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Welcome to the Reading Roundup! Stay informed with our latest selection of accessibility news highlights, curated for you!
LOCAL NEWS
WASHINGTONIAN: Rep. Jennifer Wexton’s Way Through
It started with her toes.
They clenched before curling inward, especially when she lay in bed at night. Her gait worsened next, and strides morphed into shuffles that led to tripping on the uneven sidewalks flanking Capitol Hill. Then her hands succumbed, involuntarily balling into fists at random times. When the pandemic ushered in a world of screens and Zoom calls and virtual town halls, her voice began to change: wavering, fluttering, almost as if she were speaking with a lump in her throat. Words became stutters. Phrases repeated.
As Jennifer Wexton describes the progression of her symptoms, from small signs to bigger problems, the initial emotion she felt barely four years ago comes crashing back: fear.
“It was scary,” she says. “I felt as though I was losing control of my body.”
A woman says her 80-year-old mother tipped over in her motorized wheelchair in bushes and snow after MetroAccess left her alone in the freezing cold in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Consuelo Edwards said her mother, Mary Artis, suffers from acute dementia and other medical complications. "My heart stopped, because I couldn't imagine 16 degrees outside, turned upside-down in the snow," Edwards said. Edwards said she walked her mother to the curb for a medical appointment and met the MetroAccess driver as she had done many times before. "I transferred custody to the driver, came back inside, waved goodbye. I'm under the impression that my mother is on her way to dialysis," Edwards said.
But Edwards said her mother was refused service by the MetroAccess driver because her wheelchair was too heavy.
WASHINGTON, DC – For countless families in the District of Columbia, the daily trip to school is fraught with anxiety due to unsafe and unreliable transportation services for students with disabilities. Today, a federal judge signaled hope for change and cleared the way for parents and guardians of children with disabilities and The Arc of the United States (The Arc) to pursue their case against the District of Columbia (DC) for failing to provide them with safe, reliable, and effective transportation to school. According to the decision by Judge Paul L. Friedman of the District Court of DC, students with disabilities have the right under federal disability rights laws to seek “structural relief that serves all children with disabilities.” The decision affirms that there is a remedy when children with disabilities are denied equal access to education.
Maryland disability advocates are worried about the more than $200 million in proposed fiscal 2026 budget cuts to the state’s Developmental Disabilities Administration, fearing that access to needed services could be decreased.
Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, called for the $200 million reduction to the agency’s funding in his fiscal 2026 budget proposal following increased costs for the state. The cuts are just some pieces of a larger effort to resolve the state’s $3 billion budget deficit.
Spending for the DDA, which pays for services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has increased by more than $500 million over the last two years. The governor’s proposed reduction, described by Maryland Budget Secretary Helene Grady as “one of the most difficult” proposals in the budget, aims to bring next year’s funding back to fiscal 2024 levels.
Advocates and those who rely on DDA services are concerned about what could lie ahead in the next fiscal year. They’re also grappling with the impact of proposed cost-cutting measures on the agency’s funding in the current fiscal year.
USA NEWS
USA TODAY: Check out America’s 9 most accessible national parks, according to reviews
From the start, the world’s first national park was intended “for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” Those words can still be seen inscribed on Roosevelt Arch near the North Entrance of Yellowstone National Park.
But not everyone can enjoy America’s national parks the same way.
More than one in four U.S. adults has a disability, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, and that can impact how they experience places like parks.
"The National Park Service strives to make all parks accessible to visitors of all abilities, ensuring that everyone can benefit from programs, services, and activities," National Park Service spokesperson Cynthia Hernandez told USA TODAY.
TODAY: What happens to people with disabilities in natural disasters?
June Isaacson Kailes lives 8 or 9 miles away from the evacuation zone for the Los Angeles wildfires. But even before the fires started, she had plans for how she’d escape in the event of a disaster.
Isaacson Kailes, who has cerebral palsy, uses a mobility scooter and has a ramp so it can be put in her car or disassembled and placed in her husband’s vehicle. In a worst-case scenario, she’d keep it at home and leave without it.
“I’ve also practiced getting out of here with a scooter and going up a significant hill, for example, if there was flooding or there was a tsunami,” Isaacson Kailes, a disability policy consultant who works with individuals, organizations and governments about emergency planning, tells TODAY.com. “We have a chain ladder under the bed. … We’re on the second floor, so we could go out the window, and if it’s the only way out, we can probably figure out how.”
FORBES: What Does President Trump’s DEI Rollback Mean For Disability Inclusion?
