Accessibility and Design

Australia

Guide Dogs campaign urges businesses to make dining out more accessible. (Feb, ABC News)

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Assistive Technology

Kenya

Unlocking potential: How assistive technology is transforming lives in Kenya. (2024, ATscale)

Palestine

Jordanian field hospital in southern Gaza provides prosthetics to 333 amputees. (Feb, The Jordan Times)

United Kingdom

The Value of a Wheelchair the importance of getting the right wheelchair and the lengthy or stressful processes to get them. (Video documentary, Feb, Revealing Reality)

United States

Elon Musk put a chip in this paralysed man’s brain. Now he can move things with his mind. Should we be amazed - or terrified? A profile of Noland Arbaugh. (Feb, the Guardian)

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Black Lives Matter and Racial justice

United States

Refusing to Be Made Whole. a book by Anna LaQuawn Hinton on Disability in Black Women's Writing. (Mar, University Press of Mississippi)

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COVID-19

Impact

United States

How Covid Remade Our America, Five Years Later. Living in the “branch of history it created”:

“America is a harsher place, more self-interested and nakedly transactional. We barely trust one another and are less sure that we owe our fellow Americans anything — let alone the rest of the world. The ascendant right is junking our institutions, and liberals have grown skeptical of them, too, though we can’t agree about how exactly they failed us. A growing health libertarianism insists on bodily autonomy, out of anger about pandemic mitigation and faith that personal behavior can ward off infection and death. And the greatest social and technological experiment of our time, artificial intelligence, promises a kind of exit from the realm of human flesh and microbes into one built by code.” (Mar, NYT)

Response

International News

Pandemics, polycrises, or life-long barriers: What the disability movement knows about thriving through challenges:

“A handful of months into the pandemic, many disability activists found themselves in a familiar place: they bore the heavy burden of navigating additional barriers while also being the only ones calling for responses that responded to the needs and rights of persons with disabilities. This was particularly true for women with disabilities, who far too often have the role of primary caregiver added to their list of responsibilities.” (Mar, Alliance)

Living with COVID-19

United Kingdom

‘I don’t feel part of society’: how Covid is still taking its toll five years on. Profiles of six people still grieving, or facing long covid. (Mar, the Guardian)

United States

Half a decade of Long COVID.

“Looking back on half a decade, there have been numerous milestones in Long COVID research, advocacy, and greater societal awareness, many led by people with the disease. There has also been, and continues to be, a lot of loss. There have been more than 25 million global excess deaths from COVID-19, and more than 400 million people are affected by Long COVID, which can be fatal.” (Mar, The Sick Times)

How to Be Disabled in a Pandemic A chronicle of ableism and disability activism in New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Feb, NYU Press)

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Civil Society and Community

International News

Activists From Strength: What You Need to Know to Be a Disability and Gender-Inclusive Funder:

“In a diverse range of countries from the Middle East, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe, organizations led by women and gender-diverse people–with and without disabilities– and individual advocates are transforming traditional patterns of activism for disability rights. They actively seek to advance rights at the intersection of gender and disability. However, despite the transformative nature of their work, organizations and activists working at the intersection of gender and disability still struggle to secure the financial resources and other forms of support they need to sustain their work.” (Mar, Women Enabled International)

Pandemics, polycrises, or life-long barriers: What the disability movement knows about thriving through challenges:

“A handful of months into the pandemic, many disability activists found themselves in a familiar place: they bore the heavy burden of navigating additional barriers while also being the only ones calling for responses that responded to the needs and rights of persons with disabilities. This was particularly true for women with disabilities, who far too often have the role of primary caregiver added to their list of responsibilities.” (Mar, Alliance)

Nigeria

From Isolation to Advocacy. Nigeria’s DeafBlind Community Organizes for Change. (Mar, Disability Justice Project)

Russia

Russia must immediately drop charges against 85-year-old human rights defender Mark Kuperman, who has a disability and uses a wheelchair.
(Feb, OHCHR)

Ukraine

Championing change: Profile of Valentyna Dobrydina. (Feb, Global Voices)

United States

LGBTQ+ and Disability Rights Organizations Are Resisting Trump’s Nonprofit Crackdown. (Mar, NPQ)

How the Disability Community Can Fight Back in 2025: Calls for collaboration around litigation, narrative building and building partnerships. (Mar, Center for American Progress)

No Decision Without Us An engaging, well-produced awareness video: “I want to be where the decision is made”. (Mar, CoorDown)

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Climate Crisis and Environment

International News

A systematic analysis of disability inclusion in domestic climate policies.

