I'm writing a new book! It's all about the history of disability rights activism and what we still need to fight for.
It's adult non-fiction, it's with @HurstPublishers and it'll be out in 2025!
Disability rights is a huge part of my life, but I'm not the expert and I wasn't there for a lot of it - luckily for me I know people who are and were.
This book will take you all with me while I learn more and help us all remember why we fight.
May 21 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
5th of april - got a letter from the DWP saying my PIP review had started and to expect a letter in 2 weeks.
20th April - hadnt come so I spent 45 minutes on hold and got cut off.
It finally arrived 25th April, deadline was 4th May. I sent it 30th.
Just had a letter today a month later saying my PIP is ending bc I didn't send it back in time
With postage time they gave me 5 days tops to fill in a 40 page form where I had to divulge traumatic information. It took them 4 weeks to tell me I'd missed the deadline.
Oct 5, 2023 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
I'm a disability and health journo focusing on (among other things) gynae health. Trans men and non-binary people are least likely to get smears and this will discourage them further. Thread
TransActual's 2021 Trans Lives Survey showed that 71% of trans men and 83% of nonbinary people in the U.K. said that they had been discriminated against when accessing healthcare services.
Sep 26, 2023 • 11 tweets • 2 min read
Today the Govt launches their Ask, Don't Assume campaign, which is about changing attitudes to disabled people
In typical gov style, this is fluffy PR diverting away from the real issues disabled people face and who created the narrative 🧵
The campaign claims the aim is "empowering the public to become allies to disabled people" but there are no actions or resources that tell people how to do this.
By sharing personal stories instead, it encourages the public to continue asking disabled people invasive questions
Jun 2, 2023 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
The telegraph has created a calculator that lets people calculate how much disabled people who can't work are "Costing" them. This is deliberately inciting hatred against disabled people. I urge you all to report this to IPSO if you can ipso.co.uk/complain/compl…
Disabled people deserve to live despite how much they "contribute", this is fascist ideology that would lead to our deaths.
Feb 2, 2023 • 8 tweets • 3 min read
IPSO told me that they have no remit to create guidelines on reporting disability b/c nobody complains. On the same day, Daily Mail wrote "why are so many adults being diagnosed with ADHD now?" Here's how to complain: (thread) #MediaAbleismWatch
Go to this link: ipso.co.uk/complain/compl……
In section 1: click material published in print and/ or online click online and write Daily Mail #MediaAbleismWatch
Feb 2, 2023 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
I mentioned earlier in the week that IPSO are't willing to create guidelines on reporting disability because they don't get complaints. They asked me to provide 5 recent examples of media ableism so please drop examples below #DisabilityTwitter#NEISVoid
Ideally it must be from an IPSO participating publication. However this includes Daily Mail, The Sun, The Telegraph, The Times, The Mirror, Metro and more. ipso.co.uk/arbitration/pa…
Jan 31, 2023 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Honestly could cry at how disappointing and infuriating my meeting was today. I’m trying so hard to change how disabled people are written about in media but when the ruling bodies just don’t want to do anything about it what am I supposed to do??
Basically lads IPSO told me today that there’s no remit for guidance on reporting disability because they don’t get enough complaints. I know how tiring it is but I need you all to start reporting ableism in the media to them.
Jan 31, 2023 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
This week's @DailyMirror column is inspired by the AP "people with frenchness" debacle and how it was an opportunity to highlight why we need to stop being vague when talking about disabled people mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/i…
It features one of my favourite professional photos of me ever where you can practically HEAR the mackem and me suitably ranting about "people with a disability".
👇👇👇 mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/i…
Oct 24, 2022 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
Rishi has got as much blood on his hands as Johnson over Covid & cost of living. 🧵
He encouraged healthy people to eat out to help out in September 20, denied thousands of businesses grants and placed the blame on us for not using them during a pandemic.
Sunak ended furlough far too soon. Forcing people to choose making a living over their healths. Because after all some of us aren’t twice as rich as the king.
Sep 6, 2022 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
You can criticise Therese Coffey without bringing her appearance or weight into it. I mean, let’s talk about the fact she just REFUSED to release reports into how many disabled people the DWP killed for starters.
When asked what the DWP was going to do to protect vulnerable people on benefits Therese Coffey said “ We do not have a statutory duty of safeguarding, though of course that we do care about our claimants.”
Apr 21, 2022 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
I wanted to write a thread about the gatekeeping I see of who can call themselves "disabled". So here we are.
As the editor of a publication for disabled people, I'd say one of the top sort of messages I get is "I don't know if my illness/ condition counts but..." and my reply is always "yes it does count!" Who am I or anyone to gatekeep what makes anyone else disabled
Apr 19, 2022 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
I’ve got a wonderful Granda update- he’s been started on insulin and shown massive improvement. He’s even up and about, walking unaided and, of course, flirting with the nurses 🙈 Thank you all so much for your well wishes
Granda’s being kept in another day or so just to keep fighting the infection and stabilise his diabetes. Me granny said he’s made an amazing improvement in the last couple of days though.
Dec 27, 2021 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
Disabled people have been shouting screaming begging you to listen to us about the do not resuscitate orders since the start of the pandemic. You don't all get to be shocked and outraged and ask "how was this allowed to happen??!" now when we've neededyour help for almost 2 years
I started a whole goddamn publication because I was sick of being told stories of disabled people fighting to survive from a virus that was killing the most vulnerable wasn't "newsworthy". Disabled people have been fighting whilst collectively grieving for almost 2 years
Jun 6, 2021 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Absolutely sick of GC feminists using abused women as excuses to harass trans people. You do not speak for me.
Frankly I think it's absolutely disgusting that @guardian/@ObserverUK have published such damaging rhetoric against trans people under the guise of protecting abused women. In pride month of all months.
Apr 24, 2021 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
I'm done with being told that the biggest fucking priority in this pandemic is "getting back to normal" when nothing is being done to save disabled people
It appears that I have chosen violence 😂
Nov 30, 2020 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
Back in January one of my disabled pals made the difficult choice to quit her degree because her university wouldn't allow her to study from home. Then, two months later she watched the accommodations made so easily for thousands of others when lockdown happened.
The reason I'm freelance is because I was repeatedly told I couldn't do a typically office based job from home and now everyone's at home and nobody wants to commission me to write about the ableism involved 🙄
