TV’s Neurodivergent Casting Reckoning (The Hollywood Reporter, August 19th 2026) It's no secret that neurodiversity has a long history of being misrepresented in media, especially neurodivergent women or those of color. The issue only grows when neurotypical actors are cast to portray neurodiversity in a stereotypical way. Autistic actress Tal Anderson further discusses this issue; “When you lump all neurodivergent perspectives into the same story without showing the differen

Nation's Only Research Center for Parents with Disabilities Faces Closure After Federal Funding Opportunity Withdrawn (Brandeis, July 15th, 2026) The National Research Center for Parents with Disabilities is a Massachusetts-based research center focused on the rights, health, and well-being of disabled parents and their families. It also happens to be the only research center in the entire nation to focus on such. However, like many research centers in America, it has faced d

Why disabled people are turning to specialist dating apps (BBC, August 16th 2026) Online dating has certainly been on the rise in recent years, serving as a quick and easy way to potentially meet your soulmate. Unfortunately, disabled people have reported to have a harder time with dating apps like Tinder or Hinge, especially since most swipes and judgements are dependent on how a person looks on their profile. Because of this reoccurring issue, many disabled people are turni

Back-to-School: How families of students with disabilities prepare for the first day of school (KY3, August 13th 2026) With back-to-school time being just around the corner, children are beginning to prepare themselves for the upcoming school year. However, it can be a stressful and uncertain time for disabled students and their parents, especially if they are unsure if any proper accommodations will be offered to them (therapies, transportation, et cetera). The following art

Guest column: Why are people with disabilities required to repeatedly prove they qualify for Medicaid? (Inforum, August 12th 2026) Medicaid is one of the most used health insurances in the nation, being able to cover appointments, medications, equipment, transportation, and programs. Because of the wide range of coverage and services offered, it is a popular choice among those with disabilities who need lifelong medical care. Even so, author Matthew Beilke emphasizes the recu

New bill aims to give IL teachers, school staff more training on service animals (WCIA, July 25th 2026) In Rochester, Illinois, Senator Doris Turner hopes to protect service animals and their owners in school by proposing a law requiring service animal training for teachers and staff. This decision comes after hearing about the experiences of Julia Estes, a type-one diabetic student at Rochester High School who needs her service dog, Nikon, to alert if her blood sugar is eith

NYC Comedy Night Supports Children With Disabilities (Patch News, August 5th 2026) In New York City, The Smiles for Speech Comedy Benefit will be going for its fourth year within Union Square. The event features stand-up comedians raising money for resources and education for caregivers, developmental disabilities, and speech therapy in the United States and East Africa. Nonprofit founder Sandy Dorsey brings up how many resources are unavailable to those who can't afford it,

Why Some Americans Want to Be Disabled (The Dispatch, August 1st 2026) In this Dispatch article, author Jon Gingerich opens up about his experiences with losing his sight, and the dread that came with it. He explains that he eventually grew to accept himself overtime with the help and reassurance of other disabled individuals, but soon noticed another unexpected issue with how disabilities/disorders are socially seen. While Gingerich is grateful for how mainstream disabled pe

Elton John's Eyesight Struggles Force Him Into New Way of Writing Songs (AOL, July 30 2026) For the past five decades, Elton John has remained one of the most influential modern musicians, known for songs such as "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" and "Still Standing" as well as LGBTQ+ advocacy and AIDS prevention charities. However, while visiting France in 2024, the British pop star contracted a severe eye infection, resulting in complete blindness in his right eye and limited vi

Haitian TPS expiration raises fears over disability care in Massachusetts (MSN, WCVB Boston, July 29th 2026) Haitian immigrants have had a long history of having temporary protection status (or TPS), earliest being in 2010 when the Obama Administration approved it after a devastating earthquake in Haiti. However, things get iffy when politics change overtime, especially when President Donald Trump targeted Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio during his 2024 Presidential R

