By Marina Magalhães Cardoso I was thinking about a consistent theme to write about. I glanced at my generous cup of cappuccino and thought: this object, filled with chocolate and coffee, might help me explain how I feel. Inclusion could be as delightful and homogeneous as this liquid, don’t you thin…

by Amy Potter I’m tired of being invisible. I’m not talking about my invisible disability – I am happy with that and don’t want to part with it. No, what I’m tired of is Disability itself being invisible. Even when I am working among allies, all of whom I know are dedicated to Equity, Diversi…

Judy Heumann passed away on March 4, 2023, at the age of 75. Throughout the disability community, she has left an enduring legacy as a passionate advocate of disability rights who played an influential role in the development and passage of critical pieces of disability legislation. By Nils Skudra A…

The Art of Autism mourns the loss of Lois Curtis in November 2022. Lois Curtis was an African American artist with intellectual and developmental disabilities and schizophrenia. Curtis paved the way for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities to get out of institutional settings and…

“As a public representative I will speak very loudly for our most vulnerable people with mental/physical disabilities and our seniors in our community.” Ashan Fernando By Ron Sandison Editor’s Note: This is an informative article. The Art of Autism nonprofit does not endorse s…

Areva Martin is an award-winning attorney, best-selling author, legal commentator, talk show host, and a critical voice for social justice. By Ron Sandison Areva Martin has a son Marty who has autism. I interviewed Areva Martin for Black History Month because her advocacy for Marty reminded me of m…

October is National Disability Employment Awareness month. I struggled for years with employment; I am now gainfully employed going on 13.6 years in the mental health field and 18 years part-time as a professor of theology and speak at over 70 events a year. As I refined my talents and special inter…

October is National Disability History Month and National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Richard Pimentel was one of the first disability activists to work with United States government agencies and Fortune 500 companies in diversity training and providing employment for people with disabili…

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. The 2021 theme, “America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion,” reflects the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities have full access to employment and community involvement during the national recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. B…

From a woman on the autism spectrum By Bea Mienik Can you paint with no color? As this year’s Disability Pride Month came to a close last month many companies pledged their support for disability inclusion. Where is the walk behind the talk? Ours is a society that is daily becoming more and m…

“I believe God gives each of us a purpose. To the horse, it’s to run across the prairie. For a cowboy, it’s to ride,” Brady Blackburn (Brady Jandreau) By Nils Skudra This evening I just finished watching The Rider, a compelling biographical western film directed by Chloé Zhao and starring Bra…

“The COVID-19 pandemic, horrible as it has been, has given us the perfect opportunity to redesign our society and systems to be more inclusive of the rights and desires of people with disabilities. There are numerous bills in congress that can support people with disabilities in achieving the Americ…

By Nils Skudra This week I took the opportunity to watch The Theory of Everything, a 2014 biographical film about the renowned cosmologist and physicist Stephen Hawking who struggled with ALS (commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) throughout his life but achieved remarkable success and internation…

By Anton Spivack Recently I posted this article, calling out the musical Jagged Little Pill for its non-binary erasure, to a Facebook page for Mensans who are fans of Broadway. None of the commenters supported me, they just blasted me, accusing me of calling them transphobic and dismissing everythi…