In 1968, the ASHA Convention became a moment of rupture. Not because of disorder, but because long-standing tensions were finally named. This episode examines what happened when Black clinicians challenged the limits of a profession that defined itself as “neutral,” and what that moment revealed about power, voice, and professional growth.
We explore:
- The Denver moment: Why ASHA leadership responded to internal and external dissent with heightened security.
- The “birdwatcher” debate: Whether a professional association can remain technically neutral in a socially unequal world.
- Exit and voice in action: How the National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing emerged.
- Clinical consequences: How this advocacy reshaped the profession’s understanding of difference versus disorder.
Sources:
- Malone, R. (1999). The first 75 years: An oral history of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
- Williams, R., & Wolfram, W. (1977). Social dialects: Differences vs. disorders.
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