Thoughts on the Leaked DRAFT of the Supreme Court Opinion Overturning Roe v. Wade

May 4, 2022
People with disabilities know what it means to be denied control over our own bodies. We have been told what is good for us and what we can and cannot do, including in the area of reproductive decision-making. Abortion bans continue this legacy. Abortion bans rob all people who can become pregnant of control over their bodies and the loss is even greater for disabled BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and low income people. We stand in solidarity with reproductive rights and justice advocates who fight against the overturning of Roe v. Wade. [...]

DREDF’s Comments Opposing HUD’s Anti-Transgender Shelter Rule

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September 22, 2020
The proposed rule change would create a significant barrier to transgender people seeking shelter, many of whom are people with disabilities. Access to safe and secure housing is sometimes all that stands between transgender people and deadly violence. And people with disabilities already face high rates of chronic homelessness, heightened difficulty securing accessible shelter, and heightened risk from the COVID-19 global pandemic. The proposed rule change needlessly reinforces harmful stereotypes and promotes discrimination. Making these changes at a time when the country is facing its greatest public health crisis in over a century is unthinkably cruel. We strongly recommend that HUD completely withdraw the proposed rule change and instead focus on addressing longstanding housing barriers. [...]

DREDF Condemns ICE’s Involuntary Sterilization of Immigrant Women

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The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund ("DREDF") is horrified by reports of coerced hysterectomies being performed on women in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") custody. On September 14, 2020, Project South filed an administrative complaint on behalf of immigrants detained at a Georgia detention center. Among other allegations of medical neglect, inadequate protection against COVID-19, and hazardous living conditions, the complaint alleges that women in the facility have been sterilized en masse without proper consent or medical necessity. Numerous women described being coerced into surgery and confused as to why the procedure was performed. Some described being yelled at by medical staff when they resisted the procedure. Many explained that they felt as if ICE was "experimenting with [their] bodies."

The Making of the ADA

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July 26, 2020
"The Making of the ADA - Memories From the 10th Anniversary of the signing of The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991" (2015)

On the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), we pause for a moment to take stock of the impact the ADA has had on our lives and our communities over the past quarter century and to recognize both the sung and the unsung heroes who worked tirelessly to make the dream of full civil rights for people with disabilities a legal reality.

In Celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

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July 26, 2020
Today is the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and as anniversaries do, it sparks us to remember the event, reflect on the actions that led to the event, look at where we are now, and contemplate our future. We are proud of the role DREDF played then and continues to play now.

DREDF Mourns the Passing of Civil Rights Leader Congressman John Lewis

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July 18, 2020
DREDF mourns the passing of civil rights leader Congressman John Lewis. We honor Mr. Lewis' long lifelong commitment to fighting injustice and working towards his vision for a Beloved Community.

Civil Rights Coalition Letter on Federal Policing Priorities

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June 2, 2020
400 Civil Rights organizations call on Congressional leadership to rectify the legacy of white supremacy and anti-black racism causing police violence against Black people across the United States.

On the Racist Killings of Black Americans

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May 29, 2020
We support the protesters in Minneapolis, Louisville, and across the country. The protests are a response to embedded institutionalized violence and hate, to the murder of George Floyd, and the failure to jail the police officers who killed him. They are a response to the elected racist president whose message to them is, "when the looting starts the shooting starts." And they are a call to action for all of us who refuse to be complicit in the betrayal of people of color during the period of moral crisis that now confronts us.

DREDF Honors the Life and Legacy of Representative Elijah Cummings

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October 17, 2019
The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund mourns the loss of Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD), who died at age 68 on October 17. Representative Cummings was an advocate for truth and justice from childhood until the end. Even on his last public appearance on September 11, 2019, he spoke out in support of disabled people at risk of deportation. Anyone familiar with Cummings' career should not be surprised.

DREDF Applauds District Court Rejection of Trump’s Public Charge

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October 11, 2019
On Friday, October 11, three separate federal district courts issued injunctions blocking the Trump Administration from implementing it's "public charge" rule, which threatened access to health care and public benefits for disabled citizens and non-citizens alike. DREDF, along with seventeen other disability rights organizations, filed amicus briefs in each of these cases, denouncing the Administration's rule as a discriminatory move that would create confusion and fear among disability and immigrant communities.