“The first order of business is to self-regulate.”

I commend this whole video from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, but I especially want to encourage folks to watch the first four minutes.

“If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone… The first order of business is to self-regulate. What authoritarian regimes often try to do is what is known as ‘flood the zone’ — to do so much at once, or try to do so much at once so that you become overwhelmed and paralyzed. And it’s important for you to understand that the paralysis and the shock that you feel right now is the point. They are trying to induce a state of passivity among the general public. So it is of personal importance for you, and it is also of political importance to take a breath. That does not mean tune out. It does not mean to get apathetic. It does not mean that you just have to forget or whatever. It just means, take a breath.” — AOC

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Additionally, February is Black History Month, and this is an excellent time to celebrate and learn from Black disability activists and advocates who have shaped our communities, nation, and world. This month, I will share here about some of them.

“Fannie Lou Hammer was a legendary civil rights, worker’s rights, women’s rights, and voting rights activist. Hammer was disabled, living with the long-term effects from having Polio as a child, being sterilized while getting surgery without her consent, and becoming physically disabled due to severe violence in a Mississippi jail for attempting to vote in 1963. Her efforts and activism greatly impacted the civil rights movement She gave one of the biggest speeches of all time at the Democratic National Convention of 1964 and spoke openly about her experiences and the racial issues in Mississippi.”

You can learn more here: https://disabilityrightsflorida.org/blog/entry/impactful_black_disability_advocates_and_advocates?fbclid=IwY2xjawIQr3tleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHQODsg4f260VhmE8hT0u9-FVmot_FVQOY3faWH1x1fiNeQJG4nbNmTN-fw_aem_s2fCEKBlBXivu0hA4n5k5w