“We provide the first systematic analysis of whether, how, and to what extent people with disabilities and their human rights are included in two subsets of climate policies adopted by 195 parties to the Paris Agreement. We found that only 41 parties mention people with disabilities in their nationally determined contributions (NDCs), whereas only 75 do so in their adaptation policies. Moreover, these references are rarely accompanied by concrete measures to include people with disabilities, their rights, or their knowledge in climate decision-making.” (Mar, npj Climate Action)

New Zealand

Climate Change & Disability - Raven Cretney in Aotearoa New Zealand. A scoping project identifying key areas for future research and policy work. (Jan, Raven Cretney)

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Communication and Language

Sign Languages

Europe

Where Can I Sign My Language?: A Systematic Literature Review (2000–2019) of Young People's Access to Sign Language Socialisation Spaces in the Nordic Countries:

“It appears that current legislation, as well as research, emphasises the individual right to learn sign language for deaf and hard-of-hearing children, and has overlooked the significance of facilitating and protecting sign language-based socialisation spaces as significant sites for sign language learning, participation and acquisition.” (2024, Disability Studies Quarterly)

Finland

Deaf People, Injustice and Reconciliation a book focussing on “injustices that have taken place to deaf people and the sign language community in Finland from 1900.” (2024, Routledge)

United States

American Sign Language interpreters union alleges poor working conditions, asks FCC to intervene: “They asked the FCC to protect worker conditions by regulating two Video Relay Service (VRS) companies.” (Mar, Texas Public Radio)

Braille

United States

Learning to Love the Feel of Words Review of the Braille Encyclopedia, Naomi Cohn's memoir. (Mar, Third Coast Review)

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Conflict and Peace

Israel-Palestine Conflict

Palestine

Israeli soldiers assault intellectually disabled man in West Bank raid. (Mar, Aljazeera)

Israeli Defense Forces close center for disabled children in Palestine. As part of enforced evacuation of an UNRWA-run camp. “The Centre was offering life-changing therapies on a weekly basis to around 65 children and their families.” (Mar, Zenit)

Israeli Authorities Block Health Care Workers from Entering Gaza.

“Israeli authorities denied an orthopedic surgeon entry into Gaza last week, preventing her from providing crucial treatment to children with disabilities.” (Feb, Human Rights Watch)

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Culture, Entertainment and Media

Overview

Australia

Deaf Indigenous Dance Group celebrates rhythm of life. (Feb, National Indigenous Times)

The Agency of Access Contemporary Disability Art & Institutional Critique, a book by Amanda Cachia:

“The Agency of Access examines how access can be employed as a methodology for curating art exhibitions using a multi-sensorial approach. Crip curator and art historian Amanda Cachia illustrates how bodies take in information and process stimuli, making the inequities in museums and galleries more transparent.” (2024, Temple University Press)

India

‘I focus on the person, not the disability’: the photographer on a mission to make India inclusive. (Mar, the Guardian)

Sweden

Disablised or Ablised?: Linguistic Categorisations of Dis/ability in Swedish Print Media Over Time:

“The study shows that the overall terms to name dis/ability and disablised people in Swedish have changed regularly, while the underlying concepts, structures and ways of categorisation regarding dis/ability remain the same. Dis/ability is shown to be understood along a medical-biological model as located in the individual. Ability is rarely mentioned. These results suggest that any attempts at changing mainstream society's conceptualisations of dis/ability need to involve more work than just replacing outdated or offensive words by new ones. The results also suggest a need for making tacit ableist norms explicit if they are to be challenged.” (2024, Disability Studies Quarterly)

United States

Refusing to Be Made Whole. a book by Anna LaQuawn Hinton on Disability in Black Women's Writing. (Mar, University Press of Mississippi)

TV and Film

Mexico

Lucca's World: the film that vindicates women caregivers and the right to a dignified life for those living with disabilities. (In Spanish, Jan, El País) See also a critical review on the Guardian.

