CW: Poverty
In northwestern Indiana, thousands of people have been without power for ten days. That’s not an inconvenience. It is a full-blown crisis.
Gary residents have had their lives turned upside down. Some are sleeping in their cars because they don’t have air conditioning. Others are driving miles just to do laundry. And at gas stations, long lines spill into the street as people wait to fill up cars and generators alike.
Gary is also a majority Black city, where decades of disinvestment have contributed to the state of disrepair. Many of the residents live in poverty, with limited access to transportation and other essential services.
Power outages do not affect everyone equally. Residents of Gary who are already struggling due to poverty, environmental hazards, deteriorating housing conditions, and reduced access to essentials may find it harder to cope during these outages. They may be exposed to health hazards, experience food insecurity or lose their jobs.
Roughly 1.54 million disabled adults live in Indiana. That’s about 29% of the adult population. In Gary alone, more than 15,000 disabled residents call the city home.
Think about what it actually means to lose power when your medications need refrigeration, or when you depend on a ventilator, a power wheelchair, or a feeding pump to get through the day. What happens when the backup batteries run out? What then?
People do step up during crises. Neighbors often share food, ice, batteries, and information. That kind of help matters. But help is not a substitute for the equipment disabled people need just to stay alive. A bag of ice doesn’t power a ventilator, or charge a power wheelchair.
The outages will end. They always do. But the inequities they’ve helped expose to the world won’t disappear when the power comes back on.
Sources:
“CARE Grantee Final Report—Community Action for a Renewed Environment Program—City of Gary, 10/1/10 to 12/31/12.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2012, https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-08/documents/indiana_gary_grant_final_technical_report-508.pdf.
Gallenberger, Michael. “Gary Looking to Add Homeless Shelter and Affordable Housing, Thanks to Federal Funding.” Lakeshore Public Media, 24 Jan. 2023, https://www.lakeshorepublicmedia.org/2023-01-24/gary-looking-to-add-homeless-shelter-and-affordable-housing-thanks-to-federal-funding.
“Gary Residents Urged to Support Disability Services.” Chicago Crusader, https://chicagocrusader.com/gary-residents-urged-to-support-disability-services/.
Hurley, Andrew. Environmental Inequalities: Class, Race, and Industrial Pollution in Gary, Indiana, 1945–1980. University of North Carolina Press, 1993. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5149/9780807898789_hurley.
“New Census Data Shows U.S. Fails Disabled People After Disasters.” The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies, 2026, https://disasterstrategies.org/new-census-data-shows-u-s-fails-disabled-people-after-disasters/.
Quraishi, Ash-har. “Frustration Mounts for Thousands Still Without Power after Deadly Indiana Storms.” CBS News, 22 Aug. 2026, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/deadly-indiana-storms-frustration-mounts-thousands-still-without-power/.
Rapoport, Erin Devorah. “The Politics of Disinvestment and Development in Gary, Indiana.” Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, University of Chicago, https://crownschool.uchicago.edu/student-life/advocates-forum/politics-disinvestment-and-development-gary-indiana.
Reynolds, Ash. “Disability amid Disaster: People with Disabilities Are Disproportionately Impacted by Natural Disasters.” NBC News, 23 Feb. 2025, https://www.nbcnews.com/data-graphics/people-disabilities-are-disproportionately-impacted-natural-disasters-rcna192577.
Reynolds, Cole, et al. “Ten Days after Storm, Thousands Are Still Waiting for Power in Indiana.” The Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2026, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/08/22/thousands-indiana-residents-still-without-power-10-days-after-storm/.
“U.S. State Profile Data: Adults 18+ Years of Age.” Disability and Health Data System (DHDS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3 Apr. 2025, https://www.cdc.gov/dhds/impacts/index.html.