Crip News v.72

Remembering Judy Heumann, new works, calls, and events.

Mar 06, 2023

A white, wheelchair-using woman with glasses and short cropped hair is speaking into a mic on a sunny day. She wears a coat with a large button that says SIGN 504. This is a black and white photo that has been cropped. Around her are halos of pink flowers, green petals, and cacti. — Photo by **Hollynn D'lil**

A key organizer of the 504 Sit-in. Co-Founder of Disabled in Action and the World Institute on Disability. Leader of the Independent Living Movement. Counselor at Camp Jened, star of Crip Camp. Teacher. Mentor. Legend.

Judy Heumann will be remembered as an icon of the Disability Rights Movement. She worked within and outside an array of public offices, using direct action protest to hold leaders to account but also joining elected officials to help advise and lead their administrations’ commitment to disability equality.

“The harassment, the lack of equity, that has been provided for disabled individuals […] is so intolerable that I can’t quite put it into words.”

As she spoke during the 1977 504 Sit-in to federal officials who refused to enforce anti-discrimination legislation that had already been passed into law, one official starts to nod along to what she is saying.

“And I would appreciate it if you would stop shaking your head in agreement when I don’t think you understand what we are talking about!”

Judy taught us what to do with our outrage. She taught us how to stay mad until we find the change we need. May her memory be for a blessing and a revolution.

NEWS

New Works

Two Black dancers, mid-performance. One is looking down, holding an arm outstretched behind. Another is just behind, looking over the other’s shoulder from a squat. — Picture: **Val Adamson**

Durban-based Flatfoot Dance Company and Nairobi and Siaya-based Dance Into Space have formed an exchange and partnership as part of the African Disability Dance Network.

Three Black friends sit in comfortable chairs and supportive recliners during an evening conversation. In the middle, a friend with narcolepsy falls asleep smiling while clouds drift behind her head. Her girlfriend sits to the left, holding her hand while talking to another sleepy friend across the table. This friend cups hot cocoa to their chest. Everyone is dressed in colorful t-shirts and there is cozy, warm light throughout the room. — **Jonathan Soren Davidson for Disabled And Here**

Sins Invalid has published their Black Disabled Futures Month Syllabus “as an opportunity to honor the legacies of Black disabled artists, thinkers, activists, and leaders and a tool for future work.”
A five-day international disability theatre festival, “A Gathering in a Better World," recently concluded at The Market Theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Caroline Ellen Liou interviews Panteha Abareshi in the Los Angeles Times.
Ryan J. Haddad was featured in the New York Times’ “Four Rising Theater Stars to Watch This Spring.”

Three vertical images are repeated to make a horizontal image. A white DJ is at the decks with a Subpac bass backack strapped to his chest under a leather harness.

Beck Buckle interviews Deaf DJs Troi Lee, KIKAZARU, and Robbie Wilde for Mix Mag.
Strategies for High Impact and What Would an HIV Doula Do? have published “Practicing Inclusion in the Time of COVID: A brief guide for gatherings and call for disability solidarity.”
The Mellon Foundation has awarded $1.5 million to “Enduring Conditions: A Disability, Illness, and Care Collaboratory,” a collaboration between UC Davis and Yale.

Electeds’ Plans

The Biden-Harris Administration released a fact sheet on its work to support Black Disabled Americans.
Brandon Johnson, one of the candidates in the run-off election for the Mayor of Chicago, has released a plan for Disability Justice.

In Other News…

It’s National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. Now might be a good time to check out the Autistic Self Advocacy Network’s “One Idea Per Line: A Guide to Making Easy Read Resources.” And check out Kari Turner’s recent explanatory post, “What is a Developmental Disability?” for Meriah Nichols’ blog.

A photo shows a woman holding up a megaphone at a protest. — **Laura Marston** speaks at a 2018 rally in Washington, D.C.

Last week, a major pharmaceutical company announced that it is lowering the cost of insulin by 70%. Instead of spotlighting corporate greed, let’s use the occasion to celebrate the activists who have been demanding an end to this unconscionable profiteering.
The Ford Foundation and Borealis Philanthropy have established The Disability x Tech Fund, which will advance the leadership of disabled people in tech innovation.

CALLS

cripple is coordinating a “Crip 4 Crip Grant Support” classifieds project.
Gibney (NYC) will offer fifty (50) hours of $10/hr rehearsal space between March 8 - June 30, 2023 to 13 disabled artists. Apply here.

EVENTS

Two floating hands hold an illustration of an eye, twinkling. There is a speckled background with newspaper clippings. Society of Disabled Oracles. Save the date. Zoom launch party. 3/20/23.

Society of Disabled Oracles Launch Party

Monday, March 20th, on Zoom (more details coming soon)

Save the date for a launch party to celebrate the Society of Disabled Oracles, “a living chorus and archive of disabled wisdom from the past, present and future.”

Art inSight: Celebrating Over 50 Years of Touch Tours at MoMA

Sunday, March 12th, 11am–5pm ET, in-person at MoMA

Bring your friends and family to explore the galleries together any time between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Discover artworks in our collection through touch, participate in guided verbal description tours, enjoy art making, and learn about MoMA’s new recorded audio descriptions. Then, at 3:00 p.m., watch a screening of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, with open audio description.

Alchemizing Fatigue: Access-Centered Magic for Transmuting Chronic Fatigue

4 Mondays, starting March 20th, 5:30-7:30pm PT, on Zoom

Fatigue can make it feel like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, and it doesn’t always take into account how much we already carry. Exhaustion is political, social, economic, medical, spiritual, and more. Who is allowed to be tired, who gets tired, and who gets chronically tired are not coincidences, with the most marginalized and vulnerable often being the most impacted.

Sensory Inclusion in the Arts and Cultural Sector: What Does It REALLY Mean

Wednesday, March 8th, 10-11:15am PT, on Zoom

People who identify as neurodivergent have a range of accommodations that work for them. Sensory friendly or relaxed performances are one strategy, but it is not the only one. A panel consisting of several arts organizations and experts in neurodiversity will discuss what sensory inclusion involves and how the arts sector can rethink planning and access for neurodiverse patrons.

Reporting for CNN, Morgan Stephens writes about the mess that is the Social Security Administration for newly disabled COVID long-haulers.