New Zealand

Lights, camera, access: What it's like being an access coordinator. (Feb, D*List)

United States

Loudermilk and Disability Acceptance “a fairly crass comedy about a recovering alcoholic who leads a support group for people working on addiction recovery.” (Feb, Rolling with it)

Media

United States

How Wirecutter Approaches Accessibility. “We challenge our assumptions from the beginning”. (Feb, NYT)

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Data and Research

Canada

Barriers in online activities, 2024 for persons with disabilities or long-term conditions. (Feb, Statistics Canada)

New Zealand

Disability statistics: 2023. Findings from the Household Disability Survey 2023, a survey using census results to support the sample design and with 21,636 respondents. Findings include:

• “In 2023, 17 percent of people living in New Zealand households were disabled. This equated to 851,000 people, of whom 98,000 were children and 753,000 were adults.”
• “Māori and LGBTIQ+ populations had higher rates of disability, despite both groups being younger on average than the total population.”
• “3 out of 5 disabled people had unmet needs”. (Feb, Stats NZ)

United States

Workers with disabilities continue to benefit from expanded workplace flexibility, but are suffering from Trump’s attacks:

“In 2024, 22.7 percent of disabled people ages 16-64 were employed, a historic high that is nonetheless abysmally low compared to nondisabled people (65.5 percent). Disabled people were also only about 35 percent as likely to be in the labor force compared to nondisabled people, with disabled women – who are more likely than men to have a disability – even less likely to be in the labor force.” (Feb, National Partnership for Women & Families.)

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Digital Accessibility and Technology

Overview

Canada

Barriers in online activities, 2024 for persons with disabilities or long-term conditions. (Feb, Statistics Canada)

Artificial Intelligence

Australia

How AI and new technologies revolutionise my ability to work and study. (Feb, ABC News)

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Disaster Risk Reduction and Crisis Response

Nigeria

In northern Nigeria, floods impact disabled people most (Feb, PreventionWeb)

United States

Disability amid disaster: Impact of the LA fires on people with disabilities. (Feb, NBC News)

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Economics and Social Protection

Overview

Peru

Costs associated with disability in Peruvian households:

“The results of the quantitative component reveal that Peruvian households with members with disabilities face an extra cost equivalent to 15% more than the average monthly income needed to achieve well-being similar to that of households without members with disabilities. Furthermore, households with members with disabilities living in rural areas and those experiencing financial poverty are estimated to be the most affected by this cost (22.8% and 42.7%).” (Feb, Consejo Nacional para la Integración de la Persona con Discapacidad)

Social Protection

Indonesia

Indonesian govt ensures disability support despite budget cuts:

“Indonesia's Minister of Social Affairs, Saifullah Yusuf, on Friday assured that social assistance and therapy programs for individuals with disabilities will continue despite budget efficiency efforts.” (Feb, ANTARA News)

Inside Indonesia: Are employers inclusive towards differently abled workers? And government social protection initiatives. (Feb, People Matters)

New Zealand

'I can't survive on $55 a week': Benefit cut due to hospital stay. (Mar, 1News)

United Kingdom

Labour mollifies the rich, targets disabled people and claims moral justification. There isn’t any:

‘But it also evokes – and fuels – specific prejudices about disabled people that go far beyond the Labour party. The same arguments that equate “productivity” with a person’s value have long been used to portray those who can’t earn a wage due to disability as a burden on the working population. Every time you see a headline on “the cost of the benefits bill”, what you are really reading is “the cost of disabled people”.’ (Mar, the Guardian)

I know how to get sick and disabled people back to work:

“The reality is that disabled people are ready – indeed, eager – to educate and support the government in their wish to cut the welfare bill by boosting their employment opportunities. However, that support must be offered without coercion, and in a genuinely supportive and personalised manner.” (Mar, Independent)

IFS response to announced reforms to disability and incapacity benefits. “The reforms announced today to be implemented or consulted on represent a fundamental change to the way that the state supports people out-of-work.” (Mar, IFS)

The role of changing health in rising health-related benefit claims. There is evidence that mental health has worsened since the pandemic, but on physical health the evidence is less clear. And there are rising claims in people getting health-related benefits:

“Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant rise in the number of people getting health-related benefits. In England and Wales, 4 million 16- to 64-year-olds (1 in 10) now claim either disability or incapacity benefits, up from 2.8 million in 2019 (1 in 13).” (Mar, IFS)

Death of disabled woman failed by multiple agencies. “Had adult social care visited Laura’s home within a few days of the referral in October 2017, then Laura would be alive.” (Feb, Disability News Service)

United States

Supreme Court sides against veterans wanting stronger benefit of the doubt review in disability claims. (Mar, USA Today)

Uzbekistan

Analysis of the state system in Uzbekistan to promote an integrated approach in employment and welfare services delivery for persons with disabilities:

