Disability Thinking Weekday

Disability Thinking Weekday

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3/14/25 - Friday Video Share: "Trailer | CHANGE, NOT CHARITY: THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT | American Experience | PBS"

Marking this week's 35th anniversary of the "Capitol Crawl," one of the most iconic advocacy actions in modern disability history ... some new video and audio that really does bring history alive. Subscribe or Upgrade Trailer | CHANGE, NOT CHARITY: THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT American Experience | Public

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3/13/25 - Deeper dives into the U.S. Department of Education

Once again, I can't help thinking about what disabled people would be advocating for in education, in a different timeline, under different election outcomes. We would be fighting for stronger, more effective enforcement of disabled kids' right to an equal education, in regular classrooms alongside their non-disabled

White on blue wheelchair symbol painted onto an accessible parking space

3/12/25 - 5 years of COVID

Yesterday was the fifth anniversary of the World Health Organization declaring COVID-19 a pandemic. COVID is a rare example of something that affected the entire world in deep and devastating ways, and affected disabled and chronically ill people in additional, distinct ways. COVID means something to everyone. But it means

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3/11/25 - Strategy, Medicaid, and "Wicked"

We're still struggling to even begin to figure out how to defend disability rights and supports, with a U.S. government in self-inflicted, not at all random chaos. Meanwhile, somewhat lower-key disability culture continues to evolve. Reminder: If you have a free or paid subscription, you can comment

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3/10/25 - The Education Department, and two takes on disability identity

The poll I embedded in Friday's newsletter didn't work right. For some reason it doesn't appear in the actual email. Sorry about that! If you visit the Friday newsletter's web page, the poll shows up right where it's supposed to

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3/7/25 - Friday Poll: How are you feeling about the future?

Subscribe or Upgrade Are you generally optimistic, pessimistic, or not sure about the future for people with disabilities? In thinking about this question, try to take in a number of factors ... politics and policy, legal rights, activism and disability organizations, economics, technology, medicine, etc. Also, think both locally for you,

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3/6/25 - More on The R-Word, some satire, and job openings in advocacy

Today we're taking about a half-step away from hard news. And by "hard" news I mean both having to do with concrete, specific disability policy and politics, and just hard to deal with. Here are your three disability-related links for today ... The R-Word Grace Dow, Grace

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3/5/25 - Long COVID, joyful advocacy, and Montreal accessibility

Subscribe or Upgrade I was sick yesterday, but feeling better today. It's taken me an awfully long time to figure out that a good winter for me is one where I have a few random, isolated sick days, while managing to escape a more serious two or three-week

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3/3/25 - Medicaid cuts, the "R-word," and international disability news

Subscribe or Upgrade Is Trump lying about cutting Medicaid — or is Congress? Patrick Reis, Vox.com - February 26, 2025 "Republicans have been reluctant to propose structural changes to Medicaid, as it’s unpopular to take away health insurance from people who need it — particularly while cutting taxes for

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2/28/25 - Friday Video Share

Subscribe or Upgrade Trump's War on Medicaid Will Institutionalize Millions of People Julia Metreaux, Mother Jones - February 20, 2025 Medicaid is important to disabled Americans for many reasons. One of the most specific and profound is that Medicaid is basically the only funding mechanism – public or private

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2/27/25 - More Trump stuff: Voting rights and Medicaid; and COVID

Subscribe or Upgrade Tell Your Representative: Vote NO on the SAVE Act! American Civil Liberties Union - February 26, 2025 Source: Sarah Blahovec's LinkedIn page "This bill would create unnecessary new barriers by forcing voters to show documentary proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth

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2/26/25 - Federal jobs, petty ableism, and a disabled astronaut

Subscribe or Upgrade Life got extra hectic yesterday, which is why there was no newsletter. And that makes today's edition a little out of date. Still, there's a new action alert below on proposed Medicaid cuts in the U.S. Tomorrow I'll include a

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2/24/25 - Trump Stuff summarized, airlines retreat, and AI implications

Subscribe or Upgrade Americans with disabilities warn protections are vanishing in Trump's DEI rollback April Rubin, Maya Goldman, Axios - February 23, 2025 "The Trump administration has taken actions that undermine accessibility measures — critical for leveling the playing field for people with disabilities — as part of its

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2/21/25 - Friday Video Share

Subscribe or Upgrade Why do autistic people seem weird? YouTube, Yo Samdy Sam - August 9, 2019 This video is almost six years old, so some of what's in it might feel outdated. But I have come to think that now is a good time to revisit some

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2/20/25 - More on diversity, YouTubers, and Disneyland access

Donald Trump’s Next Diversity Target: People With Disabilities Sam Gustin, Mother Jones - February 18, 2025 "The Trump administration’s assault on government policies and programs that benefit disabled people is not just a scheme hatched in the bowels of The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 anti-government boiler

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2/19/25 - Maintenance day

Today is going to be a maintenance day for the newsletter. I've got a bunch of behind-the-scenes tweaks I've been working on since moving here to Ghost from Substack. And since Ghost Support just sent me some answers to my questions, today's the day

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2/18/25 - More Trump Stuff: DEIA and Education; marriage & benefits

Explaining Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA), The Trump Administration’s Recent Actions on DEIA, and the Impact on Disabled Americans American Association of People with Disabilities - February 16, 2025 "Since taking office, President Trump has taken several actions attacking diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (often called “DEIA”

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2/17/25 - Trump Stuff: 504 and Accessibility, plus questionable ideas

Texas v. Becerra: What it is and How You Can Help Stop the Attack on Section 504 Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund - February 12, 2025 "17 states sued the United States government. They asked the court to get rid of Section 504. The states disagree with a

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2/14/25 - Friday Video Share

"Pro Infirmis «Because who is perfect?»" YouTube, Pro Infirmis - December 3, 2013 I was sick yesterday, which is why there wasn't a Thursday newsletter. And I'm still not feeling great. So instead of sharing a more timely video, I'm posting a

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2/12/25 - Trump Stuff: RFK, Education, and USAID

Call your Senators to #StopRFK now! Autistic Self Advocacy Network - February 4, 2025 "RFK Jr. is a horrible choice for this role for many reasons. He makes false claims related to autism and vaccines. He is the founder of a prominent anti-vaccination non-profit. RFK Jr. has also promoted

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2/11/25 - U.S. employment, French housing, and checking in on flu and COVID

nTIDE February 2025 Jobs Report: Labor Force Participation Rate for People with Disabilities Hits an All-Time High Center for Research on Disability, University of New Hampshire - February 7, 2025 "Based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Jobs Report released today, the labor force

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2/10/25 - Trump Stuff: Medicaid; plus a new disability film

Starting today, I'm adding a new section to this weekday newsletter. Below the shared links you'll find a listing of "Action Alerts" on disability issues. Most of them will probably be about U.S. disability issues, though I would love to share similar alerts

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2/7/25 - Friday Video Share

"How to tell people about the icky parts of paralysis" YouTube, Empowered Para - February 5, 2025 This seems like a very specific topic – how to explain paralysis-related bladder and bowel management to others. But it's also a pretty good summary of the arguments in favor

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2/6/25 - USAID, mental health, and wheelchair accessories

Stop work Peter Torres Fremlin, Disability Debrief - February 5, 2025 "President Trump's freeze on foreign aid has caused an earthquake in international development and humanitarian efforts ... This irresponsible and callous move has brought life-saving work to an abrupt halt, along with essential services for the world&