Category: Disability Rap

Vaccine Advocacy

On Monday’s show, we look at the movement here in California to grant people with significant disabilities priority access to the Covid-19 vaccine. Studies show that people with certain physical or developmental disabilities are up to three times more likely to die from Covid-19 as compared to the general population. And yet, it wasn’t until February 12 that Governor Newsom announced that people with significant disabilities and people who have underlying health conditions will be eligible to receive the vaccine in California. And this eligibility isn’t even effective until March 15. The announcement was made only after massive outcry and a massive mobilization campaign by people with disabilities in the state.

The show will air on Monday, March 1, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. Pacific Time on KVMR 89.5 FM Nevada City, which is available for streaming worldwide at kvmr.org. A recording of the show will be available on this page shortly following the broadcast and will also be available on the Disability Rap podcast. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Spotify!

Read More “Disability Rap – March 1, 2021”

A Valentine’s Day Special

It’s February, and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. So, we decided to mark this time of year by inviting Dan and Viola Dwyer on the show. They are a married couple, and we invited them on Disability Rap to talk about their marriage and common misconceptions about people with disabilities in relationships.

Read More “Disability Rap – February 1, 2021”

Hospitalization During the Coronavirus Pandemic

On today’s show, we look at one disabled person’s experience being admitted into a hospital here in California this fall. His name is John Pixley. He was admitted into the hospital for four days this past October for something totally unrelated to the coronavirus. Despite prior assurances to the contrary, the hospital refused to allow his personal care attendants to be with him in the hospital. The reason given was Covid-19. John describes the experience as “unbearable, almost torturous,” and “inhumane.”

Read More “Disability Rap – January 4, 2021”

Election Reflection

On today’s show, we look back at the November election, and how easily, or not, people with disabilities were able to cast our ballots here in California. We also look forward and hear some of the voting advocacy work in the pipeline for the coming year.

Read More “Disability Rap – December 7, 2020”

An Election Eve Special!

This Monday, November 2, on Disability Rap, an Election Eve Special! Rebecca Cokley of the Center for American Progress Action Fund talks to us about the disabled community’s increasing political power in the United States. She also tells us about her own journey growing up in a multigenerational disabled family. We then hear both Presidential campaigns’ speeches to the Disability & Election Virtual Summit, where they present their disability platforms. We end the show with an announcement about Medicare’s Open Enrollment period, which continues through December 7.

Read More “Disability Rap – November 2, 2020”

Special Broadcast: Nevada County’s Education Workshop for Voters with Disabilities

On today’s show, we bring you extended excerpts of Nevada County’s Education Workshop for Voters with Disabilities. This workshop took place via Zoom this past Friday, October 16, and was open to the public. The workshop was hosted by Jaime Melugin from the Nevada County Elections Department. She was joined by our co-host, Carl Sigmond, who is FREED’s Disability Community Advocate, Mark Fenicle, Chair of the FREED Board of Directors, and Paul Spencer and Jason Connor from Disability Rights California.

Special Broadcast: Part II of Disproportional Effects of the Coronavirus Pandemic on People with Disabilities

Last week, we brought you part one of our conversation on the disproportional effects the coronavirus pandemic is having on people with disabilities and older adults. This week, we are bringing you part two. We spoke with Monet Clark, a healer and eco-feminist performance based video and photographic artist right here in Nevada City, Meg O’Connell, Founder and CEO of Global Disability Inclusion, Dr. Leonard Abbeduto, Director of the MIND Institute at UC Davis, and Denny Chan, a Senior Staff Attorney at Justice in Aging. We recorded this conversation on September 21, right as we reached the grim milestone of 200,000 deaths from Covid-19 here in the United States. We started part two of the conversation by asking Denny to talk about the crisis standard of care guidelines here in California.

This is Part II of this conversation. Click here to listen to Part I.

Part I of Disproportional Effects of the Coronavirus Pandemic on People with Disabilities

As the number of coronavirus cases in the US tops 6.8 million and the number of deaths from Covid-19 tops 200,000, we spend today’s show looking at the disproportionate effects the pandemic is having on older adults and people with disabilities. We’ve all heard the harrowing stories in the media about some of the early coronavirus hotspots being nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, but we wanted to go deeper. According to the CDC, 94% of people who died from Covid-19 in the US had at least one other health condition or contributing cause of death. What does that mean for the disability community and for older adults?

This is Part I of this conversation. Part II will be released next Monday.

Read More “Disability Rap – October 5, 2020”

Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

Last month was the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA was a landmark civil rights law that affirmed the inherent dignity of every person, regardless of disability. On this episode of Disability Rap, we’re spending the hour celebrating the ADA, its effects on people with disabilities and all Americans, and its impact right here in Nevada County.

Read More “Disability Rap: August 28, 2020”

Brain Injury Awareness Month & the 2020 Census

On this special episode of Disability Rap, Amee Medeiros (Neighborhood Center of the Arts) and Brian Snyder (FREED) interview Susan Iverson (FREED) and Robert Edmondson (TBI Survivor) about Brain Injury Awareness Month and Robert’s experience as a traumatic brain injury (TBI) survivor. Later in the show, Vanessa Cuellar (California Foundation for Independent Living Centers) and Lawrence Carter Long (Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund) join to discuss the importance of the 2020 Census for older adults, people with disabilities, and all Americans.