“the report identifies key challenges, such as the lack of coordination between social and employment services, and proposes four key intervention areas: targeted employment programs, comprehensive and well-coordinated programs, partnership between actors, and [Integrated Case Management] for persons with disabilities.” (2024, UNDP)

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Education and Childhood

Overview

International News

Effectiveness of interventions for improving educational outcomes for people with disabilities in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review. (Feb, Cambell Systematic Reviews)

United States

Trump admin resumes school disability rights probes after pause (Mar, USA Today)

How Trump’s gutting of the Education Department harms kids with disabilities. “Trump’s education policy threatens everything from speech therapy to wheelchair access.” (Mar, Vox)

Deaf students say they’re passing high school without basic math, reading skills. “Students in Santa Clara County Office of Education’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing program said they had a substitute teacher for two years who did not know sign language.” (Feb, NBC Bay Area)

Zimbabwe

Towards Inclusive Education in Zimbabwe: Perspectives and Practices, a book that aims “to provide a comprehensive review of the state of inclusive education in Zimbabwe since the adoption of the philosophy in 1994”. (Jan, SpringerLink)

Higher Education

United Kingdom

Living in Student Accommodation: Identifying and improving best practice to support students with accessibility requirements at the University of Leeds. (Feb, Oriana Campbell-Palmer)

United States

Trump’s war on DEI comes for programs helping autistic students find jobs in STEM. (Mar, Independent)

Hundreds of thousands of students with disabilities should be getting trained for work through pre-employment transition services — but aren't:

“The best program to help students with disabilities get jobs is so hidden, ‘It’s like a secret society’” (Feb, The Hechinger Report)

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Employment, Business and Work

Europe

EU Institutions failing its staff with disabilities, UN experts hear. (Mar, EDF)

Indonesia

Inside Indonesia: Are employers inclusive towards differently abled workers? And government social protection initiatives. (Feb, People Matters)

Netherlands

The final year of the disability employment agreement: Given a target of 125,000 jobs for disabled people, 88,000 were created. (In Dutch, Feb, NOS)

Ukraine

President of Ukraine signs Law No. 5344-d on employment of people with disabilities on employment of people with disabilities:

“The law expands employment opportunities for people with disabilities, including in public administration and local government.” (Feb, League of the Strong)

United Kingdom

Progress Through Transparency The case for mandatory disability employment and pay gap reporting. (Jan, Institute of Directors)

President Trump’s DEI orders: what do they mean for UK employers? Due to different legislation, “even if US legal boundaries are re-drawn, however, this does not necessarily impact UK DEI initiatives”. (Jan, Lewis Silkin)

United States

Workers with disabilities continue to benefit from expanded workplace flexibility, but are suffering from Trump’s attacks:

“In 2024, 22.7 percent of disabled people ages 16-64 were employed, a historic high that is nonetheless abysmally low compared to nondisabled people (65.5 percent). Disabled people were also only about 35 percent as likely to be in the labor force compared to nondisabled people, with disabled women – who are more likely than men to have a disability – even less likely to be in the labor force.” (Feb, National Partnership for Women & Families.)

The Transition to Competitive Integrated Employment: Perspectives on Phasing Out the Subminimum Wage. (Feb, New America)

Hundreds of thousands of students with disabilities should be getting trained for work through pre-employment transition services — but aren't:

“The best program to help students with disabilities get jobs is so hidden, ‘It’s like a secret society’” (Feb, The Hechinger Report)

Uzbekistan

Analysis of the state system in Uzbekistan to promote an integrated approach in employment and welfare services delivery for persons with disabilities:

“the report identifies key challenges, such as the lack of coordination between social and employment services, and proposes four key intervention areas: targeted employment programs, comprehensive and well-coordinated programs, partnership between actors, and [Integrated Case Management] for persons with disabilities.” (2024, UNDP)

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Gender Equality and Women with Disabilities

International News

Activists From Strength: What You Need to Know to Be a Disability and Gender-Inclusive Funder:

“In a diverse range of countries from the Middle East, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe, organizations led by women and gender-diverse people–with and without disabilities– and individual advocates are transforming traditional patterns of activism for disability rights. They actively seek to advance rights at the intersection of gender and disability. However, despite the transformative nature of their work, organizations and activists working at the intersection of gender and disability still struggle to secure the financial resources and other forms of support they need to sustain their work.” (Mar, Women Enabled International)

