Letter From Minnesota: This is Our Fight Response Right now Minnesota is in the middle of a fight response. This is the gift of our ancestors, the capacity to turn towards a threat and engage with it as part of the strategy of disarming it. A figh…

lithub.com/letter-from-...

Thousands of institutions abandoned programs, ended or rewrote scholarships, closed down clubs and publications, all in pre-emptive compliance.

And you know why?

Mostly because they wanted to do it if they thought they could blame someone else for it.

"Let it matter what we call a thing." —Solmaz Sharif

Opinion | AI Isn't the Solution for Every Problem Health organizations should step back and understand what communities want

🔈 My first op-ed as a Public Voices Fellow on Technology in the Public Interest with The OpEd Project, out today, encourages health organizations to remember that AI is not the solution to every problem; instead, community priorities, not technology, should come first. 🔈

The Supreme Court To Decide on How IQ Tests Can Affect the Death Penalty In Hamm v. Smith, the Supreme Court will consider how IQ tests can be used to determine when an individual with an intellectual disability may be spared from the death penalty.

Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will hear a case about how courts apply the death penalty to people w/ intellectual disabilities. Executing people w/ intellectual disabilies goes against the 8th amendment. Yet too many are still executed due to how states test. www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...

Graphic for World AIDS Day 2025 showing a Black woman standing on a higher red ledge reaching down to pull up a Black man on a lower red ledge, with the words ‘World AIDS Day | 2025’ on the bottom.

Today is World AIDS Day.

“An awareness day is not a strategy” is the US government's rationale for not publicly acknowledging World AIDS Day for the first time since the inaugural WAD in 1988.

#WAD2025

Weakening the IDEA Threatens Millions of Disabled Americans Like Me Ives-Rublee: Federal law made it possible for disabled students like me to go to school. Those opportunities may vanish for the next generation.

Saturday was the 50th anniversary of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). I wrote about how the law helped make me who I am today and how losing it's protections may stifle the talent of generations of disabled individuals after me. www.the74million.org/article/weak...

Santa Fe tackles rental rates with first-in-US minimum wage approach Santa Fe is the first city in the U.S. to directly link wages to housing affordability, aiming to counter high rents.

Santa Fe is linking wages to rental prices — a first in the U.S. — as officials try to slow displacement with soaring housing costs

Orange and white textured gradient background. There’s an illustration of a red awareness ribbon on the right side. Text reads: Today, December 1st, is World AIDS Day. To commemorate World AIDS Day and the impact AIDS has on our communities, this post has some parts of our plain language resource about HIV and AIDS.

Orange and white textured gradient background. Text reads: What is HIV? HIV is a germ that makes it hard for your body to fight other germs. HIV kills off the parts of your body that fight off germs. This can make it very easy to get sick. Without treatment, people with HIV often get sick with diseases that people without HIV can fight off easily. Without treatment, people with HIV can easily die of diseases that do not make people without HIV very sick. How can you get HIV? Sex: HIV is an STI. This means you can get HIV through having sex. Sharing needles: by sharing needles, syringes, and other injection supplies with other people who have HIV if you inject drugs. During pregnancy: pregnant people who have HIV can give HIV to their fetus if they are not on HIV medication. While breastfeeding: breastfeeding people who have HIV can give HIV to their babies if they are not on medication.

Orange and white textured gradient background. Text reads: What is AIDS? AIDS is a disease caused by HIV. When HIV gets inside your body, the HIV germs kill off certain cells in your body. These cells are called CD4 cells. CD4 cells help your body fight off germs. If a person with HIV does not get proper medication and treatment, the HIV germs will keep killing off CD4 cells. If a person’s CD4 cell count gets too low, the person can get very sick. If a person has HIV and their CD4 cell count gets too low, that person has AIDS. People with AIDS can get very sick. Not everyone with HIV has AIDS. People with HIV can take medication to stop themselves from getting AIDS. The best way to prevent HIV from causing AIDS is to test for HIV. That way, if someone has HIV, they will know they have HIV. Then, they can get medication to stop them from getting AIDS.

Orange and white textured gradient background. Text reads: HIV Prevention. Using a condom or other barrier method is a good way to help prevent HIV and other STIs. Both internal and external condoms can help prevent you from getting or giving someone HIV. Dental dams and gloves can also help prevent you from getting or giving someone HIV. PrEP. PrEP is short for “pre-exposure prophylaxis.” “Prophylaxis” means “prevention.” “Pre-exposure” means “before you are exposed” to HIV. PrEP is a medication you take regularly to prevent getting HIV. PrEP can make your chance of getting HIV smaller, even if you do not use condoms. PEP. PEP is short for “post-exposure prophylaxis.” “Prophylaxis” means “prevention.” “Post-exposure” means “after you are exposed” to HIV. PEP can make your chance of getting HIV smaller. You take PEP after you might have been exposed to HIV.

Today is World AIDS Day. People with IDD are often left out of conversations about HIV and AIDS, but they do impact our community. Check out this post with parts of our plain language resource “A Self-Advocate’s Guide to Safer Sex.” Full resource here: autisticadvocacy.org/resources/pr...

