speak up, and demand better from organizations, policymakers, and institutions that have gone too long without real accountability.
Heather Henderson
Advocate
Heather is a long-time disability advocate who has worked as a direct support professional, program manager, service coordination, and director of advocacy. Her favorite roles are wife, mom, and Lolli to Doodle who has autism.
