cripchick's blog

cripchick: i feel so queer today 3:10 PM
friend: you are so queer
cripchick: yeah??
friend: of course, you are like a queer super star

i need to write. write or die. benefit of being a disability organizer is that i can be around people who share my disability politic all day everyday. i can also be around people of color locally and globally— folks who understand the landscape of my community, folks i can feel safe with. but people who have a queer politic? folks who don’t think my style of loving is selfish/greedy? folks who get white supremacy* AND heteronormativity* AND disability?… i only know them through writing. poetry circles. zines. media collectives. old audre lorde texts. blogs. what happens if these words dry up? i feel like i am a little bird sitting on the edge of a branch, it’s fall or fly and i never know which way i’ll go.

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last week i went to meeting in atlanta with folks in the reproductive health field who are creating a model for including disabled people in programs. i was kind of amazed to learn that a.) they weren’t coming from an administrative service-y model (where folks “giving” the service have all the power) but one that is based on ableism* analysis and 2.) that their grant was less than $2500, they weren’t doing this for money. i am so curious as to how they got here— who planted the seeds? who did all the groundwork ? i met a cool health equity* activist (who is Deaf! and queer! and so on point!) who has been working in the field with them and was a part of the workgroup, too. it kind of reshapes my understanding of folks doing work in the academy*, policy world, media reform* arena, social work field, etc, even if i still don’t understand how they have the patience for the loneliness that must come with slowly chipping away at a system, the only gripped chisel in sight. so much respect for them though.

*
white supremacy = system of power that keeps white people in power
heteronormativity= when society tries to make one gender and sexuality normal to keep straight people in power
health equity = looking at access to things that keep people healthy and why some people do not have this access
the academy= institution that studies people and the world. this often often happens at colleges.
media reform = work people do to change mainstream media from the inside.

i’ll scream it again & again—

no matter how eager, how radical, how cute you are

i do not exist for your fancy of freakery.

i could care less about feeding your taste for exotic flavors. i was not born to stroke your fascination of marginalized people.

no matter how much you are learning, no matter how much power/money/influence you carry, no matter how much you always know the right things to say,

my body is not for you to examine, conquer, or casually observe
as if the strands of my hair were nothing more than pages of a magazine

the creator did not craft these hands, lungs, feet of mine so you can feel good about yourself. my issues are not for you to solve.

who said you could analyze me? i am not a hobby, a project, a case study

nor will i ever be a pet to collect
in that menagerie of yours

instead i am harriet tubman using her disability to trick slavemasters, survey lands, and carve out paths to freedom
i am the spear waiting in datu lapu lapu’s right hand, standing with thousands ready to slice the colonizer’s head off of magellan’s body
i am the body casts frida kahlo painted on
i am the freedom song my joseon ancestors sung, the taegukis wrapped around their foreheads as they demanded an end to tyranny

no matter how quick i was to hand you this hard-earned self-determination in the past, know that from now on, you are being watched. vigilantly.

flip it, spit it out in a poem, brand it on the tip
of your tongue
do whatever you have to do
to remember

A few hours after the Autistic Self Advocacy Network
wrote to the Autism Society of America York Chapter (ASA York) about a billboard that dangerously compared autism to a national kidnapping emergency and uses puzzle piece symbolism [not being a whole person], they received a response saying that the billboard would be taken down.

Excerpt of the letter ASAN sent to ASA-York:

As we, Autistic adults and youth ourselves, attempt to assert our voices in the national conversation about us, we find ourselves characterized by those who often speak on our behalf as burdens on society, as not fully present within our own bodies and as individuals devoid of the full measure of personhood and humanity. Such mischaracterization threatens our efforts to be included in our homes, our schools, our communities and our collective society. By making the autism message one of fear, stigma and hostage-taking rather than one of civil rights, inclusion and support for all, our desire to be recognized as full and equal citizens in our communities is hurt.

Picture of the billboard:

Reads: If 1 in 150 American were kidnapped, we'd have a national emergency. We do. Autism.

Last year it took 21 disability organizations campaigning together via blogs, mainstream media, and thousands of phone calls and letters to have similar billboards taken down. In a time where disabled people are the last to be seen as experts of their own lives and where the public understanding of autism is strongly shaped by those with eugenic “cure”- oriented perspective (e.g. Autism Speaks, Jenny McCarthy), let’s celebrate self-determination being recognized and autistic self advocates being heard!

The response to ASAN from ASA-York President Amy Wallace:

Dear Friends in the Autism Community,
Regretfully it has been brought to the attention of the Autism Society of America – York Chapter – that our recent billboard campaign has caused undesirable confusion within the community. The intention of the billboard campaign was aimed at generating awareness to the general public and was in no way created to cause a malicious stir within the community. As a parent of a severely affected nine year old with Autism I can truly understand your passion regarding advocacy and respect for our children.

We thank you for your thoughts and concerns. I apologize for the misunderstanding and want you to know we will promptly remove the billboard posting.

Respectfully yours,

Amy Wallace

To email Amy and thank the ASA York chapter for taking the billboard down, email her at amywallace3@gmail.com

Big ups to ASAN and autistic independent media makers (Joe, Abfh, Nicocoer) who made this happen!

From ADAPT, our brave warriors who, on their third day of protest, faced massive storms and accessible restrooms being taken away:

ADAPT activists begin third day of protest at Democratic National Headquarters

Washington, DC – As dawn breaks in the nation’s capitol, approximately 30 disability rights activists, most with disabilities, from ADAPT continue their vigil on the sidewalk surrounding the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

On Tuesday, July 21, 2009, in 25 cities across the nation, ADAPT groups took their message to Democratic Party offices and its leaders. Forty ADAPT members in Washington, DC protested in the DNC headquarters, and were physically removed by law enforcement from the building at approximately 6:00 PM, although no arrests were made.

The protesters were demanding that the Democratic National Committee:

1. Apologize for creating Medicaid’s institutional bias which has forced millions of seniors and individuals with disabilities needlessly into nursing facilities and other institutions;
2. Issue a public statement calling for elimination of the institutional bias in 2009 either as part of healthcare reform or as separate legislation, known as the Community Choice Act (S 683/HR1670); and
3. Facilitate a meeting between ADAPT and Democratic leaders, including Representative Henry Waxman, Senator Max Baucus, and Valerie Jarrett of the White House to develop a plan to pass the Community Choice Act.

In most cities, the Democratic committees agreed to relay ADAPT’s demands to the DNC. In some cities, the staff committed to working with ADAPT to influence the leadership of the DNC to support ADAPT’s goals. “Our state party leaders really worked with us to identify how they could help us influence the national leadership,” said Nadina LaSpina, an ADAPT organizer in New York City.

However, in our nation’s capital, the DNC still refuses to meet any of ADAPT’s demands. During the vigil’s second day, ADAPTers chanted and distributed informational materials. “We even were able to meet with Members of Congress right here on the street who expressed interest in becoming co-sponsors of the Community Choice Act,” said Cassie James, an ADAPT organizer from Philadelphia.

As darkness fell, the vigil continued and many of the protesters went to sleep in reclining lawn chairs and sleeping bags, some in tents and others under a lean-to constructed from PVC pipe and plastic tarps in front of the DNC. Several large banners throughout their sidewalk encampment show the group’s support for the Community Choice Act.

The ADAPT members in Washington, DC are committed to maintaining their presence in front of the DNC offices in an attempt to pressure Democratic leaders to work with ADAPT to discuss plans to pass the Community Choice Act.

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Follow them on twitter or check out more about their action at www.adapt.org/takeaction to stay in the know and support CCA. Free our people!!