Africa

Building inclusion in the African Continent: DIWA’s decade of advocacy for women with disabilities. (Mar, IDA)

China

Gender and Disability in China: The Rise of Female-Led Disabled Persons’ Organisations (DPOs):

“Amid the growing disability-consciousness movement enabled by digitalisation, a new generation of female-led DPOs has been active and influential in raising disability awareness and organising communities in China. These female-led DPOs are initiated by Chinese disabled women who are based in major cities in China or living overseas. Many founders are highly educated and have been educated overseas. Their organisations aim to build communities (many specifically hope to empower disabled girls and women through targeted programming), share resources, and challenge disability and gender stigma from traditional male-led DPOs.” (Feb, Made in China Journal)

India

Accessibility advocate Anjlee Agarwal takes over PM Modi's X handle on Women's Day, calls for inclusivity. (Mar, Deccan Herald)

Namibia

Building Dreams Cecilia’s Entrepreneurial Journey. (Mar, Africa Albinism Network)

New Zealand

Disabled women on writing their own rulebook. (Mar, D*List)

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Health

International News

A closer look at Global Disability Summit health commitments (Mar, Impel Consultancy)

Investing in health justice: A report on funding in international aid. $263M worth of Development Financing for Health was disability-relevant in 2022:

“[Disability-relevant health funding] is growing at +16% per year between 2013–2022, but remains very limited in relative terms” (Feb, Missing Billion)

Telenursing on primary family caregivers and children with disabilities: a scoping review. (Jan, Frontiers in Pediatrics)

Chile

Healthcare access among people with and without disabilities: a cross-sectional analysis of the National Socioeconomic Survey of Chile. Persons with disabilities with more health needs but less likely to have an adult health check-up. (Apr, Public Health)

India

Legacies of ableism and the pursuit of disability justice in medicine:

“A culture of ableism in medicine persists due to the marginal inclusion of persons with disabilities in training and governance.” (Mar, The Lancet)

United Kingdom

‘I was devastated’: MP hopes her story will help improve maternity care, as report finds 44% higher risk of stillbirth for disabled women. (Mar, the Guardian)

United States

I’m terrified about what Medicaid cuts could mean for my life. Rachel Litchman: “I’m just one of millions at risk”. (Mar, Stat)

Venezuela

Social prejudices and misinformation prevent women with disabilities from accessing sexual health services. (In Spanish, Mar, Crónica Uno)

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History and Memorial

Overview

Finland

Deaf People, Injustice and Reconciliation a book focussing on “injustices that have taken place to deaf people and the sign language community in Finland from 1900.” (2024, Routledge)

India

Empire and Leprosy in Colonial Bengal a book review. (Feb, H-Net)

Champion of Disability Rights J.P. Gadkari dies at 94 (Feb, Star of Mysore)

Poland

Remembering Anna Drabarz, Polish disability champion. (Mar, EDF)

United Kingdom

Echoes of Care Deafness in Modern Britain, a book by Jaipreet Virdi:

“Echoes of Care describes how British ear specialists sought to reshape deafness as a curable affliction that they were uniquely able to treat. Navigating a medical landscape fraught with professional rivalries and public distrust about the likelihood of a cure, aurists extended their authority towards key sites of intervention – the census, school medical testing, public health, deaf schools – to argue for the necessity of specialist care.” (Mar, Combined Academic Publishers)

United States

Flo Fox, 79, dies. ‘She was legally blind and used a motorized wheelchair, but she managed to capture what she called the “ironic reality” of New York City on film.’ (Mar, NYT)

My Aunt Frieda Tankus Co-founding Vice President of Disabled In Action (DIA) (Feb, Notes on the Crises)

Remembering Judy Heumann

United States

Two Years On, Honoring Judy Heumann’s Legacy. People with Disabilities Fight Discrimination in the US. (Mar, Human Rights Watch)

Counterinsurgent Mother Figureheads a critical look at legacies, including Judy Heumann's. (Mar, Thank You For Your Feedback Loop)

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Humanitarian, Migrants and Refugees

Overview

International News

Gap analysis: Identifying Opportunities for Innovation in Disability and Older Age Inclusion:

“As the most frequently cited problem area during the consultations with people with disabilities and older people in humanitarian contexts, it was significant that affected people’s access to vital services should be at the centre of our reporting, followed by a deep dive into the other gaps that contribute to the exclusion that people with disabilities and older people still face within the humanitarian response.” (Mar, elrha)

