Access + Action: The Week in Disability Justice
What We’re Reading, Watching, and Listening to This Week
Tariffs Are About to Hit Lifesaving Medical Equipment
by Julia Métraux
“Research from data analytics and consulting firm GlobalData found that around 75 percent of US-marketed medical devices are, at least in part, manufactured abroad. It also found that respiratory devices—one of the most common medical device imports, and very much not optional for those who rely on them—are likely to be one of the more seriously impacted products. Unlike with some consumer products, says Andrew Thompson, a director on GlobalData’s medical devices team, ‘the demand doesn’t go away’ for medical devices.” (H/T Mother Jones)
“We are deeply concerned by growing public rhetoric and policy decisions that challenge these shared principles. Claims that Autism is ‘preventable’ is not supported by scientific consensus and perpetuate stigma. Language framing Autism as a ‘chronic disease,’ a ‘childhood disease’ or ‘epidemic’ distorts public understanding and undermines respect for Autistic people.” (H/T Autistic Self Advocacy Network)
DOGE Abruptly Cut a Program for Teens with Disabilities. This Student Is ‘Devastated’
by Cory Turner
“Charting My Path was built on research that shows students with disabilities who get quality transition services ‘are more likely to be employed after high school. They’re more likely to be enrolled in post-secondary education, and they’re more likely to identify that they have a higher quality of life,’ says Catherine Fowler, a special education researcher at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte who has been involved with Charting My Path since 2019, when the contract began.
“At the heart of Charting My Path was one of the most promising, research-based services: building students’ self-determination skills by working with them to set goals, then helping create concrete plans to achieve them.” (H/T NPR)
Dismantling Disability Rights: How the HHS Reorganization Threatens Generations of Progress
by the Center for Racial and Disability Justice
“The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is undergoing a radical and far-reaching reorganization—one that is poised to deliver a devastating blow to the nation’s disability community. Behind a veil of bureaucratic restructuring lies a sweeping rollback of civil rights enforcement, equity infrastructure, and community-based support systems built over decades of advocacy, struggle, and federal partnership.” (H/T Center for Racial and Disability Justice via Medium)
The Lessons of Covid-19 and Its Long Haul: We Need Community Care
by Gwen D’Arcangelis
“As Trump further weakens public health infrastructure, let us renew our attention to keeping each other safe, supporting the most vulnerable among us, and preventing more mass disablement.” (H/T CommonDreams.org)
Music Video for “Anxiety,” by Doechii
Plug In and Take Action
May Day Strong March: From the organizers: “Trump and his billionaire profiteers are trying to create a race to the bottom—on wages, on benefits, on dignity itself. This May Day we are fighting back. We are demanding a country that puts our families over their fortunes—public schools over private profits, healthcare over hedge funds, prosperity over free market politics.”
Learn and Connect
Yoga For All Bodies at San Francisco Disability Cultural Center, May 8, 2025 @ 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT
“Join Tan Hubbard, a Black, queer, solo family caregiver, for a chill all-bodies Yoga class. Tan dreams of a future where the planet and everyone on it is thriving and working together toward a world that values care, love, and conscious collaboration. Their yoga classes center meditation, visualization, and breath work with the goal of creating a space where everyone can access their own practice. No matter whether your body is moving or staying still, whether you’re sitting in a chair or standing on a mat—Tan teaches to our individual experiences and bodies as we move through the class together.”
ASL | CART | virtual | recorded
Support Decolonized Beatz Indigenous World Pride
Crushing Colonialism is excited to present Decolonized Beatz Indigenous World Pride, two powerful hybrid events taking place on May 30 and June 1 during World Pride on Piscataway lands (Washington, DC). Here’s how to help spread the word and support:
There are fantastic prize packages up for grabs, including items from Disability Culture Lab! Raffle tickets are on sale now, and winners will be announced on May 18.
In-person help is especially needed in the DMV area. Sign up or share the volunteer form with your networks.
Invite your communities to attend by sharing the RSVP form for both nights.
Explore the schedule, lineup, and more at CrushingColonialism.org. The events will be livestreamed via Facebook and YouTube, and recordings will be posted on the org’s website and YouTube channel for global access. Show up, tune in, and celebrate Indigenous pride and resistance!
Want to support DCL’s work to shift the narrative on disability from fear and pity to solidarity and liberation? Donate here!
