Current Events
When the groundbreaking Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law in 1991, civil rights activist Justin Dart, Jr. said, “It is the world’s first declaration of equality for people with disabilities by any nation. It will proclaim to America and to the world that people with disabilities are fully human; that paternalistic, discriminatory, segregationist attitudes are no longer acceptable; and that henceforth people with disabilities must be accorded the same personal respect and the same social and economic opportunities as other people.”
Sign up for the Buzz
Get disability news and information delivered to your inbox.
Latest news and stories
-
Not Charity
By Gary Karp, Modern Disability The once-popular phrase was “Hire the Handicapped.” Well, we’ve come a long way. The term “handicapped” now appears only in certain final vestiges, mainly with regard to a type of parking spot. Its tone was pretty undeniable: having a disability is an unfortunate thing, so we should give those poor people…
-
Disability Etiquette: Easy Tips for the Able-bodied Community
By Jessica Niziolek We all know what etiquette is. We were all taught to say please, thank you, no thank you, etc. But, how well do we all know about disability etiquette? For me, there have been experiences where I couldn’t help but think, “Was that actually just said to me out loud?” or “Did…
-
Each By Name Strives for a More Inclusive Society
By Margarita Elizondo, CEO and Founder of Rolling With Me and Abilities Expo Ambassador Women with disabilities are one of the most marginalized and underserved populations in the world, even though they offer tremendous potential for leadership and ability to transform communities. Sadly there are strong links between poverty and disability which make women with disabilities more…
-
Limited Mobility Must Not Limit Exercise
By Victoria Abbott-Flemming, Burning Nights People with limited mobility can find it hard to exercise regularly for a number of reasons. Not only do they face physical challenges; it is also quite likely that they may be self-conscious about it, fearing that they might pick up an injury or feel intimidated. However, thanks to technological…
-
No Grit, No Glory: 5 Ways to Thrive in the Face of Adversity
By Michelle Colvard, Abilities Expo Ambassador Many people associate having a disability with weakness. With suffering. Or with inability. But in fact, I would argue that sometimes having a disability (as with experiencing other adversities) can actually foster and promote a trait called “grit.” We learn a mental toughness or tenacity—even what people used to…
-
Ground Therapy: Reconnect to the Earth and Feel Better Fast
By Martin Zucker, Co-author of Earthing Ground Therapy, or grounding for short, is an important self-healing application with special benefits for the disability community. Grounding connects you to the natural electric charge of the planet. It stabilizes your physiology at the deepest level, draining inflammation, stress, and pain from your body, and promoting better health.You…
-
Has the Disability Community Been Kanyed?
Oh, Kanye! Was all the Kim drama not enough? Backstory On the off chance you are just now crawling out from under a rock, here’s what’s happening with Kanye West. At his recent Yeezus concert in Sydney, West stopped his performance to insist that every last member of his audience take his or her feet.…
-
Don’t Ignore Suicide in the Disability Community – Live On!
By Stephanie Woodard, Abilities Expo Ambassador In the Disability Community we have plenty of conversations about Disability Pride, dating, innovative technology and a host of other topics. However, there’s one topic that seems just too taboo for polite conversation: depression and suicide within the Disability Community. This seems to be a difficult topic for any community…
-
5 Things All New Medical Cannabis Patients Should Know
By Debbie Churgai, Americans for Safe Access Although there are medical cannabis programs of some kind in 47 states, DC, Guam and Puerto Rico, medical cannabis still remains a mystery to the vast majority of Americans today. Using medical cannabis is an approach that is supported by research and medical professionals, and has demonstrated positive public…
-
Can Therapeutic Cannabis Benefit People with Disabilities?
By Thalia Michelle, MAMMA (Mothers Advocating Medical Marijuana for Autism) In August of 2013, CNN aired Sanjay Gupta’s revolutionary documentary “Weed.” Suddenly, the world was made aware of lives being saved by the therapeutic and potentially curative properties of the cannabis plant. The documentary chronicled the journey of the Figi family and their young daughter, Charlotte. Charlotte…
-
Overreaching Medicare Proposal Mobilizes Amputee Community
By Kim Lan Grout, Redefining Disabled Lower limb amputees across the country have had a unique, dramatic and, for some, traumatic summer. On July 16, 2015, Medicare Audit Contractors released a new proposal to the Medicare Local Coverage Determination (LCD) Proposal: Lower Limb Prostheses (DL33787) that would eliminate and/or stringently limit benefits for prosthetic devices. It…
-
Debunking Nutrition Myths
By Tracy Williams, www.tracysplate.com Most Americans have probably heard the new term “fake news,” especially since social media has risen in popularity as a news source. Fake news is truly not a new term, especially in the specialty area of health and wellness. If news outlets do not have writers and editors to help research medical…