Intersectionality and disability in international human rights law

This article addresses the question of intersectionality in the field of international human rights law. While in this field much attention has been given to gender and race, here it is extended to disability. Starting from the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the article explores a new as yet unexplored research avenue: how international human rights law can be used to protect different groups of disabled people by applying the Convention along with other human rights treaties. It focuses on three groups of disabled people: (1) disabled people belonging to racial or ethnic minorities; (2) disabled women and; (3) disabled children. These three groups have been chosen because all three come within the remit of human rights treaties that concern these groups in addition to the CRPD. Some other groups of disabled people are also considered. The article discusses the problems that emerge for these groups and shows how they can be resolved through international human rights law. This is done through an analysis of the jurisprudence of UN treaty bodies.