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http://www.theaccessibilitynp.com/

The Accessibility NP, 313 E Broad Street, Richmond, VA (2026)

04/29/2026

It’s Spirit Week at my daughter’s school, and today was Wear Red Instead ❤️

Moments like this open the door for important conversations.

For years, autism has been represented by blue and the puzzle piece. Many autistic individuals have shared that these symbols don’t reflect how they see themselves. The puzzle piece can suggest something is missing, and “light it up blue” has often been tied to messaging that centers fear or a need for a cure rather than acceptance and access.

That’s why many have shifted to red.

Red represents visibility.
Red represents respect.
Red represents listening to autistic voices and centering lived experience.

At the same time, this isn’t one-size-fits-all. Some autistic individuals do connect with the puzzle piece—and that preference deserves to be respected.

That’s the heart of this conversation.

Listening without assumption.
Respecting individual choice.
Creating space for people to define what represents them.

Autistic voices matter—especially in the decisions that impact their daily lives.

AccessibilityForAll

04/01/2026

Autism awareness has never been the problem. People have known. Schools have known. Systems have known. Families have been speaking, advocating, and showing what access really looks like every single day.

Awareness without action leaves barriers exactly where they are.

Acceptance is where the shift begins. Acceptance means autistic individuals are not expected to shrink themselves to fit environments that were never designed with them in mind. It means recognizing communication in all its forms, including AAC, scripts, gestures, and silence. It means understanding that sensory needs are not preferences, they are access needs.

Accommodation is where acceptance becomes real.

Accommodation looks like classrooms that are designed for regulation, not compliance. It looks like workplaces that value different ways of thinking, processing, and communicating. It looks like giving time, space, tools, and respect without requiring someone to “earn” it first.

For too long, autistic individuals have been expected to adapt to systems that refuse to adapt to them. That is not inclusion. That is endurance.

Autism Acceptance Month is not about learning something new. It is about doing something different.

It is about listening without correcting.
It is about supporting without limiting.
It is about removing barriers instead of asking someone to push through them.

Autistic individuals do not need to be changed. The environments around them do.

Awareness was the beginning.
Acceptance is the responsibility.
Accommodation is the action that makes access real.

03/09/2026

Trigger Warning: Fatal shooting

When a disabled individual is in crisis, the response they receive can determine everything that happens next.

Recently, an autistic man lost his life after calling 911 during a mental health crisis. His family was seeking help. Responders arrived, and he was shot and killed.

Stories like this shake the disability community deeply. Not because they are rare, but because many families quietly carry the same fear.

Not fear of our loved ones.
Fear for them.

Many autistic and disabled individuals process information differently, especially in moments of stress. Loud voices, multiple commands, flashing lights, and unfamiliar environments can create overwhelming sensory input. Processing spoken directions may take longer. Communication may look different.

What might appear to be defiance or noncompliance can actually be confusion, fear, delayed processing, or an inability to respond quickly under pressure.

This is why crisis training for first responders is so important.

Officers are often the first responders to situations involving mental health or behavioral crises. When they are equipped with training that helps them recognize neurodivergence, understand communication differences, and use de-escalation strategies, outcomes can look very different.

Programs like Crisis Intervention Team training are showing that when law enforcement partners with mental health professionals and disability advocates, communities become safer for everyone.

Families should never have to wonder whether calling for help could put their loved one at risk.

Public safety must include disabled individuals.

This conversation may be uncomfortable, but it is necessary. Awareness, training, and collaboration can save lives.

02/28/2026

Today is Rare Disease Day.

My daughter has a MED12 chromosome mutation. She remains the only female in the United States identified with her specific variant. Every year genetics re-runs her variant through updated national databases to see if any other females have been identified. So far, she’s still the only one.

Her rare diagnosis doesn’t stand alone. It intersects with autism, cerebral palsy, and epilepsy. It shows up in therapy rooms, school meetings, neurology appointments, and in the quiet planning most people never see.

There are more than 7,000 identified rare diseases. Over 300 million people worldwide are living with one. In the United States, about 1 in 10 individuals are affected. Most rare diseases are genetic, and many begin in childhood.

Rare means there isn’t always research to lean on. It means building a path while walking it. It means advocating in rooms where you are often educating at the same time.

On Rare Disease Day, I’m honoring individuals living with rare diagnoses and the families navigating the complexity alongside them.

Her diagnosis is part of her story, but it has never defined her.

She has always been the headline. 🩷

*Stats sourced from National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) and Global Genes.

02/15/2026

Rideshare was supposed to make life easier. Tap the app. Get a ride. Go where you need to go.

