I Identify as Blind by Lachi -- Lachi in Conversation with Dom Kelly

This event is free and open to the public, but registration is encouraged. This event takes place at the Auburn Avenue Research Library, 101 Auburn Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30303. Doors open at 6pm. Event begins promptly at 6:30pm.

Charis and the Auburn Avenue Research Library welcome Lachi in conversation with Dom Kelly for a celebration of , an invitation to a cultural movement—welcoming everyone to celebrate disabilities as a source of power and pride.

Lachi is an award-winning singer and leader who awakens the world to this truth: Disability has long shaped our culture and is an identity worth brazenly celebrating. In this book, Lachi welcomes readers into the vibrant world of Disability Culture.
I Identify as Blind pulses with energy. Through magnetic storytelling, pop-culture deep dives, and historical insight, Lachi challenges mainstream views on disability with humor and heart. Because visionaries with disabilities have always driven progress.
The book features trailblazing figures like Senator Tammy Duckworth, Breaking Bad star RJ Mitte, Microsoft executive Jenny Lay-Flurrie, and so many more. Lachi even takes readers behind the scenes at Coldplay concerts, since after Chris Martin developed tinnitus, he transformed his concerts into some of the most accessible in the world. Each story reframes disability not as a deficit but as a wellspring of collective strength. And inventions created for people with disabilities benefit everyone—from audiobooks to curb cuts to the internet. (Vint Cerf helped develop the first commercial email service, because he had trouble communicating by phone.)
With punchy humor and radical honesty, Lachi dismantles stereotypes and builds a new narrative of Disability identity. I Identify as Blind is an invitation to a cultural movement—welcoming everyone to celebrate disabilities as a source of power and pride.

About the author

Lachi is an award-winning recording artist and world touring public speaker, and the first openly disabled National Trustee of the Recording Academy, which presents the GRAMMYs. Born legally blind, she is the CEO of RAMPD (Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities), a global network that has powerhouse partners, including Netflix. She co-produced The Colors in My Mind by Chris Redding, which is currently nominated for a GRAMMY. Named a USA Today Woman of the Year and a “dedicated foot soldier for disability pride” by Forbes, Lachi hosted the PBS American Masters series Renegades; and was featured in the New York Times, Good Morning America, and TIME Magazine; and in ads for Google and Mastercard. She has spoken at The White House and United Nations. She lives in New York City.

About the conversation partner

Dom Kelly is the Co-Founder, President & CEO of New Disabled South and New Disabled South Rising. A disability advocate since age four, Dom has led organizing, fundraising, and narrative change efforts across the South. He’s a 2025 Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity and a 2023 J.M. Kaplan Innovation Prize winner. A former touring musician turned movement leader, he focuses on advancing disability justice and building power for marginalized communities. Dom lives in Atlanta with his wife and daughter.

About the venue:
Masks are encouraged but not required.
AARL has a free parking lot accessible via Courtland street. Please park and enter the library to get a guest pass for your dashboard before having a seat in the auditorium.

Accesibility:

• This event will have ASL interpretation.
• Additional accessibility info for the venue forthcoming.

The event is free and open to all people, but we encourage and appreciate a donation of $5-20 in support of the work of Charis Circle, our programming non-profit. Charis Circle's mission is to foster sustainable feminist communities, work for social justice, and encourage the expression of diverse and marginalized voices. Donate via our website: www.chariscircle.org/donate.

Please contact us at [email protected] or 404-524-0304 if you would like ASL interpretation at this event.

By attending our event, you agree to our Code of Conduct: Our event seeks to provide a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), class, or technology choices. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Unsolicited sexual language and imagery are not appropriate. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from this event and all future events at the discretion of the organizers. Please report all harassment to Charis staff immediately or email [email protected]

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