Algeria

Stifled in precariousness persons with disabilities in the Tindouf refugee camps. (In French, Feb, Hespress)

Migration

International News

Assessing disability-responsiveness of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM):

“Despite the GCM having disability-responsive provisions within the document, these provisions appear to lack clarity, and this lack of clarity potentially impacts the lack of disability-responsive implementation.” (Feb, Disability Migration Network)

Mozambique

Portugal Opens New Visa Centre in Mozambique With Improved Accessibility. (Feb, Schengen News)

Philippines

The labour migration cycle: from the perspective of Filipinos with disabilities, featuring four case studies. (Jan, Disability Migration Network)

United States

'Journey is not yet over': Wooster woman shares barriers deaf immigrants face in citizenship process. (Mar, Ideastream Public Media)

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Independent Living and Deinstitutionalization

Overview

International News

UN report urges transformation of ‘unsustainable’ care and support systems:

“The various combinations of inequalities based on gender, disability and age prevalent in current care and support systems underscore the urgent need for a radical overhaul and for us all to join forces to support this transformation,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. (Mar, OHCHR)

Australia

A billion-dollar dirty secret: Homes hide ‘worst conditions you can imagine’:

“An investigation by this masthead can publish a cache of photographic and video evidence that documents alarming conditions inside Australia’s disability group homes, including serious injuries, squalid and unhygienic living conditions, safety hazards and delays in medical treatment.” (Mar, The Sydney Morning Herald)

Moldova

Landmark Ruling: European Court Finds Moldova failed to Protect Woman with Disabilities from Servitude:

“I.C.’s ordeal started when the director of the institution she had been living agreed to “give” her to a family, upon the family’s request, purportedly as part of Moldova’s deinstitutionalisation process. Once in the family’s home, she was forced to do household labour without any remuneration and under the threat of punishment if she refused. Subsequently, the landlord started to sexually abuse her, threatening that she had nowhere else to go and that she would not be believed if she dared to complain.” (Feb, Validity Foundation)

United States

Moving to a neurodiversity-affirming paradigm in the support system: Autistic professionals As paradigm change:

“The purpose of support provided to autistic people has been to teach autistic people to mimic non-autistic people. Normalization is still common; however, normalization can be harmful. Autistic self-advocates have asked professionals to stop normalization practices in schools, clinics, and agencies. They believe that we can support autistic people in new neurodiversity-affirming ways that respect human differences. [...] When autistic professionals are widely available, normalization will stop completely.” (Feb, Neurodiversity)

Conditions in Institutions

South Korea

Removing and Rehabilitating the Burangin: South Korean Newspapers' Vagrancy Discourse in Support of State Violence:

“The South Korean government used the burangin [vagrants] label to justify their massive wave of forced institutionalizations in the 1980s that resulted in countless abuses and many hundreds of deaths.” (2024, Disability Studies Quarterly)

United Kingdom

Autistic woman wrongly locked up in mental health hospital for 45 years. (Mar, BBC)

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Indigenous People and Minority Communities

Australia

Deaf Indigenous Dance Group celebrates rhythm of life. (Feb, National Indigenous Times)

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International Cooperation

Overview

International News

Governments must take decisive action on disability-inclusive international cooperation:

“Disability-inclusive programmes are now being lost. Budget cuts and changes of focus are leading to reduced funding for essential programmes and initiatives that support persons with disabilities, exacerbating existing inequalities, exclusion and marginalisation. Local organisations of persons with disabilities that are working towards locally owned and sustainable solutions are also in danger. Millions of persons with disabilities, who are among the most marginalised in society, may be further deprived of assistance from both their governments and international development and humanitarian organisations. This puts the gains made on disability inclusion in recent years at immediate risk.” (Mar, IDDC)

Disability Aid Disrupted. The DJP Community Responds to the Gutting of USAID. (Feb, Disability Justice Project)

US Foreign Policy and Funding Cuts: Summary of a discussion understanding the Impact on the Global Disability Community. (Feb, Disability Rights International and USICD)

United Kingdom

Disabled people are at the greatest risk from the UK government's decision to slash its aid budget by 40%:

“Last year, a parliamentary inquiry found that people with disabilities, especially women and girls, had borne the brunt of the previous government’s substantial cuts to UK aid. It is imperative that the current government learns from this and takes urgent action to protect the most vulnerable people from the worst impacts of their drastic decision to reduce this budget even further.” (Feb, Humanity & Inclusion)

