A Blog Post & Disability / Civil Rights News August 17, 2025
First up, a blog post by me:
Person First Language and the Ableism of the Current Administration
In the post I discus the reasons why person first language was created, the reasons why identity first language is growing in popularity, and that the current administration highlights all the reasons why person first language was wanted in the first place.
And some additional articles:
Report: Teen With Disabilities Detained by ICE Outside School in Los Angeles by Julia Métraux on August 13, 2025 at Mother Jones
"KTLA 5 reported that the boy was placed in handcuffs; he was only released after both school staff and the Los Angeles Police Department intervened. Latino students, who are more likely to be profiled by ICE, make up close to 75 percent of the student body at LAUSD."
Disabled passengers say they love riding trains. Will Amtrak love them back? by Joseph Shapiro on All Things Considered on July 17, 2025 and posted at NPR.com.
"A new federal report says Amtrak is losing out on a market of disabled people — who make up at least one out of seven Americans — because it's done a poor job of listening to their complaints. The report cites problems from difficulty boarding if the passenger uses a wheelchair, to being blocked from bathrooms and cafe cars, to unclear signage in stations and on trains."
(Editors Note: there is a more recent article on the same subject at the New York Times - Disabled Amtrak Riders See Progress, but Still 'Feel Like Freight' but it can only be read if you have a subscription).
House Spending Plans Would Increase Pollution, Harming Americans’ Health and Raising Energy Costs by Jamie Friedman on August 12, 2025 at the Center for American Progress
"Republican members of the House Appropriations Committee have been advancing several spending bills that would cut programs and services critical to reducing pollution. These deep cuts work against the best interests of the American people, putting their health and safety at risk and driving up their energy costs."
Anti-vaccine myths surged on social media ahead of the CDC shooting by David Ingram and Aria Bendix on August 15, 2025 at NBCNews
"In the weeks and months before the Aug. 8 shooting at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters in Atlanta, posts tying Covid vaccines to mental illness accrued millions of views online. Previously more tightly moderated, some of the world’s largest social media platforms now operate with far fewer guardrails, allowing vaccine misinformation to flourish."
'DC has a right to govern itself': Civil rights leaders denounce Trump's takeover move - by Deborah Barfield Berry on August 11, 2025 at USA TODAY
"Civil rights leaders blasted President Donald Trump's move to take over policing of the nation’s capital, calling it a "federal coup" and a power grab rooted in his longstanding clashes with leaders of a city with a large Black population."