The Calibri font is the latest government worker to be fired from the Trump administration for its association with diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
America is to going to hell in a hand basket, and the cracks in its foundation are glaring. As Linkin Park’s Burn It Downechoes, “We’re building it up to break it back down,” the cycle of destruction and collapse feels all too familiar. Institutions meant to uphold democracy are being dismantled, only to be rebuilt on even shakier ground. Power is concentrated in the hands of a few, while the vulnerable are left to fend for themselves. Like the song’s imagery of betrayal and downfall, the current political landscape mirrors a system that prioritizes control and greed over people. The flames of collapse are fanned, and the question remains—what will rise from the ashes?
Since the bill was signed into law, disabled Americans have benefited from a much wider array of protections in the workforce, in education, and in the ability to access public places and private spaces open to the public, such as stores and restaurants. But in a world where disability rights victories, and disabled people themselves, are being attacked by anti-DEI activists who have President Donald Trump’s ear, disability civil rights feel a little more fragile. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, another essential and wide-ranging item of civil rights legislation, is also in peril, most notably through a lawsuit filed by 17 Republican state attorneys general and led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, as my colleague Sarah Szilagy reported in October.
A 2023 Pew Research survey found that about 80% of women married to men in the U.S. take their husband’s last name. Under the SAVE Act, if their voter registration name differs from the name on their birth certificate or passport, they may need to show additional documents.
If the SAVE Act were to become law, Bedekovics said married women who have changed their names should obtain certified copies of all marriage certificates, locate their birth certificates, and keep any change-of-name documentation on hand for any updates to their voter registration.
President Trump’s suggestion last month that the tragic Potomac air crash was somehow the fault of disabled federal air traffic controllers was appalling—but it should have come as no surprise. Trump’s contempt for people with disabilities has been well documented, and it’s that animus, combined with the accelerating MAGA assault on diversity throughout the United States, that has disability rights advocates preparing to defend decades worth of hard-won protections.
One month into his presidency, Trump has unleashed a government-wide attack on people with disabilities, from anti-diversity executive orders to proposed special-education rollbacks to threats to slash programs like Medicaid that are lifelines for disabled people across the country. If successful, these actions could have catastrophic consequences for millions of Americans, according to disability rights experts.
While the primary focus is on race- and sex-based affirmative action, the Order lumps together “DEI” and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (“DEIA”) efforts. So, disability inclusion efforts may now be under scrutiny as well.
I am amusing myself with watching the panic some people express over Elon Musk’s cleanup of Twitter.
Yesterday 3,700 of its 7,500 workers were fired. That is not good, but the company was losing money and making money is at the core of the capitalist game.
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