Tag Archives: disability rights
Hurricane Season: Prepare Before the Storm
For people with disabilities, emergencies can affect more than shelter and supplies. Power outages, transportation changes, communication barriers, service interruptions, and limited access to medication or medical equipment can all impede staying safe and accessing needed support. Planning ahead can help reduce stress and make emergencies easier to manage.
Preparation does not need to happen all at once. Start by thinking about the things you use every day and what you would need if you had to leave quickly or stay home for several days.
Get Ready to Vote: Check Your Registration and Signature
Many people register once and do not think about it again, but information can change over time. If you moved, changed your name, or your signature looks different than when you first registered, it is a good idea to update your information now.
Your signature is especially important. In some situations, election officials compare the signature on voting forms to the signature they have on file. If your signature has changed because of age, disability, illness, injury, or simply signing differently over time, updating it now may help you avoid problems later.
What Do You Have to Lose?
I didn’t get everything done correctly, but I exceeded my expectations and I met some amazing ladies in the cast, who I now call my angels. I am grateful to Phillip Church and his team, who brought us all together to bring Rebekah Taussig’s book to the theater.
More Than a Role: Finding Strength on Stage
All I knew was, there was a part for a woman who used a wheelchair. Imagine that! The thought that there was an interest to recruit someone with a disability, specifically a woman with a disability!
Benefits 26-05
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Social Security Income (SSI) both provide needed financial assistance to many people in the United States who have mental health conditions.
Local Elections: Why They Matter in 2026
Local elections are where change is most immediate and visible. When you vote, you are helping decide how your community is built, how services are delivered, and whether your community is inclusive and accessible. Your vote helps shape the place where you live every day.
Benefits 26-04
The Bottom Line: You can work, You can protect your benefits, You can increase your income.
With the right guidance, work becomes an opportunity—not a risk.
A Landmark Decision Years in the Making
This month, the 11th Circuit made something clear: The ADA is violated not only when individuals are institutionalized, but also when state systems place them at serious risk of institutionalization.
The court recognized that systemic failures in providing services can be a form of discrimination.
State Elections: Why They Matter in 2026
State decisions have a direct impact on people with disabilities. These decisions affect access to health care and support services, funding for disability programs, and whether housing and transportation are accessible.
The View From Here (26-03)
For decades, disability advocacy has focused on access: access to buildings, transportation, education, employment and civic participation. Those efforts have opened doors that were once firmly closed. But, I believe, representation is what truly changes hearts and minds. It sends a message to those of us living with disabilities that You Belong Here Too. Not just in spaces that were designed specifically for you. But everywhere.
Federal Elections: Why They Matter in 2026
Federal elections directly affect the laws and programs that support people with disabilities. These decisions affect daily life, such as healthcare, housing, employment, education, and independence.
When Congress changes, priorities, funding, and protections can change. For people with disabilities, these choices matter.
Your vote helps shape the direction of federal policy and the future of disability rights.
The View From Here (26-02)
For some time now, I have felt a quiet pull to more intentionally merge art with advocacy. This role is another step in doing just that. I truly feel that disability representation expands creativity. It brings depth, resilience, and a perspective that the world needs more of. Theater uniquely asks us not just to witness a story, but to feel it. And that is often the beginning of change.
Voting in 2026
Check your registration and voting status, make sure you can vote this election cycle.
Update on DIG’s Supper Social Club
As we continued to meet, we watched people come out of their shells. Those same young adults who were once quiet began starting conversations, forming friendships, and looking forward to each event. Confidence grew. Laughter came easier. The Supper Social Club became more than dinner; it became a place of belonging.
From Being a Number to Building Possibility
If you are navigating life with a disability, know this: Your path does not need to mirror anyone else’s to be meaningful. The journey is not about returning to who you were – it is about discovering who you can still become.
Benefits – 26-01
People with disabilities can work without losing their financial security or health care benefits. There are many programs available that make it possible to still collect benefits while working. Here is a brief overview of a few programs available.
Happy Holidays 2025
DIG will continue to advocate, educate, and empower because every person deserves dignity, opportunity, and full participation in their community. Thank you for being part of our journey this year and being part of the DIG family.
Benefits – 25-09
If you are a person with a disability and pursuing employment, you are not alone. You can find many agencies providing employment support and help you to reach your vocational goal.
What You Should Know About Your Parental Rights
If parents truly have the right to “direct the upbringing, education, and care of their minor children,” then let’s use this law to change how we teach students in separate classrooms, students in modified/access point programs, and even those students in behavior programs.
If the system needs to change, and we believe that it does, then let’s make it better and stronger and safer for all students.
The Americans with Disabilities Act at 35: A Promise in Peril
The rollback of disability rights has also been fueled by the broader political push to eliminate Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) programs. These initiatives were designed to ensure that workplaces and institutions reflect the diversity of the communities they serve, including people with disabilities. Yet in the current climate, DEIA has been mischaracterized as “wokeness” and dismissed as a matter of preference rather than a matter of rights. This framing is not only inaccurate, it is dangerous. It ignores the legal obligation to provide reasonable accommodations and treats the needs of disabled individuals as optional.
