Author: Grace W. Dow

Living with a disability often feels like navigating a maze or solving a puzzle. Growing up, I assumed my adulthood wouldn’t look that different from my peers. I had high expectations for myself. I knew I wanted to go to college to get my bachelor’s degree, and find a job I enjoyed. I knew that… Continue reading Life’s a Puzzle

CW: Poverty A program that distributes food to disabled people in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood has been extended for another six months. The Greater Chicago Food Depository provided financing for the municipal pilot initiative, which began in February, intending to improve food access for 100 people experiencing food insecurity. This type of service is essential to… Continue reading Food Accessibility

CW: Poverty Justina Worrell, 47, works part-time as a kitchen assistant in an Ohio nursing facility. She has cerebral palsy, an intellectual disability, and a cardiac condition. The condition required the placement of an artificial heart valve when she was 20. A year ago, she was earning $862 per month and receiving around $1,065 in… Continue reading Disability Benefits and Overpayment

CW: Skin Shock Therapy The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court concluded last Thursday in a case that began nearly 40 years ago in Attleboro that the Judge Rotenberg Center can continue to utilize electric skin shock therapy. However, its use can be challenged by state agencies on a case-by-case basis. In a 68-page decision, the SJC… Continue reading Skin Shock Therapy and IDD

Voting at this year’s municipal elections in England, racial and disability discrimination was caused by contentious voter identification requirements. MPs and peers from the all-party parliamentary group on democracy and the constitution published a report on Monday. The report claims the regulations did more harm than good. The regulations went into effect in May. They… Continue reading Discrimination in Voting

A former patient filed a lawsuit against NYU Langone Health for allegedly failing to provide her with an American Sign Language interpreter prior to and during the delivery of her child, which the patient says violates multiple disability rights laws. Aneta Brodski, the patient, also sued Carnegie Imaging for Women, a gynecological center in New… Continue reading Accessibility in Healthcare

Today is my 24th birthday. Life has been an interesting journey so far. I live thousands of miles away from where I was born in Kolkata, India. It is one of India’s largest cities, home to millions of people. I came home to America on June 29, 2000. To me, Massachusetts will always be home.… Continue reading What Will 24 Bring?

CW: Poverty According to current estimates, the COLA will be under 3% in September 2023, a significant decrease from this year’s cost of living adjustment. The 8.7% increase in payments was the largest since 1981. It was intended to help mitigate the increasing inflation that would reduce recipients’ purchasing power. The official 2024 cost-of-living adjustment… Continue reading Why Social Security’s COLA Isn’t Enough

CW: Death In 2016, Tim Rose was denied entrance on an Air Canada aircraft due to the size of his motorized wheelchair. Now, The Canadian Transportation Agency has determined that the country’s largest airline should do more to accommodate passengers with mobility equipment. Rose, who resides in Toronto, was planning to travel to Cleveland, Ohio.… Continue reading Airplanes are Inaccessible

CW: Ableism & Eugenics Federal officials are proposing new regulations that will bar medical professionals from discriminating against people with disabilities and would establish new accessibility standards in doctor’s offices. The Department of Health and Human Services announced Thursday that it is proposing a rule that “updates, clarifies, and strengthens” regulations connected to Section 504… Continue reading Disabled People Deserve Fair Treatment in Medical Settings