Black Journalist, Poet and Activist Leroy Moore

By Jacob Lesner-Buxton

Leroy Moore identifies as a black journalist, poet and activist with a disability. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, his work addresses important issues, such as the marginalization of Black people in the disability rights movement, as well as the relationship between racism, ableism and police brutality. Additionally, Moore is also one of the founders of Krip-Hop, a worldwide network of socially aware musicians with disabilities. The D Lit Blog asked the legendary Moore about his beginnings in writing, Krip Hop and his experiences with the publishing industry.

Moore was inspired to write because, as he describes, “not seeing any [books] by Black disabled people, but knowing that Black disabled people have been here since we were kidnapped from Africa.” He wanted to bring stories about Black people with disabilities throughout history to his community, and he also wanted to, “correct the misconceptions” about his identity, which he feels are spread by the “mainstream media, academic scholars [and] cultural workers.”

Despite writing for over 30 years, Moore continues to get rejected by some “mainstream Black publishers.” While he feels hurt by their rejection, he also is grateful to other platforms like POOR Magazine, which invited him to write one of the first columns on race and disability in the ‘90s. In addition, the magazine also published his first book, Black Disabled Man with Big Mouth & High I.Q., in 1999. Still, Moore would like to see his books in “more Black bookstores and in Black museums and in Black college courses.”

In his work, Moore often uses the word “kripple” (a variation on the pejorative term “cripple”) because, as he puts it, “Black disabled people need to flip the script and change the terms that were placed on us from mainstream White America into a powerful historical/political and powerful language that we have control of.”

When asked how he wants mainstream culture to relate to his work and hip-hop, Moore says that he wants “to educate our communities including [the] hip-hop industry and the publishing world.” He is looking for more than “inclusion” from these platforms. Instead, he wants “to have our politics, talents, writings, history change how they think and produce their work.” He also says it’s “important for the movement to stay independent so we can always express in the ways we do.”

One of the ways Moore encourages that independent voice is through working with POOR Magazine. He explains that in 2003 the magazine launched a program to give low income people of all ages “the opportunity to create and publish a book.” Since its inception, explains Moore, “POOR Press has provided revolutionary media access for the silenced voices of 49 youth, adult and elder poverty scholars by publishing their books of artwork, poetry and short stories, thereby sharing their urgently needed scholarship, voices and solutions with the world.”  In 2020, POOR Press will publish a short story by Moore entitled Black Disabled Ancestors.

Moore would also like people to support other Black writers with disabilities, such as Tommy J. Curry, Lateef Mcleod, Joy Elan and Subini Annamma.

Jacob Lesner-Buxton is a Disability Rights Advocate in Santa Barbara,
CA. He has also been a producer on KPFA’s Pushing Limits and been a
contributor for many online publications including The Mighty. More
info about Jacob is available at www.jacoblb.com.