From: Emily Ladau <xxxxxx@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, November 7, 2022 8:00 AM
To: Robin Troutman <xxxxxx@nacdd.org>
Subject: Vote like your life depends on it

Words I Wheel By logo. The letter O is a wheelchair wheel with a purple and blue star in the center.

Hello!

Tomorrow is Election Day in the U.S. If you've not yet voted early in person or mailed in your ballot, get to it! The midterms are absolutely essential to how the U.S. moves forward--and I have to admit, I'm extremely anxious about the outcomes.

Disabled people continue to experience significant barriers to exercising our right to vote. Campaign rhetoric (especially in the Fetterman vs. Oz race for Pennsylvania Governor) has been rife with ableism. It's been a tough election cycle.

It's important to remember as you vote that disability issues aren't niche issues. In fact, every issue is a disability issue because every issue impacts disabled people. Looking for more information to get educated? Check out the REV UP Voting Issues Guide for insights on key disability issues.

Rights and lives are on the line.

Let's Hang Out

Here's where you can find me:

11/12 - Meet the Moment, hosted by The Meteor at the Brooklyn Museum (I'll be speaking with my mom!)

Click Here to Book Me to Speak!

Click Here to Buy Demystifying Disability!

Disability Around the Interwebs

Lois Curtis, who won a landmark civil rights case for people with disabilities, died (If you read one thing today, make it this. Disability history is not past tense. It's always happening. Lois's story is an essential part of it.)

Meaningful Accessibility in the Workplace: An Interview with Disability Rights Activist Emily Ladau

Disabled New Yorkers File Lawsuit Against MTA Over Subway Gaps (in which I recount the nightmare that is traveling while disabled)

TCF Launches New Series Featuring and Led by Disabled Writers (so excited to be working on the new Voices of Disability Economic Justice Project! Send me a pitch if you'd like!)

Disability Rights Are Workers’ Rights

The Positives and Pitfalls of SSI Benefits

Don’t Overlook Disabled New Yorkers in Congestion Pricing Plan (I 100% co-sign this)

Over-The-Counter Hearing Aids: Disability Experts Weigh Benefits And Concerns

Disabled People Can Be Productive Workers, But That Shouldn’t Determine Our Worth

Pete Buttigieg promises USDOT is working on accessible air travel...

...But my wheelchair was recently damaged while traveling with American Airlines, so I don't have much confidence change is coming...at least not soon enough.

Air Canada broke my $30,000 motorized wheelchair.

Stacey Abrams wants more Georgians with disabilities to be able to live independently

Keeping Americans with disabilities from poverty must remain a priority

There is a looming housing crisis for people with disabilities. Here’s how we can act now.

What I'm Watching

While on a plane recently, I was scrolling through in-flight entertainment and stopped in my tracks at the sight of a wheelchair user on a movie poster. The description of "Corro Da Te" (I Run To You) immediately caught my attention: "Womanizer Gianni takes the art of seduction so far as to fake a disability to charm sexy Alessia - but everything changes when he meets Chiara." What better way to pass the time than by watching ableist garbage...in Italian? So fun!

Photo of screen on the back of an airplane seat showing the cover to the film Run To You, which has a man in a suit standing next to a woman in red dress who is sitting in a wheelchair.

Honestly, it was so bad that I kind of loved it in a hate-watch sort of way. It has every possible stereotypical disability trope you can think of: tragedy! pity! inspiration! religious "cures"! infantilization! questioning sexual capabilities! and more! I have no idea where you can find it in the U.S., but if you're in Italy or on a Delta flight with time to waste, well...I can't say I recommend it, but go for it, I guess.

What do you recommend I watch next? You can reply to this email! Looking for past recommendations or critiques? Click here for past issues of my newsletter.

Until next month, keep on wheelin’ on!

💖
-Emily

Words I Wheel By

729 Home Street

Long Island, NY 11704

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