Disability Daily Podcast
LightNews LightNews
banner
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Disability Daily Podcast
@disabilitydaily.bsky.social
3.6K followers 1.9K following 740 posts

Discover a new figure or event in disability history each day!

Subscribe and tell your friends!

Katie Healey (she/her), PhD, CPACC ✨

AccessibleHigherEd.com

DisabilityDaily.podbean.com

https://ko-fi.com/disabilitydaily
Posts Replies Media Videos
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (#ADA) in 1990; #paraplegic art historian Guy McElroy & #Welsh #Paralympic racer Tanni Grey-Thompson!

Listen & read transcript

#DisabilityPride #a11y #accessibility #law #art #BlackSky #Wales
President George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act into law on July 26, 1990, on the South Lawn of the White House. Seated beside him are disability rights activists Evan Kemp and Justin Dart, both wheelchair users. Standing behind are Reverend Harold Wilke, who was born without arms, and Sandra Parrino of the National Council on Disability. The ceremony takes place outdoors in front of a fountain and a large crowd. Cover of the book Facing History: The Black Image in American Art 1710–1940 by Guy C. McElroy. The cover features a painted portrait of a Black man wearing a brown garment against a muted tan background. Tanni Grey-Thompson races in an orange wheelchair on a red track during the 2004 Athens Paralympic Games. Wearing a white and blue racing uniform, she leans forward mid-stride during a competitive event.
July 26, 2025 at 10:45 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we honor #blind physicist & astronomer Dr. Kent Cullers & #ASL linguist Dr. William Stokoe!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #DisabilityPride #deaf #AmericanSignLanguage #NASA #SETI #Gallaudet #astronomy #physics #DisabledInSTEM #linguistics #a11y
A newspaper clipping with the headline "NASA bestows top honor on scientist," featuring a photo of Kent Cullers, a blind physicist. Cullers, wearing a suit and smiling, is shown next to an article detailing his receipt of NASA's Exceptional Engineering Achievement Award for his work on the High Resolution Microwave Survey (SETI). The article highlights his academic and professional achievements, including his work with NASA and his background in physics, despite being blind since birth. The quote beneath his photo reads, "I was surprised but very happy..." The cover of the book Sign Language and the Deaf Community: Essays in Honor of William C. Stokoe. The cover features a photo of William C. Stokoe, a man in a collared shirt using sign language to sign the word correct. A statue of Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and Alice Cogswell are in the background.
July 23, 2025 at 1:13 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #dyslexic #photojournalist and #documentarian of the disability rights movement, Tom Olin!

Listen & read transcript

#photography #accessibility #DisabilityPride #a11y #history #HistoryTeachers #TomOlin #DisabilityRights #ADAPT #CapitolCrawl
Tom Olin with glasses, a goatee, and a friendly smile. He is wearing a beige vest over a black t-shirt with a graphic design, holding a Nikon camera in his right hand. The background is a colorful sign, partially visible behind him. A black-and-white photo of the Capitol Crawl, a historic moment from the disability rights movement. Two individuals are visible climbing the Capitol steps: one on their hands and knees and the other seated on the steps, visibly struggling. Both wear t-shirts with a logo from the Disability Rights Movement. In the background, a photographer captures the scene, and the U.S. Capitol building is visible in the distance.
July 22, 2025 at 8:32 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate legendary #jazz #singer with #Kallmann syndrome, Jimmy Scott!

Listen & read transcript

#Accessibility #a11y #DisabilityPride #KallmannSyndrome #GeneticDisorder #soul #music #BlackSky #MusicSky #TwinPeaks #Contralto #Cleveland #JimmyScott #voice
Album cover for "If You Only Knew" by Little Jimmy Scott, featuring a young Jimmy Scott in a blue suit, white shirt, and tie, wearing glasses and standing in front of a vintage microphone with a yellow and red background.
July 18, 2025 at 3:35 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #Pennsylvania governor & #ADA champion Richard Thornburgh & classical #Turkish singer with a #stutter Müzeyyen Senar!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #a11y #history #DisabilityPride #OttomanEmpire #Turkey #Türkiye #law #stuttering #music
Google Doodle featuring Müzeyyen Senar, a Turkish classical music singer, with her singing into a microphone. She is smiling and gesturing with her left arm extended. The word "Google" is playfully integrated into the design, with a soft purple and gold color scheme. Star-like accents surround her, highlighting the celebratory mood of the illustration. Dick Thornburgh, an older man with glasses and short, graying hair, seated at a desk. He is wearing a striped dress shirt with a tie and appears to be smiling gently. His hands are resting on a pile of papers on the desk, with a book titled Where the Evidence Leads placed prominently in front of him. The background shows a portion of an office with a large window.
July 16, 2025 at 10:37 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #polio survivor & #Mexican #artist Frida Kahlo; #blind lawyer Dr. Jacobus tenBroek; & #HardOfHearing & #LowVision #Chinese historian Chen Yinke.