"Alice Wong, a proud Asian American and disabled woman, transformed the disability justice movement by insisting that disabled stories, disabled joy, and disabled futures mattered. Through her fearless advocacy and storytelling, she made sure millions of disabled people could not be ignored. Alice was known as the cyborg oracle in the disability community, challenging systems that devalued disabled lives while expanding the movement by emphasizing dignity and collective care. As a disabled ancestor, her legacy will forever shape the community.”

My statement from @americanprogress.bsky.social on disability justice activist, author, MacArthur fellow, and cyborg oracle Alice Wong.

Trump Officials Take Their SNAP Fight To A Disturbing New Level Ellen Mei was interviewed about the food assistance program during the shutdown. She received a termination letter the next day.

Trump officials plan to fire a federal worker for speaking up about threats to SNAP during the shutdown, correspondence reviewed by HuffPost shows

I woke up to the news that @sfdirewolf.bsky.social has passed away. I made sure to always give Alice her flowers when we texted or saw each other. I know she knew how much I loved her & appreciated the way she believed in & supported me. But I still wish I could tell her one last time.

🙏🏾💜

🙏🏾💜

For anyone at the National Women’s Studies Association right now, some of us are organizing an impromptu memorial gathering for @sfdirewolf.bsky.social. 7-9pm tonight Saturday Nov 15 at the Sheraton hotel pool deck. Come be in community and share memories of Alice. 💜

I am honored to have @prismreports.org publish my piece discussing how eugenics has been rearing its ugly head throughout recent politics, being lead by the administration and even echoing across the political aisle.

*Taps the screen*

⬇️

Black text on a yellow background - This is Alice's friend Sandy Ho, posting. Per Alice's wishes, this message is being shared at the time of her passing. Hi everyone, it looks like I ran out of time. I have so many dreams that I wanted to fulfill and plans to create new stories for you. There are a few in progress that might come to fruition in a few years if things work out. I did not ever imagine I would live to this age and end up a writer, editor, activist, and more. As a kid riddled with insecurity and internalized ableism, I could not see a path forward. It was thanks to friendships and some great teachers who believed in me that I was able to fight my way out of miserable situations into a place where I finally felt comfortable in my skin. We need more stories about us and our culture. You all, we all, deserve the everything and more in such a hostile, ableist environment. Our wisdom is incisive and unflinching. I'm honored to be your ancestor and believe disabled oracles like us will light the way to the future. Don't let the bastards grind you down. I love you all.

“Don’t let the bastards grind you down. I love you all.”

Alice in her own words: bsky.app/profile/thra...

The Trump Administration’s Plans To Covertly Cut Social Security Disability Benefits An upcoming regulatory proposal would change the rules of Social Security disability programs to make it harder to qualify, particularly harming older adults.

These cuts would drastically harm the health and wellbeing of those with disabilities.

The Trump Administration’s Plans To Covertly Cut Social Security Disability Benefits www.americanprogress.org/article/the-... by @mollyww.bsky.social @seemiaroll.bsky.social via @americanprogress.bsky.social

The E.P.A. Followed Up on an Unusual Request About Abortion Pills Scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency found that they could develop methods to identify traces of the medication if necessary — a practice long sought by the anti-abortion movement.

EPA is reportedly exploring whether it can detect abortion pills like mifepristone in wastewater — a move critics fear opens the door to surveillance of private reproductive choices.

ASAN Condemns Mass Layoffs of Special Education Programs Workers at the US Dept. of Education - Autistic Self Advocacy Network On October 10th, the Trump administration announced that over 400 people at the US Department of Education would lose their jobs. These layoffs gutted the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP),…

Last week, the Trump administration laid off over 400 federal workers who oversee special education programs in the US. This is unacceptable and puts disabled students at risk. Read our statement here: autisticadvocacy.org/2025/10/asan...

I am thrilled to invite you to a powerful and inspiring event hosted by CAN Community Health on Mon, Nov. 3rd, from 11 to 12 PM EST, titled "SHE CAN Storytellers: Championing HIV Advocacy and Equity Through the Voices of Women Healthcare Leaders".

Join us here: www.facebook.com/share/1CvWN5...

Long Covid Is Real — And It’s Changing an Entire Generation

Hundreds of thousands of kids in America are struggling with an illness that many doctors and schools refuse to recognize.e

Feature: www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...

The trailblazing transgender rights activist Miss Major has passed away at the age of 78.

Miss Major was a lifelong organizer and participant in the ballroom scene. She took part in the 1969 Stonewall Riots and was injured by the police — but she kept fighting.

Engage the community in generative AI for public health Slower uptake of generative AI in public health provides a unique opportunity to embed community accountability before more of these models are fully scaled.

🌱In our just-released op-ed for @statnews.com @cre8tivecadence.bsky.social & I share our thoughts on the critical need for community-centered governance in #generativeAI in both health care & public health, moving away from top-down approaches to ones that are from the ground up.

#healthequity

The Truth About Disparate Impact and Equity The Supreme Court has reaffirmed disparate impact liability numerous times, and President Trump’s April 23 executive order does not inhibit private plaintiffs’ ability to file civil claims.

Disparate impact provides protection 4 some of the most vulnerable, including disabled ppl & Black & brown ppl. Folx have become masterful at writing policy that seems equal, but disproportionately impacts folx who've been historically marginalized. www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...