Education Department rescinds disparate impact rule, a key tool used to assess school discrimination (AP News, July 23rd 2026) On Thursday July 23rd, The Education Department announced that they will remove many disparate impact provisions from Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Disparate Impact Provisions are provisions that regulate treatments of groups in areas where one may have more advantage over the other (housing, employment, education, et cetera). According to Assista

Visually Impaired Cricket Team Feels Like Home (BBC, June 17th 2026) Willow Carr is a rising star in the world of Visually-Impaired Cricket (or simply ‘VI Cricket’). The 23-year-old is from Surrey, England in the village of Worplesdon, growing up with optic atrophy: a condition that caused her optic nerve to deteriorate. She began playing the sport as part of the Pirbright Cricket Club back in May, and has since been representing her county. In order to make cricket more acce

Trump’s actions signal a move toward institutionalizing people with disabilities, advocates warn (NPR, July 1st, 2026) Since the 1960s, there have been major moves and legislation made to protect disabled people from being institutionalized and to allow them to gain proper access to jobs and public education. This includes focusing more on accommodation and support rather than isolation or finding some kind of cure. However, many disability advocates warn that the administrat

Florida veteran pleads guilty to faking blindness, defrauding Veterans Administration (The Baltimore Sun, May 11th 2026) On May 11th 2026, Floridian Veteran Jerry Smith pleaded guilty in court after being caught faking his blindness to gain financial aid from the Veterans Administration. According to the US Attorney’s Office, Smith received a total of $244,953.70 in benefits. This is considered a serious case of fraud, and according to the Military Officers Association of Ame

Meet the Disabled Leaders Redefining Their Industries This Disability Pride Month (Forbes, July 1st 2026) Starting around the 2010’s, July has been coined by activists as Disability Pride Month, in honor of the Americans with Disabilities Act being signed into law 36 years ago. The legislation was historic as it expanded accessibility for buildings, jobs, and education after decades of hard work, including when wheelchair-using protestors crawled up the Capitol stairs in 1990

2026 Resolutions (National Federation of the Blind of New Jersey, July 9th 2026) The National Federation for the Blind of New Jersey (or NFB of NJ for short) is a non-profit organization in New Jersey dedicated to spread awareness, advocate rights, and give resources for those who are visually impaired. Once every year, the organization hosts a State Convention that gives out support and education for visually impaired people and numerous resources to those curious about help

FDA May Finally Make It Illegal to Shock Autistic Kids as Punishment, (Mother Jones, April 27, 2026) For decades, electric shock devices have been used against those with mental disabilities -such as schizophrenia or autism- to discipline over aggressive behavior or incorrect responses. The claimed justification was that it helped calm symptoms of intellectual and developmental issues with pattern recognition, but according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), this clai

Trump further guts Education Dept. by shifting oversight of special ed, civil rights, (NPR, June 16th, 2026) On Tuesday June 16th, The Trump Administration announced that it will rearrange two of the Department of Education’s responsibilities into two different federal agencies. The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) will move to the U.S Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the responsibilities of The Education Department’s Office fo

📍 Fully Remote | Unpaid / For Academic Credit | Visionary Solutions · 501(c)(3) · Virginia & D.C. About the Role We are producing a multimedia-enhanced audiobook designed to be fully accessible and engaging for people with vision loss. This is a meaningful, creative project with real community impact — and we need a talented intern to help bring it to life. What You'll Do Integrate ambient sound, music, and audio effects into audiobook chapters Create or source accessibl

📍 Fully Remote | Unpaid / For Academic Credit | Visionary Solutions · 501(c)(3) · Virginia & D.C. About the Role Help build and maintain the Visionary Solutions website — a critical tool for connecting people with vision loss to our services. You will ensure our site is visually polished, fully accessible, and optimized to reach the people who need us most. What You'll Do Design and update pages on our Wix website Ensure all content meets WCAG web accessibility standards