Listen & read transcript

#DisabilityPride #accessibility #history #China #Mexico #FridaKahlo #a11y
Frida Kahlo's "Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird" features the artist’s face at the center, adorned with a necklace made of thorns. A dead hummingbird hangs from the necklace, while other symbolic elements like leaves and a jungle-like background surround her. Her expression is serious, and her dark hair is crowned with flowers. Kahlo’s piercing gaze and the vibrant yet intense colors contribute to the painting's emotional and symbolic depth. Portrait of Jacobus tenBroek with short hair, mustache and beard wearing a white shirt, black tie and jacket. black-and-white portrait of Chen Yinke, a Chinese historian and scholar. He is seated and looking directly at the camera. He wears a traditional Chinese outfit with a high collar and has glasses. The background is neutral and blurry, giving the image a vintage feel.
July 7, 2025 at 8:45 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate the 1978 "Gang of 19" bus protest in #Denver & #Colombian lawyer with #CerebralPalsy Jeison Aristizábal, who founded Latin America's first university for disabled students!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #a11y #DisabilityPride #DisHist
black-and-white photo of a protest by disabled individuals. The image shows a bus with signs reading "Free Ride to Ride" and "Taxation without Transportation" while individuals lie on the street in front of it. A wheelchair is across the street. Jeison Aristizábal, a smiling man with short dark hair, wearing a light pink polo shirt.
July 6, 2025 at 10:40 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate actor & advocate with #Parkinsons disease Michael J. Fox & #Deaf Canadian #geologist Dr. Donald J. Kidd!

Listen & read transcript

#Parkinson's #MichaelJFox #HearingLoss #DisabledInSTEM #DeafInSTEM #geology #Gallaudet #Canada #PhD #accessibility
Michael J. Fox in a dark suit and shirt and short brown hair raises his fists and smiles. He is seated next to Muhammad Ali in a dark jacket, purple shirt, and patterned tie. Cover of geological report by Dr. Donald J. Kidd. The title reads Iron Occurrences in the Peace River Region, Alberta.
June 15, 2025 at 7:10 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we remember #blind disability rights advocate & #philosopher Mary Jane Owen!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #LowVision #a11y #DisHist #Section504 #wheelchair #ADA #Catholic #CenterForIndependentLiving #CIL #Berkeley #UCBerkeley #SFSU #CripCamp
Mary Jane Owen in a blue jacket over a black top. She has short white hair and speaks into a microphone. A C-SPAN Live caption reads Mary Jane Owen, National Catholic Office for Persons with Disabilities, Executive Director.
June 15, 2025 at 4:00 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we remember Robert Smithdas, American educator & #poet considered the first #Deafblind person in the U.S. to earn a #MastersDegree!

Listen & read transcript

#meningitis #Deaf #blind #a11y #EduSky #PerkinsSchoolForTheBlind #HigherEd #accessibility #history
Robert Smithdas in a long-sleeved white collared shirt and dark tie holds a pie in his left hand and holds onto a spike metal fence. A city skyline is behind him.
June 15, 2025 at 2:32 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #HardOfHearing actor Gideon Glick!

Listen & read transcript

#Deaf #HearingLoss #DeafGain #Étoile #MarvalousMrsMaisel #ToKillAMockingbird #SpringAwakening #Broadway #pride #queer #LGBTQ #gay #theater #PrideMonth
Close-up headshot of Gideon Glick with a serious expression. He wears a red top and has short brown hair. He is clean shaven and has large brown eyes and several dark moles across his left cheek.
June 15, 2025 at 12:12 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate politician & #polio survivor J. Glenn Beall, #HardOfHearing #anthropologist Dr. Ruth Benedict, #poet with #OsteogenesisImperfecta Philippe Rahmy & #Deaf sound artist Christine Sun Kim!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #a11y #EduSky
Christine Sun Kim with a chin-length black, blue, and teal bob and round glasses. She wears a long-sleeved gray shirt and black pants, and deep purple lipstick. With a serious facial expression, she signs the word "day" in American Sign Language by holding her right arm vertically with pointer finger extended; her right elbow rests on the back of her left fingertips, with her left arm held horizontally. Black and white photo of Ruth Benedict with short white or gray hair. She wears a long-sleeved dark top with white ruffles on her chest, and she sits in front of a full bookshelf holding a book open. Philippe Rahmy wearing a braided straw fedora and glasses. He stands in front of water and looks at the camera. He has a mustache and goatee. Black and white headshot of a smiling J. Glenn Beall with short white hair wearing a white shirt and dark tie and suit.
June 10, 2025 at 7:41 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate Susan Sygall, American disability rights #activist, #MacArthur Fellow & co-founder of #Mobility International USA!

