Among many important functions, the Department of Education protects the civil rights of students with disabilities. This week, I’m thinking of many students, families, teachers, and administrators as particular leaders of the executive and legislative branches advocate for the closure of the Department of Education.
On top of this, 17 states have filed a lawsuit, titled Texas v. Becerra, which could undo Section 504 of the landmark Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This law ensures that students with disabilities can have accommodations in the classroom.
Below, we have a photo of the memo that was sent to agency employees on the second full day of the Trump Presidency. You can find this text in written form here.
— Renee Roederer
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.
“Barbara Jordan was a famous advocate for voting rights, immigration reform, minimum wage laws, and civil rights. She was the first African American woman from a southern state in congress in 1973. She is most famously remembered for her role in the Watergate hearings and for delivering the keynote at the 1976 Democratic national convention, being the first Black woman to do so. She continued her advocacy through education as a professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Throughout the later years of her life she used a wheelchair due to of Multiple Sclerosis.”
You can learn more here:
https://disabilityrightsflorida.org/blog/entry/impactful_black_disability_advocates_and_advocates?fbclid=IwY2xjawIa-kxleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHe4wTOP7undYe-kNFuFVCgRQszoOFeCb1_MGdmbAqZPo1ZL3cJOoMYiv7Q_aem_WgWIcE1jRNX4QgapodNp9w
Smuggling Grace 