Disability Pride Month + Companion Playlist
By: Maggie Laubscher
Stunning artwork of @marshaellemusic by @subtle.drawings
Happy Disability Pride Month, Nellies! This is a celebration worth amplifying. Disability Pride Month celebrates the July 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act. The Act was the first document declaring equality for people with disabilities -- the first! 1990 was not very long ago.
We all know someone who is disabled. Some of us are those people, while others of us are standing beside someone with a disability. According to the United Nations, more than 1 billion people in the world have a disability. Some disabilities are invisible, while others are obvious. Regardless, it involves a lot of us: disabled people are the largest minority group globally.
This fact brings us back to Disability Pride Month. This is a time to celebrate, learn and amplify. Disabled people are so many of us. They are also disproportionately impacted by poverty, police brutality and high healthcare costs. Approximately one third to one half of Americans killed by police have a disability, according to the Ruderman Family Foundation. Deaths from Covid-19 are nearly twice as high for people with disabilities, according to NPR. Disabled BIPOC (Black, indigenous, people of color) are one of the most silenced groups in the world.
Let’s counter those statistics by celebrating the disabled community. Joining their fight for accessibility and amplifying their presence and voices. As Jessica at @therollingexplorer said, “Access leads to equality. As long as the world remains inaccessible, the disabled community will continue to be marginalized.”
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Once again, Happy Disability Pride Month, Nellies. Check out these accounts for more inspiration and insight, and let’s be a force of change.
A Playlist
To pair with this post, local KC artist Abby Yemm created a companion playlist. Click on the image to listen. Enjoy and be well, Nellies.