Listen & read transcript

#MobilityInternationalUSA #wheelchair #accessibility #a11y #UCBerkeley #DisabilityRights #MIUSA
Susan Sygall sits in a manual wheelchair and holds a cane. She has long brown hair and bangs and wears a long-sleeve white shirt, open blue vest, and dark pants. She smiles at the camera.
June 4, 2025 at 11:24 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #quadriplegic & #diabetic #amputee musician Curtis Mayfield & #dyslexic #journalist Anderson Cooper!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #a11y #dyslexia #paralysis #quadriplegia #CurtisMayfield #AndersonCooper #CNN #BlackSky #SuperFly #music
An older Curtis Mayfield with a black hat, round glasses, and gray mustache and beard sitting in a wheelchair. He wears a black tuxedo and bowtie with a red carnation in his lapel. Anderson Cooper with short white hair sits in a red chair and looks off to the left. He wears a white collared shirt, dark tie, and black suit. A glass of water is on a table near him.
June 3, 2025 at 7:30 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #Deaf American #scientist, science educator, and #historian, Dr. Harry Lang!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #a11y #captions #ASL #TTY #technology #DisabledInSTEM #DeafInSTEM #RIT #NTID #ROC #meningitis #StephenHawking #physics #DisHist
Harry Lang with short blonde hair in a dark suit, white shirt, and striped tie sits next to a young Stephen Hawking. Book cover of Turn on the Words! Deaf Audiences, Captions, and the Long Struggle for Access by Harry G. Lang. The cover features a historical black-and-white photograph of a group of people holding signs while marching in the rain, advocating for captioned programs. In the background, a classroom is shown with students watching a film with captions.
June 3, 2025 at 4:55 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate the Father of #Deaf Education in #Africa Andrew Foster & triple #amputee & #pediatrician Dr. Kellie Lim!

Listen & read transcript

#UCLA #DGSOM #LimbLoss #medicine #Gallaudet #DeafGain #HearingLoss #Ghana #Alabama #Nigeria #accessibility #a11y
Dr. Kellie Lim in a white coat holds papers and looks off to the right. She has straight dark hair and wears an ID badge and stethoscope. Children's artwork and health posters hang on the wall behind her. Andrew Foster with short dark hair and a mustache smiles. He wears a dark tie, white shirt, and gray suit jacket. Text reads Introducing Andrew Foster, Father of Deaf Education in Africa.
June 2, 2025 at 6:04 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate disability rights activist with #CerebralPalsy Hale Zukas & disabled British #suffragette & #polio survivor Rosa May Billinghurst!

Listen & read transcript

#UCBerkeley #Berkeley #accessibility #a11y #Britain #suffrage #transporation #BART #vote
Hale Zukas in a motorized wheelchair on a Bay Area Rapid Transit train platform. He sits in front of a silver elevator several feet from the yellow and black tactile paving dots that border the train tracks. He has wispy gray hair and wears a green shirt, red jacket, and black pants. He has a head wand attached to a helmet he wears. He smiles at the camera with a blue surgical face mask down around his chin. A historical black-and-white photograph showing Rosa May Billinghurst, a suffragette, in a decorated wheelchair at a women’s suffrage march. She is positioned in the front row, wearing a large hat adorned with flowers. Surrounding her are other suffragettes, some of whom are also wearing hats and floral accessories. In the background, a police officer and several onlookers are visible.
June 2, 2025 at 6:22 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we recognize the filing of Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital in 1974.

Listen & read transcript

#HaldermanVPennhurst #DevelopmentalDisabilities #Pennhurst #Pennsylvania #asylum #accessibility #history #DisHist #EduSky #law #LegalHistory #a11y
Front page of the Pottstown Mercury Newspaper with the headline Pennhurst: The Shame of Pennsylvania. A Vast Junkyard of Wasted Humans. Images of dirty and decrepit facilities.
June 2, 2025 at 2:02 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #Deaf American agricultural #bacteriologist Dr. Harold J. Conn!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #a11y #DeafGain #HearingLoss #bacteriology #agriculture #DeafInSTEM #DisabledInSTEM #microbiology #CropHealth #plants #SoilMicrobiology
Harold J. Conn in a dark suit, tie, and glasses sitting at a desk with a glass container and dropper. Next to him is a microscope and several glass bottles.
June 2, 2025 at 1:03 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we honor #blind #Brazilian educator & advocate Dorina de Gouvêa Nowill!

