It's the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act; that was hard fought for by disabled activists. #ADA30 ♿✊ #TheFutureIsAccessible #DisabilityPrideMonth In the same way you can love and criticize something at once, you can honor/celebrate something and criticize its faults at once as well. It has been 30 YEARS but we have yet to see disability access as a true norm, as a social and structural priority, as an innate part of the collective consciousness. It is still more often than not, an afterthought. I am grateful for curb cuts, electric doors, ramps, elevators, captions, and audio descriptions. I am grateful for inclusive spaces and events that offer accessible and diverse ways of participating. And yet there is so much to be done. And yet disability access still needs to be gained on social levels and throughout the internet (a vital place for socialization, information, education, and entertainment). And yet accessibility can still be denied due to people with implicit biases and their power to do so. And yet our accessibility needs get called burdensome and taken away with good intentions for the masses (environmental, public health, etc) but erasure, dismissal, and active harm & endangerment of the community that needs them. And yet work place and educational accessibility has been constantly denied... though during the pandemic it was granted to everyone. Today I honor disabled activists. Today I mourn disabled lives lost. Today I sit with immense gratitude, pride, drive, determination, and motivation to do my part in this mission toward justice and equality. We are currently in the process of creating what the future looks like and #TheFutureIsAccessible #ADA30 #DisabilityPrideMonth [Image Description: Annie sits in their #WhillModelCi in their sunny green backyard with long black wavy hair and sunglasses, and a red halter with white text that reads, "The Future Is Accessible"] https://www.instagram.com/p/CDHmXP5jGif/?igshid=1gca65iubkii0
