Beyond Compliance: Emauni Crawley on Disability, Advocacy, and Creating Spaces Where Everyone Thrives
Author: George Cassidy Payne
Published: 2025/08/30 - Updated: 2025/10/10
Publication Type: Literature / Review
Category Topic: Studies and Theory - Academic Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This article tells the compelling story of Crawley, a Spelman College graduate with Tourette Syndrome, whose journey from personal challenges to advocacy offers valuable insights for readers. It highlights her resilience in overcoming the loss of an ROTC scholarship due to her disability, leading her to champion inclusion and challenge ableist narratives in Christian theology through her senior thesis. Crawley's work, including her public visibility on a Times Square billboard and her commitment to supporting at-risk youth, underscores the importance of authentic representation and empathy in fostering inclusive spaces. The article is particularly helpful for people with disabilities, seniors, or those supporting them, as it emphasizes practical steps for inclusion—like accessible design and mindful communication—while inspiring readers to rethink societal assumptions about disability and potential. Its blend of personal narrative and theological inquiry makes it a thought-provoking resource for anyone interested in social justice and disability advocacy - Disabled World (DW).
Introduction
When Emauni Crawley talks about advocacy, it doesn't sound abstract - it sounds lived. A Spelman College alumna with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, Crawley has turned her own challenges into a platform for uplifting others. Whether mentoring individuals with disabilities or walking the halls of Capitol Hill as a Rising Leader Ambassador for the Tourette Association of America, she carries one central question: How can we create spaces where every individual is seen, heard, and empowered to thrive?
Main Content
Her journey begins in Hampton, Virginia, before moving to Hickory, North Carolina.
"My mother was a social worker," Crawley recalls. "After unexpected events, we had to move back to Hampton, and later to Newport News."
In a city of limited economic opportunity, college wasn't on the radar for many of her peers. But Crawley grew up surrounded by role models - her mother and extended family members who pursued higher education - which gave her both hope and direction.
Initially, she imagined a career in military service. "My plan was to do two years of community college on an Army ROTC scholarship, and then finish my degree at a university," she says. Already shaping her leadership voice, she served as a student ambassador in high school, educating peers about drugs and alcohol.
Then life took a sharp turn. Crawley has Tourette Syndrome, a hereditary condition involving verbal and motor tics.
"Sometimes they can be holistically debilitating," she says. Because of her diagnosis, she was disqualified from her ROTC scholarship, a decision that shook her to the core. "This was an existential crisis. It threatened my ability to go to college, my dream of becoming a law enforcement officer, and my sense of justice."
Rather than retreat, Crawley transformed her setback into advocacy. She applied to become a Tourette Syndrome Ambassador.
"I asked myself, why me? After getting accepted into Spelman, I wanted to be an advocate. So I went through with it." That decision brought her to Capitol Hill, where she began to see the broader power of her voice. "Anyone who graduated from Spelman is known as a 'Spelman Sister.' I was wearing my sweatshirt, and one of my Spelman Sisters found me. She asked what I was doing there, and she's been looking out for me ever since."
Theology, Disability, and Breaking Taboos
At Spelman, Crawley's curiosity turned inward, toward the intersection of disability and theology. Her senior thesis - The Exclusivity of Disabilities in Christian Theological Settings - asked hard questions of church traditions and communities of faith.
"This was definitely controversial," she says. "I was challenging the idea that disability is a result of sin, that it is something to be delivered from. For me, I had to break that down with the knowledge and wisdom I had. I decided that this is not a result of sin."
Writing the thesis was an act of courage.
"I felt nervous. The pressure was intense. But I knew I had to speak and be obedient," she recalls.
Crawley spoke with people with and without disabilities, hearing firsthand how messages of sin and shame still circulate in churches.
She drew inspiration from Nancy Eiesland's The Disabled God but pushed beyond its limitations.
"She only used white women in her book, so I had to add on to that. I wanted to include underrepresented voices." Crawley also turned to scripture itself. "In the Book of Exodus, Moses had a stutter. God made that mouth. God was intentional. That challenged me to think differently about the body."
Her thesis explored how Christian language about "the body" often reinforces ableist ideas of wholeness.
