Today, as we observe International Persons with Disabilities Day, I want to share a deeply personal journey that led me to confront a harsh reality: we live in an ableist society, and it is killing us. Ableism, as aptly defined by abolitionist TL Lewis, is a system...
Creating a Platform for People With Disabilities-WGN News
Vanessa Harris, PE, appeared on WGN Weekend News with Gaynor Hall. The following versions of the interviews are open captioned with American Sign Language. Transcripts of the Evening News and Morning News are below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6pd2ifA84 WGN...
Vanessa Harris-Nonprofit Disability CEO-Honored as Leader for a New Chicago
Vanessa Harris, PE appeared on ABC7 Chicago Eyewitness News after being awarded as a Leader for a New Chicago. She discussed the honor with ABC7anchor Terrell Brown. The transcript of the clip follows....
2023 Leaders for a New Chicago
The #FieldFoundation and #MacArthurfoundation announced the #2023LeadersforANewChicago. Five of the ten awardees were interviewed by Sasha-Ann Simons on WBEZ's Reset program. The ten awardees are as follows: Glo Choi, Mark Clements, Amethyst Davis, Carlos Flores,...
Breaking the Stigma: Elite Athletes Open Up About Mental Health
This guest post was written by Sophia Jean When Gymnastics star and Olympic champion Simone Biles arrived at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, everyone expected her to sweep through the competitions and deliver breathtaking performances. However, the pressure and stress that...
The View From My Chair by Frank Petrie
It is hard to imagine being in other people’s shoes, but it is even harder to imagine being in someone else’s chair. For Frank Petrie, the most common phrase he hears from non-wheelchair users is “I can only imagine.” This expression was the inspiration for “The View...
My SMART Friends
This guest post was written by one of my SMARTEST friends--REVECA TORRES! My Smart Friends By Reveca Torres Let me introduce you to my friends. They are so smart, and I know you will love them. My favorite friend is Nestor (Nest Smart Thermostat). He knows when to...
Inspired Conversation with Ashley & Nicole Llorens
A guest post by Christine Kerr Many people talk about the bond that exists between twins. It is often said that they understand each other and communicate in a way that is described as different, somehow deeper than the bonds of regular siblings, and friendships. I...
The Violence of Hostile Accomodation
Guest Post by ChrisTiana ObeySumner Originally published by the South Seattle Emerald I recently signed my first commercial lease and moved into my first solid office space. It is exciting to finally be able to create an environment that would mitigate barriers that...
Do You Want Me At Your Meeting? Make it Accessible!
Guest post Sheri Byrne-Haber discusses the importance of accessibility for a person in a wheelchair or with a disability. Sheri Byrne-Haber is a CPACC Certified Accessibility professional with degrees in CS, law, business. Sheri is also a wheelchair user w/ a deaf...
Look OUT World! Here comes Fun4thedisabled
Fun4thedisabled's Vanessa Harris is introduced to the world by Claire D'All, where they talk about how Vanessa gives the disabled access to education, inspiration, and a feeling of community. Through Fun4thedisabled, Vanessa brings light to those with disabilities,...
An Inspired Conversation with Reveca Torres by Christine Kerr
The following blog was written by Christine Kerr, a disabled blogger who lives in Australia. Her blog is about a fascinating mutual friend, Reveca Torres, an artist and disability activist who lives in the USA. This is what Christine has to say: When you think of...