Welp. I tested positive for COVID-19 and my brain is exploding. I created an update video about how it all went down and my thoughts/feelings at this time, I’ll link it here and I’ll also be turning the transcript into a thread:

instagram.com/tv/CLAvtZzjvx0…

I don’t know how I will find it in me to forgive the selfishness of individuals this past year, how they threw disabled/vulnerable people under the bus for their own comforts; for vacations, restaurants, & gyms.

I am heart broken. This will define how I trust ppl moving forward.

https://twitter.com/cdcgov/status/1337511235361751041

When I can get back out into the world and start making new local friends my pre-requisite will be “If in response to the pandemic and a failure of a government, you voluntarily did things that put yourself and others at risk, then DONT TALK TO ME”

My new BumbleBFF bio.

CN: covid19

Feeling kinda frozen and nauseous that some relatives of mine are spouting "covid19 is a conspiracy" rhetoric and refusing to wear masks...

It makes me scared for them and it makes me feel like they don't care about me or people like me who are high risk. This has triggered my anxiety to the point of physical symptoms (dizzy, nauseous, tachycardia) especially that I have to take my sister to another doctors appointment today, in FLORIDA, where the numbers are climbing.

Saw yet another video of someone trying to use ADA to force their way into a store without a mask.

That's not how it works.

They can accommodate you by getting you what you need a different way but you can't endanger others if you cannot wear a mask. And this is assuming you have a disability that truly prohibits you from wearing a mask, they do exist, and we have to try to continue believing people when they say it VS distrust and hostility as an initial reaction.

It's funny how when I refer to how casually ableist language is used, a common response is, "Its not used that way, we don't mean it that way"

But it is extremely clear that you do.

That you will use ABLEISM to mock someone you don't like doesn't make it less ableist!! There are people witnessing you mock:

-needing two hands to hold a glass, maybe holding it from the bottom
-an affected or slow gait (walking ability)
-wearing diapers

...who also experience these things or know someone who does and now they know where you stand with THEM.

I would just like to understand the logic, ya know?

Why people came so hard for an accessibility medical need like plastic straws under the veil of environmentalism...

And they DO NOT come as hard for unnecessarily celebration waste such as balloons, glossy gift wrap, etc? Why did you work so hard, you effectively made the lives of disabled people HARDER, by advocating for plastic straw bans...

But when it comes to truly unnecessary and harmful waste, the crowd is simply just not even remotely as loud?

Do cops, like, not understand that their flashing red/blue lights are essentially strobe lights and (especially while stationary) are an epilepsy seizure trigger and at best just dangerously bright and distracting??

Or do they just not care? This cop car was parked at the end of a huge trick or treating block with flashing lights and like CONGRATS?!

You possibly just forced some parents to pick up their child covering their face and run back to the car when they just wanted to trick or treat with everyone else?!

THREAD:

Make Trick-Or-Treating Accessible! 🎃♿️❤️

#TheFutureisAccessible
#AccessIsLove

If you participate in handing out candy to Trick-or-Treaters, try these tips to be more accessible to trick-or-treaters with disabilities: Have a well-lit path to avoid accidents/injuries, particularly for those with low vision and mobility disabilities.

If there are bumps or raised sidewalks/pavement, try marking it with glow in the dark tape or paint to prevent falls.

THREAD:

I am really glad that Noah used his abled privilege and large platform to discuss disabled mimicry but I also have complicated feelings about it.

https://twitter.com/TheDailyShow/status/1084451499646832645

I've mentioned it before and this is a good example of how "I never thought of it like that" can feel dehumanizing.

I would really really really really appreciate if event flyers, invites, venue pages, etc. would tell you their accessibility information!

Is the venue wheelchair accessible??

Do you have sign language interpreters for performances??

Let me know ON the invite/flyer/website!! Three times in the past 30 days: I get invited to a large public event and I have to play full-on detective to try and figure out if it is accessible, if I am welcome in the space!

I have friends who CANNOT drink/eat without plastic bendable straws at restaurants.

-Their disabilities won't be apparent to you
-Asking them to carry their own demands cognitive ability to remember, physical ability to maintain and clean it
-Alternatives do not work

😡

https://twitter.com/annieelainey/status/1013985658992517120

This only makes me angry because it's being entertained as a dialogue at all. Disabled people said "We need this plastic item because it's the accessible option for us" that should be THE END.

Get out of the dialogue and go fight to ban birthday balloons or something!

I can't believe I probably have to make a video about goddamn plastic straws because ableds don't know how to be environmentally friendly without being assholes to disabled people and denying them access while telling them to "calm down and find other ways" If someone has already made this video, lemme know.

I cannot damn believe.

@coffeespoonie I am TIRED of people justifying denying rights to disabled people because abusers of the system exist, it makes NO sense!! #HR620 @coffeespoonie Change the system then? Have ADA inspectors the same as health inspectors for businesses.