Crip News v.75
2,000+ subscribers! And all the usual: news, calls, and lots of events today.
today’s issue goes out to over 2,000 subscribers. [smiley face holding back tears emoji] wow, rad. thanks for being here.
-kevin
NEWS
Medicaid “Unwinding”
The federal Public Health Emergency declaration in the U.S. has prevented states from dropping people from Medicaid. That’s about to change. States are beginning the recertification process, which will result in loss of coverage for up to 18 million people.
In her first column for Teen Vogue, Alice Wong offers a detailed account of the renewal process and the stress it causes. “The administrative burden, access barriers, and emotional toll it takes to jump through these hoops for survival is cruel and counterproductive,” she writes. We witness in this process more examples of the enforced insecurities for disabled people living through the forever pandemic.
You can find the start of the renewal process and expected date of first terminations for each state here. For more, see Justice in Aging’s fact sheet on the unwinding process.
“Disability Justice”
Every so often, I report on some of the corners of the internet where I notice this term is appearing. Here are a few recent stories:
The National Education Association published an explainer about Disability Justice. It’s surprisingly and frustratingly devoid of citations - and needs a community-sourced fact check.
Sarah Jama is the new MPP (Member of Provincial Parliament) for Hamilton Centre, Canada. The Executive Director of the Disability Justice Network of Ontario beat her rival, a cop, and foregrounded disability politics in her campaign.
There are also 2 important events this week that look specifically at the legacy of “Disability Justice”:
On Thursday, March 30th at 5:39pm CT, on Zoom, Dustin Gibson and Talila “TL” Lewis will come together to reflect on the work they’ve been involved in to abolish policing, prisons and institutions with a specific focus on how ableism is a central feature. They’ll share thoughts on the co-optation of disability justice and offer interventions to strengthen applications of disability justice that adhere to anti-imperialist and abolitionist principles.
On Friday, March 31st, Brooklyn Law School’s Disability and Civil Rights Clinic and New York Law School’s Civil Rights and Disability Justice Clinic are collaborating on a hybrid (on Zoom and in person at New York Law School), two-day event: “Reclaiming Disability Justice.” Civil rights attorney and law professor Britney Wilson recently shared some thoughts on Twitter about addressing “the often mistaken conflation of disability rights & justice.”
Tax Prep
Need support? Check out the National Disability Institute’s resources and reference guides.
New Works
3Arts in Chicago has expanded a series of video conversations among Deaf and disabled artists in its Disability Culture Leadership Initiative, now featuring Genevieve Ramos, Grishma Shah, Anita Gonzalez, Justin Cooper, and Antonio Davis.
Also in Chicago, disability arts scholar Sandy Guttman and her husband Todd Garon have opened Curb Appeal, a new access-oriented gallery in their storefront apartment. Molly Joyce’s Perspective is the first show in the space, open through June.
Laura Poppiti details some workarounds for protecting disabled artists’ access to public benefits programs when receiving arts grants, including making direct purchases and contributing to ABLE accounts.
The first track from Stefana Fratila’s forthcoming double-LP I want to leave this Earth behind is out now. Resident Advisor recently featured the project’s focus on “crip futurity.”
In The Guardian, Jan Grue explores the limits of “sensitivity reading” for undoing the disabled villain trope.
New writing for Mad in America looks at Mad Studies and Mad Pride on the rise in Latin America and disability as a creative practice.
Stephanie Heit talks with Pulp about her 2022 hybrid memoir-poem Psych Murders.
Ryan Donovan’s Broadway Bodies: A Critical History of Conformity is out from Oxford University Press.
Davian DJ Robinson, Larissa Velez-Jackson, Sammie Murray, and Saira Barbaric are the 2023 AXIS Choreo-Lab Choreographer Fellows.
Kayla Hamilton and Garrett Zuercher are among the 2023-2024 Open Call artists from The Shed (NYC).
I served as a reader for this selection process and I am dismayed to learn that Jake Brush is the cohort. In December 2021, I witnessed Brush pantomime and mock disability as he entered a stage to the Black Eyed Peas song “Let’s Get R******d.” When I invited Brush to a conversation about this the following day, he refused with more ableist disrespect and blocked me on all platforms. Shame on Jake Brush and shame on any cultural institution that elevates his so-called “bombastic” artistry over the brilliant work of disabled artists whose economic security is threatened by the art world’s ongoing ruse that the pandemic is over.
In Other News…
Lawmakers in the UK have announced plans to get rid of the work capacity assessment (WCA) that has been used to deny disabled people life-saving supports.
Minnesota has introduced a bill to abolish subminimum wages for disabled workers.
The record for the longest lanyard in the world is how held by the Hidden Disabilities Lanyard, a giant version of a necklace “often worn by people who may need extra support” in the UK.
CALLS
Submissions are open for Issue #5 of SICK through April 20th. More here.
ACT UP is seeking signatures on an open letter to Simon & Schuster, who is set to publish a book of AIDS denialism. Sign here.
