One thing that has become painfully obvious to those of us with disabilities starting in 2016 with Trump mocking this disabled and picking up speed throughout the pandemic is ableism. People, specifically evangelical Republicans, are gloating over denying the disabled, such as the immunocompromised, the right provided to them via federal law that requires businesses to accommodate those with disabilities.
This is why all businesses in the U.S. must be ADA (the Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant with accessible toilet stalls, accessibility to all floors in buildings, doorknob handles and light-switches must be no taller than certain heights, and so much more. This is because federal law protects the disabled people’s right to enjoy the same public access that non-disabled people enjoy.
However, Covid has shown us that the disabled are belatedly being denied their constitutional right to enjoy the same public access that non-disabled people enjoy. Take the immunocompromised, for example. Because of their compromised immune system, they are at an extraordinary high risk of bad outcomes should they contract Covid. This is a disability protected by federal law. Businesses have a completely free accommodation available that they can utilize, but which Republican evangelicals REFUSE to enforce, which is mask mandates for businesses
The disabled are blatantly being discriminated against as they are not able to enjoy same public access and instead are forced to quarantine to their homes to keep themselves safe. They are actively being oppressed and marginalized by the non-disabled Republican evangelicals even more than they were pre-Covid.
It’s absolutely disgusting and appalling that the very people who claim to follow a religion that is based on sacrifice and love for other people are so pathetically self-absorbed and full of hate that they REFUSE to care about what their own bible calls “the least of these.” Their own bible commands them to take care of people who are oppressed and marginalized, yet evangelicals refuse and actively work to marginalize those people even more, all in the name of their “freedumbs.”
We can only hope the justice system catches up within a few years and prosecutes each person who played a part in denying federal protections for the disabled and illegally discriminating against them as well as directly and purposefully endangering their lives. This should most certainly include all Republican governors who banned mask mandates in businesses and schools.
We see you. We see your struggles. We stand beside all our disabled brother and sisters, and we will fight for your rights. Disability rights are human rights.