A mere day into his second term in office and President Donald Trump has already made good on his vow to terminate federal government diversity, equity and inclusion programs which he has described as “illegal and immoral.”
Tuesday’s Executive Order will see federal government agencies cease to consider diversity within hiring protocols and remove it from employee training programs.
Furthermore, all federal employees who work in DEI programs have now been placed on paid leave and those agencies employing them tasked with submitting a written plan for their dismissal by January 31. Businesses benefiting from minority funding programs are also in line to experience the shockwaves of the President’s vilification of what fellow conservatives view as the infiltration of wokeism into American culture and politics necessitating an end to policies promoting affirmative action.
GLOBAL NEWS
GLOBAL NEWS: Disability rights groups shocked by Alberta government funding cut: ‘We’re essential’
Three Alberta disability advocacy groups say they’re shocked and saddened after learning the provincial government plans to back out of their funding contracts more than a year early.
“This hits deep,” Leah Dormaar, the executive director of the Southern Alberta Individualized Planning Association in Lethbridge, Alta., told a news conference Wednesday.
Dormaar’s organization, as well as the Self Advocacy Federation in Edmonton and the Disability Action Hall in Calgary, support Albertans with intellectual and physical disabilities by connecting them with peers and helping them develop skills to advocate for themselves.
Keri McEachern, a facilitator with the Self Advocacy Federation, said each organization has a three-year funding contract with the government to support their operational costs.
But she said that earlier this month, the government told them the funding would stop in April, more than a year before the contracts were set to expire.
FORBES: Primark: Fashion Meets Inclusivity With Adaptive Clothing
Primark has once again demonstrated its ability to meet the evolving needs of consumers with the launch of its first-ever adaptive clothing range for people with disabilities. This move positions Primark at the forefront of inclusive fashion, addressing a market that is both underserved and growing in demand. With this initiative, the brand is not only making a business-savvy decision but also taking meaningful steps to foster inclusivity in the retail sector.
The statistics speak for themselves: over 14.6 million people in the UK live with disabilities, representing more than 22% of the population. Globally, the number of people with disabilities is estimated to be over 1.3 billion, making this one of the largest and most diverse consumer groups. Yet, the adaptive fashion market remains underdeveloped. Research from Allied Market Research estimates the global adaptive clothing market will reach $400 billion by 2026, highlighting the vast potential for growth.
Despite this demand, accessible, affordable adaptive clothing has been a rarity. While luxury brands like Tommy Hilfiger have launched adaptive lines, few mainstream retailers have followed suit—until now. Primark’s entry into this space is a game-changer, as it brings stylish, functional adaptive clothing to the high street at price points that are accessible to the masses.
CULTURE NEWS
AP: How scientists with disabilities are making research labs and fieldwork more accessible
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (AP) — The path to Lost Lake was steep and unpaved, lined with sharp rocks and holes.
A group of scientists and students gingerly made their way, using canes or a helping hand to guide them. For those who couldn't make the trek, a drone brought the lake — blue and narrow — into view.
The field trip was designed to illustrate the challenges disabled researchers often face and how barriers can be overcome.
“Just because you can’t do it like someone else doesn’t mean you can’t do it," said Anita Marshall, a University of Florida geologist leading the outing. The group included scientists with sight, hearing and mobility disabilities.
Marshall's organization ran the field trip to the lake along the San Andreas Fault, outside of San Bernadino. Her group — the International Association for Geoscience Diversity — and others are working to improve access to field and lab work so that those with disabilities feel welcome and stay.
USA TODAY: It’s true, skiing can be an accessible sport: How travelers with disabilities can enjoy
Any skier will tell you that there’s nothing quite like the feeling of whizzing down the mountain. It’s peace and adrenaline all at once. The ski industry is also always looking for ways to bring that feeling to more people, and over the years various nonprofits and resorts have worked together to make the sport an option for athletes across the disability spectrum.
For disabled athletes, getting on the slopes with adaptive equipment can be a great equalizer.
“No matter what your disability is, you can go out there and enjoy it,” one member of the ski team at the National Ability Center told USA TODAY during a visit in December. “We’re all just people doing things differently.”
The National Ability Center is an adaptive outdoor recreation nonprofit based in Park City, Utah. It has a ranch for various activities a few minutes from downtown and a major base near the Mountain Village lodges.
Along with other nonprofits like Challenge Aspen in Colorado and Achieve Tahoe in California, there’s a big apparatus across the industry to make the mountains more accessible to everyone.