For many people, that’s exactly what it does.

But for disabled riders, it’s often more complicated — and it shouldn’t be.

The Americans with Disabilities Act didn’t disappear when transportation moved from a taxi stand to a smartphone. Under Title III of the ADA, private companies that serve the public have a legal obligation to provide equal access. That includes rideshare platforms.

In real life, that means drivers cannot refuse a ride because someone has a service dog. Allergies or fear do not override federal civil rights law. It means reasonable modifications must be made when needed — like allowing a disabled rider to sit in the front seat because of a mobility device or balance needs, unless there’s a true safety concern. It also means discriminatory fees are not permitted. Cleaning charges tied to a service animal or cancellation fees after denying a rider conflict with ADA protections.

Access isn’t just about having the right policy written somewhere in the app. It’s about what happens day to day. If disabled riders experience repeated denials or unreliable service, that raises serious questions about equity in practice.

That’s why the recent lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice against Uber Technologies Inc. matters. It brings forward a broader conversation about how civil rights protections apply in modern, tech-driven transportation systems.

In the 60s and 70s, disabled activists fought for accessible buses because exclusion from transportation meant exclusion from society. That advocacy led to the ADA in 1990. The principle hasn’t changed: if a service moves the public, it must move everyone equitably.

The format of transportation has evolved. The law has not.

Accessibility is not an upgrade.
It is a civil right.

02/13/2026

This week a well known actor passed away, and an online fundraiser was created to support his family after medical expenses created overwhelming financial strain. Even with a successful career and support from high profile donors, his family is focused on staying in their home and keeping life as stable as possible for their children during an unimaginable time.

Stories like this feel personal in the disability community. If someone with resources and connections can still be shaken by the cost of medical care, it raises a hard question. How are everyday families managing chronic illness, cancer, disability, and long term care? Cancer and many other serious conditions are recognized as disabilities when they impact daily life, yet families facing them are still at risk of financial instability.

So many families raising disabled children or supporting disabled adults live in a constant balancing act. Insurance does not always mean coverage. Therapies get denied. Equipment is expensive. Hospital stays and specialist visits pile up. Even families who plan carefully can end up staring at bills that look more like a second mortgage. The emotional weight is already heavy. The financial pressure adds another layer that is hard to explain unless you have lived it.

For a lot of families in our community, fundraising is not about extras. It is about survival. It is about protecting housing, access to care, and the routines that children depend on. Most families face this quietly, without celebrity networks or campaigns that reach millions of people.

This is not an abstract conversation. It is everyday life for many disabled individuals and their families. Behind every fundraiser is a family doing everything they can to hold things together. Their experiences are real, and they deserve to be part of how we talk about care, stability, and what support actually looks like.

01/23/2026

Snowstorms don’t land the same for everyone. When accessibility and assistive technology are part of everyday life, winter weather can turn small things into big barriers if there isn’t a plan in place.

One of the biggest things to think about is power. Snow and outages often go hand in hand, and many supports depend on being charged. AAC devices, phones, tablets, mobility equipment, and backup batteries are easier to manage when they’re ready before the storm hits. It also helps to think through communication if Wi-Fi goes down. Low-tech options can matter more than people expect.

Access outside matters too. Clearing paths early, especially ramps, doorways, and routes used by wheelchairs or walkers, can reduce risk. Ice builds quickly and creates safety concerns for disabled individuals and caregivers alike. Keeping salt or grit near entrances helps maintain access when conditions change fast.

Snow days also disrupt routines. Services may be canceled, schedules shift, and staffing can change. Talking through possible changes ahead of time, using visuals, or setting expectations can ease stress when the day doesn’t look the way it normally does.

It’s also a good time to double-check medications and medical supplies. Make sure there’s enough on hand for several days and that anything requiring power or refrigeration has a backup plan.

Snow isn’t just an inconvenience. It amplifies existing barriers. Planning ahead supports safety, communication, and access when it matters most.

01/18/2026

The new autistic Barbie has people talking, and honestly that part alone matters. Toys teach long before kids can explain what they’ve learned. For decades those shelves quietly told disabled kids they weren’t part of the everyday story. There were plenty of dolls, just none that looked, moved, or lived like them.

When disability showed up at all, it was usually wrong. Pity. Stereotypes. A single story pretending to speak for millions of real lives.

So now a mainstream brand puts out an autistic doll and the reaction is split. Some families see a child finally finding a reflection of themselves in the toy aisle. Others see a design that feels too narrow for a community that is incredibly diverse in how we communicate, stim, move through the world, and need support. Both things can be true at the same time.

