Ta-Nehisi Coates at Dominican University: Activism and Change

Last night I had the pleasure of watching one our nation’s great writers, Ta-Nehisi Coates, give a talk on the case for reparations at my university. The content of the talk was based on his recent major article for The Atlantic, which you should read. His thesis is that for 350 years, in an ongoing … Continue ReadingTa-Nehisi Coates at Dominican University: Activism and Change

#DontreHamilton – Milwaulkee Doesn’t Follow Its Own Police Oversight Law

Wisconsin has good rules for independent review of police killings, at least partially as told through this story in Politico. The author tells the story of his son’s death, the lawsuit, and then the campaign to get an independent review law passed. He concludes: Finally we began to get some movement, helped by a friendly … Continue Reading#DontreHamilton – Milwaulkee Doesn’t Follow Its Own Police Oversight Law

Inspiration Porn Part 2 – Abled woman tells Disability Community that Inspiration Porn is Great!

This is one of the worst essays I have ever read on disability. An abled person informing the disability community that inspiration porn is a good thing. She even has the audacity to cite Stella Young. Here’s the piece, then a commercial that I think does a better job. There’s a debate raging on the … Continue ReadingInspiration Porn Part 2 – Abled woman tells Disability Community that Inspiration Porn is Great!

Inspiration Porn – Part I of II: Theory of Everything Edition

Hey, so someone playing disabled won an Oscar last night. Later today I am going to write about the worst example of able-splaining I’ve seen in a long time, in which a non-disabled person tells everyone why inspiration porn is great. But first, here’s a disability-related critique of Theory of Everything. Short version – it’s … Continue ReadingInspiration Porn – Part I of II: Theory of Everything Edition

CALL TO ACTION – New Jersey has a great new plan; Providers want to crush it.

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network has just alerted me to an ongoing issue in the state of New Jersey. Amazing, New Jersey has come up with a great new plan to move away from group homes and institutions and bring real support into the communities. That model threatens providers’ revenue streams, though, and they are … Continue ReadingCALL TO ACTION – New Jersey has a great new plan; Providers want to crush it.

Sunday Roundup – Abortion, Compliance, Language, History

I’ve missed a few Sundays, mostly because so much has been going on that I can’t stop writing long enough to breathe and assess. I’ll try to do better. Here’s the week. Published – Facebook and Fear: The story of one woman’s decision to keep her child with Down syndrome, facilitated through some quick Facebook … Continue ReadingSunday Roundup – Abortion, Compliance, Language, History