3/26/26 - Presidential ableism, and remembering Alice Wong

Hi there!

I'm wrapping up the main part of the week with two pieces about something that happened ten days ago, and another article on Alice Wong, whose Celebration of Life was held yesterday in San Francisco, and virtually. Tomorrow I'll be sharing a YouTube video of the event, which was lovely.

Trump says presidents 'should not have learning disabilities' as he mocks Newsom's dyslexia

Sareen Habeshian, BBC - March 16, 2026

"President Trump said Newsom, a potential Democratic White House contender, was 'dumb'. He also made fun last week of the California governor's difficulty with reading and spelling, prompting Newsom to call him 'a brain-dead moron.'"

Trump says presidents should not have learning disabilities, criticizes Newsom

Bo Erickson, Reuters - March 16, 2026

"Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump cited Newsom’s public discussion of his dyslexia, a learning disability, and suggested such conditions should disqualify someone from the presidency. Newsom is seen ​as a potential Democratic presidential candidate in the 2028 election and often trades barbs ​with the president, who has nicknamed the Californian 'Newscum.'"

I am appalled, though not surprised, by President Trump's comments about people with dyslexia. I am also exasperated, though again, not entirely surprised, at Gavin Newsom's response, which also included a crude and insultingly ableist slur. We have come a long way – backwards it seems – from just a few years ago when some of us at least made a pretty credible and somewhat successful effort to get politicians to stop using disability slurs as weapons against each other.

That said, I also can't help being astonished that of all disabilities, Trump thinks dyslexia is disqualifying for the White House. There have almost certainly been Presidents in the past with dyslexia. And it happens to be one of the least mysterious and easiest disabilities to accommodate in any workplace. The main question in my mind now is whether Trump even knows what dyslexia is, in any detail. Or, does he simply conflate it with his own obsession with high and low IQ? Given how many people of all political orientations do just fine with dyslexia, I also wonder whether Trump will get more than the usual amount of bipartisan push-back on this.

Giving Alice Wong Her Flowers

Steven Thrasher, Jennifer White-Johnson, Jane Shi, Cara Reedy, Disabled Journalists Association - March 25, 2026

"When she passed, I felt a little imposter syndrome, as I often do. When I saw what people were saying about her, I thought she must have had much closer friends than me ... Since she passed, it’s been amazing to see how many people had some connection with her. Dozens or hundreds of organizations memorialized her, not in a superficial way but because they had real relationships with her."

This small quote taken from a host of remembrances in this article resonates with me so much. There have been times over the last few months that I have felt like a very minor acquaintance of Alice's. I didn't feel bad about that really, just a bit humble and reticent. And that's not a bad thing anyway. Alice's passing isn't about me, or any of us. And yet, what Steven Thrasher says here puts this sort of proximity and centrality we have to our colleagues, mentors, and heroes in a much more healthy perspective. Alice had friendships and community with lots of people, in lots of ways. Some were obviously more frequent, intense, and layered than others. But whenever I was actually working with Alice – or just swapping favorite Star Trek episodes and recounting our holidays and weather challenges – I always felt like I was the center of her attention. That was one of her finest qualities. It was also, I suspect, one of her hardest labors. For all of it, Alice, I thank you.

Disability Thinking Weekday is a Monday-Friday newsletter with links and commentary on disability-related articles and other content. You can help promote Disability Thinking Weekday by forwarding it by email or posting on your social media. You can also comment by sending me an email at: apulrang@icloud.com. Collected comments are shared on the first of each month. A free subscription sends a newsletter to your email each weekday. Benefits of paid subscription include:

• A monthly recap with links to all of the previous month's shared articles, organized by topic.
• Listing as a supporter, and a link to your website if you have one.
• You can recommend one disability-related article for me to share per month in a weekday post.

To to subscribe, upgrade to paid, or make a one-time donation, click one of the buttons below:

I am so grateful for your help and engagement, in whichever forms you choose!