The Sick Artists Club is inviting submissions of artwork or writing in all forms, from people who have any experience of chronic illness or disability - mental or physical. Artworks can be submitted by emailing a clear photograph or other digital image with a brief artist statement to kjh@thingsIhavelearnedthehardway.com or follow the project on social media and post about your artwork with the hashtag #SickArtistsClub.
Anthropology of Motherhood (AoM) is seeking works of art and design focused on Deaf and Disability culture and its synchronicity with the culture of care and maternal feminism. Applications due March 31st. More here.
Radio LUMI is looking for Toronto-based artists to spotlight during the Luminato Festival’s Access Hub. More here.
EVENTS
Carmen Papalia in conversation with Andy Slater: Sounding Board
Monday, March 27th, 4 - 6pm CT, in-person at Gallery 400 (Chicago) and on Zoom
Join social practice artist Carmen Papalia and media artist Andy Slater as they discuss non-visual wayfinding, cross-sensory translation, and creative description. They'll talk about projects they've undertaken and they'll experiment with Papalia's piece, Acoustic Mobility Device 2.0, a detection cane that translates texture into sound.
Shaping Sound Worlds
Thursdays starting March 30th, bi-monthly, 6:30 - 8pm ET, on Zoom
This series of free online workshops + work shares offers joy-centered space for being in community, learning from each other, and cheering each other on as we tune into our creative power to shape and be shaped by sound. Designed for non-musicians and musicians alike and operates from a queer crip positionality that honors the principles of Disability Justice. Everyone is welcome, no prior musical experience needed. For more information about each individual session, check out our Participation Guide. For any questions and access requests, please contact Alexa Dexa at xxalexadexaxx@gmail.com.
No Diagram Anatomy: The Distal & Proximal Arm Complex
Saturday, April 1 & Saturday, April 8, 4 - 5:30pm ET, on Zoom
In this two-part workshop on the complete arm complex, we will use movement, touch, and conversation to not only cultivate scientific knowledge related to the shoulder, arm, and hand, but also initiate a higher degree of body awareness and neurological learning in this area. Evolutionary history and the marvels of human variation will also be addressed in this workshop.
Carbon Movements: Deaf-Centric Dance Theatre
March 28 - April 1, in-person in Edmonton
Carbon Movements is a groundbreaking new dance performance that includes a unique tactile and visual score. Starring Deaf artist Connor Yuzwenko-Martin, with vibrotactile design by David Bobier and Jim Ruxton of VibraFusion Lab and direction by professional choreographer Ainsley Hillyard.
Climate Grief as Hope: Disability Centered and Jewish Spiritual Wisdom for Times of Transition
Monday, March 27, 6 - 7:30pm ET, on Zoom
In this interactive conversation with Rabbi Elliot Kukla, we will draw from contemporary climate science, Jewish spirituality, and BIPOC Disability Justice thinkers to explore how mourning what was can help us imagine what can be, at the same time as nurturing deeper relationships for the future. Sponsored by Georgetown’s Disability Studies Program and the Disability Cultural Initiative.
A Conversation on Equitable, Ethical, & Accessible Casting Practices for Deaf Actors & Creatives
Tuesday, March 28th, 6:30 - 8pm ET
Casting Society presents a conversation surrounding ethics and accessibility for D/deaf/HoH actors and creative professionals.
Arts Access Summit
Tuesday, March 28, 11am - 6pm ET, online
Inclusive Arts Vermont presents a day of learning and conversation on accessibility in arts organizations. Participants will leave energized; with resources and actionable tips they can put into practice right away. KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Jen White-Johnson. Other topic sessions include: Administration and Employment with the New England ADA, Accessibility from the Artist's Perspective Panel Discussion, Inclusive Teaching Methods (an interactive session modeling art-making practices), Considerations for Accessible Programming, and Creative Networking.
From the Top Musicians with Disabilities Special Initiative
Airing March 27 – April 2, Youth-Led Virtual Forums Co-Hosted with Kennedy Center VSA April 3 - 4
This episode of From the Top will feature four talented young musicians, ages 14-26, who are disabled and/or neurodivergent. The NPR broadcast will also feature an interview with globally acclaimed violinist Itzhak Perlman, who performs while seated following a childhood bout with polio. Julia LaGrand will perform and guest-host alongside Host Peter Dugan.
Disabled hip-hop artist Irvo Otieno was 28 years old when his life was snuffed out at the Central State Hospital in Virginia on March 6th. 10 people have been charged with second-degree murder for his death. May his memory be a revolution.
After the United Nations Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture canceled a trip to Australia to inspect places of detention, disabled detainees are in a “spiral of hopelessness.”
The Canadian government has postponed a horrifying expansion of its Medical Assistance in Dying program that would have gone into effect this month.
Chicago-based Equip for Equality has released a special report: “Youth in Crisis: Stop Civil Rights Violations against Vulnerable Students with Disabilities at the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center and Its Alternative School.”
The Los Angeles Times recently covered a Disability Day of Mourning vigil.
The New York Civil Liberties Union is suing the NYPD over the release of public records about Mayor Eric Adams’ directive to involuntarily transport people suspected of having mental illness to hospitals for psychiatric evaluations.
Slight correction, the Hidden Disabilities Lanyard record was in England not Ireland