United States

USAID Cuts Puts a Company That Helps Disabled Kids at Risk. In-depth interview with co-founder Valerie Karr:

“Politically they want us to fight. They want us to think that because I was working for a child with a disability in Nepal, that I was somehow robbing an opportunity from a child in New Hampshire with a disability. But we all care about kids with disabilities being able to have access. I know that a child in New Hampshire is just as important as a child in Nepal. But the money that is saved from USAID is not going to be given to New Hampshire children. They're cutting just as much out of education and Medicaid. This is not an either/or. This is not a red or blue. Everyone wants their kids to have an education and have opportunity.” (Mar, Time)

DRF Statement on U.S. Government’s Cuts to Investments in Disability Rights. (Mar, Disability Rights Fund)

Global Disability Summit

International News

Amman-Berlin Declaration for endorsement at the summit: seeking for “15 percent for the 15 percent” in international development programmes. (Mar, Global Disability Summit)

Inclusive climate justice at the Global Disability Summit 2025: An opportunity for change. (Mar, Impel Consultancy)

A closer look at Global Disability Summit health commitments (Mar, Impel Consultancy)

Europe

Calling on the EU to make bold commitments at the Global Disability Summit 2025. (Feb, EDF)

Nigeria

Nigeria Sets Strategic Agenda for the 2025 Global Disability Summit. (Feb, Federal Ministry of Information & National Orientation)

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Justice Systems and Legal Capacity

Ghana

Lawyers on the side of people with disabilities. (Short video, Feb, DW)

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Lived Experience and Opinion

Uganda

What Young People With Disabilities Have To Say On Discrimination. (Feb, The Deaf Guy)

United Kingdom

It's lonely to be the first On wishing there was a path to follow:

“Recently, I’ve been feeling a certain type of loneliness really acutely: the loneliness of not having a path to follow. Of having to always figure things out for the first time. Of not knowing if I can do a thing until I am just doing it and finding out. It’s scary and it’s exhausting and, yes, devastatingly isolating, no matter how many people around me are going above and beyond to be supportive.” (Mar, The View From Down Here)

United States

Learning to Love the Feel of Words Review of the Braille Encyclopedia, Naomi Cohn's memoir. (Mar, Third Coast Review)

The Harsh Truth About Disability Inclusion.

“My biggest fear is that I will never see true disability inclusion in my lifetime. Dare I say it—my biggest fear is that none of us will.” (Feb, Time)

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Mobility, Travel, Transport and Tourism

Air Travel

Europe

EDF recommendations on air transport of assistance dogs. (Mar, EDF)

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Policy and Rights

Overview

Europe

Evaluating the EU’s progress on disability rights: Implementing the UN Disability Rights Convention:

“While progress has been made by the EU since its first evaluation, for example with the adoption of the European Accessibility Act, the Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2021-2030 or the proposal for a European Disability Card, the overall purpose of the CRPD – to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities – is not yet fully realised.” (Mar, EDF)

Effective Participation in the International Monitoring of the UNCRPD? The Experience of the Disability Movement in Denmark, Hungary and France. Showing how Organisations of Persons with Disabilities “significantly influenced each country’s reporting process at the UN level”. (Jan, Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research)

France

20 years of the Disability Act: finally a rights-based approach? Interview with Céline Poulet, Secretary General of the Interministerial Committee on Disability. (In French, Feb, Handicap.fr)

French persons with disabilities rally: We are also the Republic! And sign an open letter defending the rights and citizenships of people with disabilities. (Feb, EDF)

United States

The Lawsuit Trying to End Disability Rights Law Section 504:

“As with much of U.S. politics right now, Texas v Becerra feels like a reckless attempt to pull us back to a former time. But there is one crucial difference between 1977 and 2025. More than one generation of disabled children has grown up under the protections Section 504 provides us. And while the politicians are still reciting the same script, our revolutionary predecessors gave us a new story. We are a valuable part of our communities, we belong here, and we’ve been shown how to fight.” (Feb, Time)

Disability Rights Watch

“This site is for aggregating breaking news and information about the state of disability rights and advocacy work in the United States, particularly the anti-DEIA attacks under the current administration, in an online space separate from the control of social media moguls.” (Jan, Disability Rights Watch)

Assisted Dying and Euthanasia

Netherlands

She’s Trying to Stay Ahead of Alzheimer’s. “In the Netherlands, doctors and dementia patients must negotiate a fine line: Assisted death for those without capacity is legal, but doctors won’t do it.” (Feb, New York Times)

