Marsha de Cordova MP - Growing up partially sighted, stepping up and becoming an MP to create change and being a voice for the voiceless

A Life Less Ordinary with Sophie Elwes

Marsha de Cordova is the Labour MP for Battersea since 2017 and is currently the Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities.
She was born with nystagmus and is registered blind. We speak about her upbringing, with five siblings, where her mum fought for her to remain in mainstream education, she says if she hadn't, she wouldn't be where she is today.
Marsha entered politics because she's passionate about fair and equal rights and wanted to be a 'voice for the voiceless' - particularly campaigning for disability rights.
We speak about how Covid has unfairly impacted certain sectors of society and about how it has exposed existing inequalities in society. Marsha explains how it has had a greater impact on people with disabilities, with regards to both support but also in terms of deaths from the virus - six in 10 deaths was a person with a disability or underlying health condition.
We discuss the disability employment gap, social care and access and inclusion and how far we have to go before we can claim to be inclusive as a society.
Marsha is emphatic about encouraging other people with disabilities to 'make their voices heard.' She's also been involved in campaigning to make entering politics more accessible for disabled people.
Marsha gives some great advice about how to become fearless and to stay true to your purpose.
@sophieelwes