Representation has never arrived perfect. The first wheelchair on TV wasn’t perfect. The first disabled character in a book wasn’t perfect. But those moments cracked open doors that had been closed for generations. Once the door opens, the community gets to push for better, louder, and more honest.

That’s the real question here. Who is shaping the image. Who is leading the story. Is this a one-time gesture or the start of disabled people having real power in how we’re represented.

One doll can’t hold the whole autistic experience. But one doll can start conversations in classrooms and living rooms that never happened before. It can tell a disabled child, you belong in play, in imagination, in ordinary life.

What comes next matters more than the launch. More autistic creators. More varied stories. More products built with disabled people at the center, not on the sidelines.

Representation isn’t a box to check. It’s a promise to keep doing better.

01/13/2026

For a long time, I thought self-care was something you did after everything was done. After the work, after the caregiving, after the emails, after the responsibilities, after everyone else was taken care of.

But that version of self-care only shows up when you’re already depleted.

Lately, self-care has looked different.

It has looked like saying no earlier than feels polite.
It has looked like canceling things I could technically push through.
It has looked like admitting that something is heavy before it becomes unbearable.

It has looked like asking for help.

Not because I failed.
Not because I wasn’t capable.
But because I’m human.

Because carrying everything alone isn’t strength, it’s isolation.
Because burnout isn’t a badge of honor.
Because constantly being the strong one comes at a cost.

There is nothing weak about needing support.
There is nothing shameful about reaching out.
There is nothing wrong with saying, “This is more than I can hold right now.”

Sometimes the bravest thing you can do is stop pretending you’re fine and start being honest about what you need.

If you’re in a season where you’re tired, stretched thin, or quietly overwhelmed, this is your reminder that you don’t have to wait until you fall apart to take care of yourself.

You’re allowed to say no.
You’re allowed to ask for help.
You’re allowed to receive it.

That counts as self-care, too.

01/02/2026

Stepping into 2026 with a softer heart and a clearer sense of what matters. Two days ago, I lost my husband — my partner, my person, my constant.

And I know so many of us are carrying something into this year. A loss. A transition. A diagnosis. A change we didn’t choose. A season that reshaped us.

So this year isn’t about perfection or pressure. It’s about presence. It’s about choosing love anyway. It’s about showing up for one another with more care, more patience, and more humanity.

I’m choosing to carry love forward — into my work, into my advocacy, into how I listen and how I hold space. I’m choosing to keep showing up for access, for dignity, and for belonging, even on the days when it’s hard.

Because this work is personal. Because people matter. Because love doesn’t end — it transforms into how we live.

Here’s to a year of gentleness, intention, and building a world that works better for everyone.

Happy New Year 🤍

DisabledVoices Neurodiversity CareWork GriefAndGrowth LifeTransitions LoveCarriesOn ShowingUp GentleYear IntentionalLiving CommunityCare HumanFirst

11/29/2025

Trigger Warning ableist language

There’s something unsettling about hearing anyone in leadership use language that wouldn’t be acceptable from any child or in the workplace. When a Thanksgiving message used the phrase “the seriously r-word Governor,” it wasn’t just a rough comment. It was ableism and disrespect broadcast from a platform that reaches millions. And when the same voice has asked an individual if they are “a stupid person” or snapped “Quiet, piggy,” it becomes clear this isn’t random. It’s a pattern.

And yes, we should be outraged, because mindsets become decisions. Language shows belief, and belief becomes policy. If harmful words come this easily, what happens when protections, funding, or access for disabled individuals are on the table. How will this perspective show up in legislation, education, healthcare, or the systems families rely on. And what are we teaching our children when the adults with the biggest platforms model cruelty instead of care.

This is especially hard when many voted hoping to protect their families. The administration promised to fight “for your family and your future,” speaking about safety, stability, education, and values as the heart of the country. But how do those promises stand next to ableist language and public disrespect. How do you champion families while harming the very people who make up those families.

We can debate policies all day, but we can’t ignore the damage done when cruelty becomes a leadership style. Homes, classrooms, workplaces, and playgrounds all feel the ripple. Calling that out isn’t political — it’s about protecting the dignity of every person who’s ever had their worth questioned by a word that never should’ve been spoken.

Humanity should not depend on a title. And when leadership keeps using language that harms, despite knowing its impact, it’s on the rest of us to speak up and stand firm.

The Accessibility NP

04/29/2026

04/01/2026

03/09/2026

02/28/2026

02/15/2026

02/13/2026

01/23/2026

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11/29/2025

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