5/27/26 - Influencer boundary-crossing, Medicaid cuts, and lawsuits that still work

Good afternoon ...

It's another variety day today. I can't really detect a unifying theme. Can you? As always, if you have any thoughts, email me at apulrang@icloud.com. The end of the month is coming up and I will be sharing comments from May in the June 1st post. Also, please do consider a paid subscription or one-time donation. If you're ready for that, use one of the buttons below.

Now on to today's links ...

What ‘Special Needs Mommy’ Influencers Get Wrong About Parenting Disabled Kids: Opinion

Rebecca Cokley, Rewire - May 22, 2026

"I remember seeing one mom share a photo of her daughter and ask why her child wasn’t 'skinny like those other girls' (with the same diagnosis). Another mom talked about how her son could never be a father because he used a wheelchair ... These disclosures mainly happened in closed, disability-related Facebook groups, not in public fora. Still, all I could think is, How would that child feel, knowing how their mom talks about them?"

This is a great and heartfelt piece tackling a number of touchy but important ethical questions about parenting disabled children. It's written by an outstanding disability community leader, disabled woman, and parent of children with disabilities. Rebecca's points are all worth important, and reflect the feelings of lots of disabled youth and adults – including me – who have experienced decidedly mixed results of how parents speak about us.

The question that intrigues me the most is about parents sharing details of a child's disability on the internet. My own advice for parents considering "opening up" on social media is to think carefully about their motives and objectives. For instance, there are crucial differences between:

• Gradually, age appropriately, introducing a disabled child to active involvement in disability communities, including advocacy;
• Encouraging a disabled child to embrace disability as part of their identity ... rather than rejecting or distancing it ... hopefully leading to a healthier self-image and some kind of disability pride;
• Sharing difficult experiences and feelings with other disabled parents in more or less private venues, without any public goals, just sharing and mutual support;
• Speaking out as a parent on your own experiences raising a disabled child, to raise general understanding and hopefully encourage more substantive help and acceptance of disabled people in society,
• Dramatizing, either positively or negatively, your child's disability and your experiences as a parent, in order to gain more followers ... either for some vague sort of "exposure," or frankly to make money.

And yes, no matter what you're after, don't portray a disabled child in any personally identifiable way – either negatively or positively – unless and until they give meaningful consent. It seems like that should be a pretty obvious and easy rule to follow.

State disability support, Medicaid spending hit the most by Kemp vetoes

Sofi Gratas, Georgia Public Broadcasting - May 22, 2026

"After years of advocating for increased attention on the individuals and families who need support, getting those extra waiver slots approved felt like a huge win, Robb said. But then, they were taken away."

Here is another example of US states responding to the federal Medicaid changes and cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed last year, along with their own budget woes, by cutting disability services. Although the bill itself contained several direct attacks on disability programs and services, a lot of the damage was done indirectly, through passing responsibilities to states and leaving it to them to either make up the difference or take the painful and politically unpopular decision to cut services. Georgia is also an example of blowing it on one of the few simple, quantifiable, and relatable improvements states can make in serving people with disabilities nowadays – providing the funds to reduce and eliminate waiting lists for services. Making sure people who are already qualified for services can actually get them should get bipartisan support – and in fact did in Georgia. It's the governor who decided at the last minute to erase the legislature's increased funding to reduce the state's waiting list. It's galling. But things like this are happening, or on the verge of happening, in a lot of US states. That suggests to me that disability activists all over the US should focus on what they have always done best, advocating with their state-level elected officials. It's less exciting perhaps than pushing for further-reaching federal legislation – though that too should continue. But right now, it seems like the most urgent action is happening in the states. What do you think?

Access Living Wins Major Civil Rights Lawsuit Against the City of Chicago

Staff Author, Access Living - May 20, 2026

"Although it denies legal liability, the agreement requires the City of Chicago to identify, build or rehabilitate 2,800 units to comply with federal accessibility standards, develop policies to prevent future civil rights violations and pay damages for interfering with Access Living’s mission of promoting full community integration for Chicagoans with disabilities."

I can't judge exactly how significant this victory is, or how much of a practical impact it will make. It certainly looks promising. But either way, it is an important reminder that legal action can still be an effective tool in enforcing disability rights and accessibility, and in improving services for disabled people. At least some of the courts still care. Lawsuits are still a valuable disability advocacy tool. And local action still matters.

Disability Thinking Weekday is a Monday-Friday newsletter with links and commentary on disability-related articles and other content. You can help promote the newsletter 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 around the first of each month. A free subscription sends a newsletter to your email each weekday. Benefits of paid subscription include:

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