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Politics and Elections

Canada

Mark Carney cabinet: Disability, gender equality advocates slam Carney's elimination of cabinet positions:

‘Khedr of Disability Without Poverty said people with disabilities are being “sidelined, due to the political crisis created by the U.S.A. and the imminent election.”’ (Mar, CTV News)

Costa Rica

The Movement of People with Disabilities condemns Rodrigo Chaves' statements and demands a public rectification, after he “minimized and made ridiculous” the situation of little people. (In Spanish, Feb, elmundo.cr)

Germany

Barriers to voting in person found at 55% of polling stations. (In German, Feb, Die Neue Norm)

Steps backward for disability policy? A reaction to the federal elections. (In German, Feb, Kobinet Nachrichten)

Ireland

Disability, Diversity and Identity in Ireland’s Local and European Elections 2024. (Jan, National Disability Authority)

United States

First 100 Days Threats to Racial and Disability Justice: A Guide. (Mar, Center for Racial & Disability Justice)

The Words Federal Agencies Are Discouraged From Using Under Trump: they include “accessible” and “disability”. (Mar, NYT)

How MAGA Scrambled Disability Politics “The right's crusade against DEI and trans people is threatening disabled Americans — and straining the coalition behind the Americans with Disabilities Act.” (Mar, Truthdig)

Trump’s war on DEI comes for programs helping autistic students find jobs in STEM. (Mar, Independent)

I’m terrified about what Medicaid cuts could mean for my life. Rachel Litchman: “I’m just one of millions at risk”. (Mar, Stat)

Usha Vance Makes Her First Solo Appearance for the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics World Winter Games:

“Hearing from these inspirational athletes about their journeys and dedication to their events was uplifting.” (Mar, PJ Media)

Usha Vance Seems to Have Been Trolled a Lot on First Solo Foreign Trip ‘The second lady must have been squirming in her seat as the speakers waxed on about values such as “inclusion.”’ (Mar, The Daily Beast)

How Trump’s gutting of the Education Department harms kids with disabilities. “Trump’s education policy threatens everything from speech therapy to wheelchair access.” (Mar, Vox)

Republican Cites Bible To Defend Hitting Disabled Students (Feb, Newsweek)

Judge largely blocks Trump executive orders ending support for DEI programs:

“Abelson found that the orders likely carry constitutional violations, including against free-speech rights.” (Feb, NPR)

DEI and Accessibility, Explained. A primer. (Feb, ACLU)

Mass layoffs leave federal employees with disabilities in the lurch (Feb, Stat)

Backlash leads Republican attorneys general to declare support for a landmark disability rights law. (Feb, AP)

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Relationships, Sex and Reproductive Rights

Egypt

Marriage for people with disabilities is an often forbidden right in Egypt. “Who would agree to marry me?” (Mar, Middle East Monitor)

United Kingdom

‘I was devastated’: MP hopes her story will help improve maternity care, as report finds 44% higher risk of stillbirth for disabled women. (Mar, the Guardian)

United States

Forced Sterilization of Disabled People Isn’t a Relic of the Past. “In a majority of states, eugenics laws still let doctors sterilize disabled patients against their will.” (Feb, Mother Jones)

Venezuela

Social prejudices and misinformation prevent women with disabilities from accessing sexual health services. (In Spanish, Mar, Crónica Uno)

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Sport and Paralympics

International News

FIFA Disability Football Toolkit

“Disability Football is the umbrella term referring to all formats of football available for disabled people and people with limited mobility to participate in – with or without special equipment or rule modifications.” (Jan, FIFA)

United Kingdom

Football Through Blind Eyes: The Game Beyond the Pitch: “Almost 90 years ago, Scotland became the birthplace of football commentary for blind fans”. (Mar, Blind Reporter on the Move)

United States

Usha Vance Makes Her First Solo Appearance for the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics World Winter Games:

“Hearing from these inspirational athletes about their journeys and dedication to their events was uplifting.” (Mar, PJ Media)

Usha Vance Seems to Have Been Trolled a Lot on First Solo Foreign Trip ‘The second lady must have been squirming in her seat as the speakers waxed on about values such as “inclusion.”’ (Mar, The Daily Beast)

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Violence and Harassment

United States

2025 Anti-Filicide Toolkit “In the past five years, over 542 people with disabilities have been murdered by their parents, relatives or caregivers.” (Jan, Autistic Self Advocacy Network)

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