"Maybe flesh is a better way to think about it," she says. "Flesh portrays embodiment and togetherness. It takes away the stigma that body equates to wholeness."
She points to Jesus' ministry as a model - but also a challenge.
"Modern disability advocates aren't talking about curing people, but understanding people. It's about respecting them as they are, not transforming them."
What Inclusion Looks Like in Practice
Crawley's mission - spaces where every individual is seen, heard, and empowered - is not just a slogan; it's a vision of daily life.
"I see the color, but it doesn't affect how I treat you. I compare this to those with diverse abilities. I see you. I'm not going to ignore you. I'm not going to infantilize you. There have been so many times I've had a great conversation, and when I mention I have a disability, everything changes. Seeing people for who they are matters. Being optimistic about people matters."
She recalls a recent training:
"I watched a video where a student was acting out in class, being very loud. The teacher said, 'You have a powerful voice that spoke out to me.' Another student validated that. The teacher took charge and turned a disruption into empowerment. That's inclusion."
Small but critical elements - time, validation, perspective, autonomy - make such spaces successful.
Visibility and Representation
Crawley's advocacy has also taken a public turn. Being featured on a Times Square billboard brought new responsibility.
"At first, I thought, why me? Why my picture? Maybe it's because I am non-white. But I accepted it's more than that. I was reluctant, but I said, go for it. I wanted people to see that this affects people who look like me. Being a face for those who are unrepresented is impactful."
Through visibility, Crawley hopes to challenge assumptions about Tourette Syndrome and other misunderstood identities.
"It shows that people with disabilities are multifaceted, capable, and deserving of respect. That visibility creates space for empathy, understanding, and representation."
Looking ahead, Crawley hopes to shift societal assumptions about justice, advocacy, and potential. Though she has not yet secured a juvenile justice officer role, she remains committed to working with at-risk youth and individuals with disabilities. She reflects:
"Not everyone is a product of their environment. We've seen through life and history that people can overcome trials. But there's still this idea that people are determined by their upbringing. I'm not denying the research about probabilities, but it's important to know that you can make it."
Her path - from Newport News to Spelman, from disability advocacy to public visibility - has been a blessing and a calling.
"I found a way to incorporate law enforcement and chaplaincy. This is where I'm learning to preach, to spread the Gospel. How do I increase the faith of a juvenile who has suffered violence, poverty, disabilities? How do I draw that light out of someone waiting in the dark? I believe in second chances."
Working with at-risk youth is challenging, especially when they have committed serious offenses.
"I've struggled with trauma in my own life. Some things are uncomfortable but necessary. I want to help these juveniles see how they can overcome, to show them who God wants them to be, not who the world sees them. I'm for them. I have their back. I want to do the jobs no one else wants to do."
Beyond Compliance
Crawley's theological inquiry, lived experience, public visibility, and emerging work with youth all point to the same conclusion: inclusion cannot be reduced to checklists.
"Many organizations focus on compliance over culture when it comes to disability inclusion," she explains. "The first step is to eliminate stigma. There is not just one definition."
Her advocacy emphasizes mindfulness as the everyday practice of justice.
"Captions on screens, accessible parking, ramps - these aren't boxes to check. They're necessities. We need to be vigilant and empathetic. And empathy is not about pity. For those who are religious or spiritual, prayer is not empathy. Don't pray for someone who doesn't want it - it can come across as something other than empathy."
Crawley calls for a culture shift, one that embraces difference as ordinary. "Be unapologetically yourself," she says, "but be mindful of others."
Her life illustrates what it means to move beyond compliance: to live advocacy as an act of justice, faith, and belonging. For Crawley, the fight for inclusion is not only personal, it's a vision of a society where every individual truly has space to thrive.
About the Author
George Cassidy Payne is a freelance journalist, poet, and educator based in Rochester, New York. He writes on topics ranging from social justice and disability advocacy to art, culture, and nature. George has published in both local and national outlets, and he brings a keen eye for storytelling that illuminates lived experience. In addition to his work as a journalist, he serves as a 988 Suicide Prevention Counselor and engages with communities through nonprofit leadership, teaching, and public speaking.