6/18/26 - Education Department followup

Good afternoon ...

Today we have three more links about the Trump administration's plan to move Special Education and Civil Rights offices out of the Department of Education. I have at least one more I plan to share, probably on Monday. I also expect to add a Take Action item on this issue to the newsletter, again, probably starting Monday.

Here are today's links ...

AAPD Outraged by Unlawful Transfer of Special Education, Civil Rights Offices From Department of Education to Other Agencies

Jess Davidson, American Association of People with Disabilities - June 16, 2026

"'Moving OSERS and OCR out of the Department of Education re-segregates disabled students: it reduces opportunities for students with disabilities and their families and adopts a medical model of disability. It treats disability like a ‘problem’ that needs to be ‘cured’ and addressed in separate, specialized settings instead of following the civil rights and inclusive education approach that entitles all students to a free and appropriate public education as outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA),' said Maria Town, President and CEO of AAPD. "

We Cannot Move Disability Rights Out of Education

Sara Minkara, Curious Constructs - June 17, 2026

"The administration argues that these changes are administrative, that the Department of Education retains ultimate authority while other agencies carry out operational work. However, as may end up being debated in the courts, these offices were not placed within the Department of Education by accident ... Housing disability rights within the Department of Education affirms that students with disabilities are learners first and foremost. It recognizes that disability is not a medical condition to be treated, but part of the human experience."

How the Moving of Special Education and Civil Rights Out of the Department of Education Will Hurt Disabled Students and What We Can Do

Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund - June 16, 2026
Source: Paid Subscriber Mark Johnson

"It is against the law. Congress is the part of the government that makes laws. Congress decided that these offices belong in the Department of Education. The president cannot move them on his own. He needs Congress to agree. Congress has not agreed. So this move breaks the law ... It takes away rights that disabled people fought hard to win. A long time ago, disabled children were kept out of public schools. Many got no education at all. Disabled people fought to change this. They protested. They refused to give up. Because of them, we got laws like IDEA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. These laws protect disabled people today. This change puts those protections at risk ... It treats disability like a sickness instead of a right. Moving school services for disabled students to the health department sends the wrong message. It treats disabled students like patients to be fixed. But disabled students are students first. They belong in school, in the same classrooms as everyone else. Education is a right, not a medical problem ... It hurts the students who already get the least help. OCR protects all students, not just disabled students. It also protects students of color, girls, LGBTQ+ students, and students learning English. Many disabled students are part of these groups too. This change puts these students in the most danger."

This latest initiative by the Trump administration raises another, possibly deeper question. What do MAGA conservatives and Project 2025 think-tankers really think about people with disabilities? I admit, I haven't read Project 2025, much less done a close reading to look for any sort of broad philosophy of disability in it. There's a difference between cutting and reorganizing disability programs because you think it's going to cost less, or be better from a libertarian standpoint because it's left to local government, with fewer regulations. This motivation may be misguided or dishonest. But it's technical, not particularly personal.

It's another thing if underneath all that you also think that disabled people aren't really that important to American society anyway, and deserve a lot less support and accommodation overall. That's the kind of view you occasionally hear from fringe right-wing theorists and podcasters, but not too often from actual politicians. That sort of early 20th century Darwinian / eugenicist thinking isn't quite back in full acceptability or vogue, even if many of the practical policies to implement it are well underway. But do influential people in the current Trump administration actually want to just do less for disabled people? Do Trump's frequent slurs and shades thrown at disabled people reflect not just his vulgarity, and personal ableism, but a real ideology that might even outlive him? We'd better find out, and document it beyond just our own probably correct instincts.

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.

In June and July, annual paid memberships are discounted at $40. It's a great time to support Disability Thinking Weekday. Just click the "Subscribe or Upgrade" button below to get started.

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

Free subscribers: 1,281
Paid subscribers: 49