Listen & read transcript

#Brazil #Brasil #VisionLoss #Braille #Columbia #SãoPaulo #FundaçãoDorinaNowill #cegas #SistemaBraille #PessoasCegas #Ciegos #accessibility #a11y
Illustration of Dorina de Gouvêa Nowill, a prominent Brazilian advocate for the blind. She is depicted wearing sunglasses and a blue outfit, with a yellow necklace. The background features a playful design of interconnected dots and lines that form the word "Google." This image celebrates Nowill’s contributions to accessibility and her work to improve the lives of visually impaired individuals in Brazil. Dorina de Gouvêa Nowill in a yellow cardigan, wearing sunglasses and focused on reading tactile Braille materials on a table. She is interacting with large Braille pages, surrounded by a room with accessible materials designed for people with visual impairments.
June 2, 2025 at 12:37 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we remember #actor with #COPD & #Parkinson’s disease, Vincent Price!

Listen & read transcript

#VoiceActing #Thriller #horror #gothic #Hollywood #art #ArtCollector #VincentPrice #HorrorFilms #Yale #HorrorSky #LGBTQ #pride #bisexual #accessibility #a11y
Vincent Price in a black suit and tie. He has short dark hair and a dark pencil mustache, juts his neck out, and casts a sidelong glance with wide eyes.
June 1, 2025 at 6:41 PM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we celebrate #blind #composer & #musician, Moondog!

Listen & read transcript

#accessibility #music #NYC #poet #TheVikingOf6thAvenue #ClassicalMusic #MinimalMusic #MusicSky #EduSky #ExperimentalMusic #NativeAmericanMusic #AmericanMusicHistory #jazz #poetry
An older Moondog with long, wiry silver hair and beard. He wears black clothing. His left eye is missing, and his right eye is rolled back showing only the white portion.
June 1, 2025 at 6:55 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we remember #pianist & #composer Thomas "#Blind Tom" Wiggins.

Listen & read transcript

#piano #BlackSky #accessibility #history #EduSky #music #VisionLoss #a11y #MusicSky #BlindTomWiggins #BlackHistory #BattleOfManassas #neurodiversity #neurodiverse #GA
Thomas Wiggins with short, curly black hair wearing a white shirt and dark suit jacket. His eyes are closed.
June 1, 2025 at 6:37 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we remember #Deaf cardiologist Dr. Helen Taussig & Deaf #FBI agent & master lipreader Sue Thomas.

Listen & read transcript

#DeafGain #HearingLoss #lipreading #HistMed #DisHist #DisabilityHistory #DisabledInSTEM #cardiology #history #EduSky #accessibility
An elderly Dr. Taussig with short white hair and glasses wears a white lab coat and stethoscope while holding a baby. The baby holds the stethoscope tubing. Sue Thomas with white hair wearing a dark sweater and smiling with her golden retriever.
June 1, 2025 at 6:12 AM
disabilitydaily.bsky.social
Today on the #Disability Daily #Podcast we remember #Deaf Major League #Baseball player William “Dummy” Hoy who’s credited with helping to popularize the use of hand signals in baseball.

Listen & read transcript

#ASL #accessibility #a11y #DeafGain #MLB #sports #history #HistorySky #EduSky #Ohio
Dummy Hoy stands at home base wearing a white baseball uniform and cap, black belt and tall black boots. He holds a baseball bat with his left hand. Illustrated chart titled "MLB Umpire Signals" showing hand gestures used by Major League Baseball umpires. The chart includes the following signals: "Do Not Pitch": umpire holds up one hand with palm out. "Play Ball": umpire points toward the pitcher. "Count": umpire holds up fingers to indicate balls and strikes. "Safe": umpire extends both arms horizontally outward. "Fair Ball": umpire points diagonally toward the field. "Foul Tip": umpire taps fingers on hand, then points. "Strike or Out": umpire pumps a fist. "Infield Fly": umpire raises one arm straight up. "Time-Out / Foul Ball / Dead Ball": umpire raises both arms straight up. Each gesture is illustrated with a figure in a blue shirt against a white background with blue borders and labels.
May 30, 2025 at 10:20 PM