#ucaccessnow — Public Fediverse posts

Crooked West Coast Region UAW are the same as neoliberal pols...when I as a disabled worker needed them to do what a union is supposed to do - they were nowhere. When I organized my own activism to try to take care of it, they didn't show solidarity at all.

But when there's a UAW election, oh boy I get lots of emails. #UCAccessNow #Ableism #Union

Reach out and build community as soon as you can. It can take a while to do so the sooner you do it, the more prepared you are for the next anti-worker, anti-disabled worker, anti-disabled student policy the liberals/libertarians who lunch want to push on you. #UCAccessNow

RE: https://mastodon.palewi.re/@OldLAPhotos/117112908624968895

Oddly enough, disabled Californians existed before the University of California designed and opened up this, its second inaccessible campus.

#UCAccessNow #HigherEd #Ableism #Accessibility

So the entire approach to disability law in education (and elsewhere in society) has been to fight it, and where it can no longer be fought, to ration access and delay & deny. The people that help systemic ableism do this are largely abled people and they get somewhat secure employment and compensation to do it. If they found a "we do things for disabled people" corporation, they get contracts to be the place it's outsourced to rather than public universities hiring unionized public employees to be notetakers, sign interpreters, assistants, attendants, etc. And constructing our public university systems such that as much as possible can be done independently by the disabled student, faculty member, or staffer themselves. Which is what we want - independence and equity comes from true accessibility.

#Disability #Accessibility #UCAccessNow #HigherEd

Mixed feelings about this. Would like to know what other disabled folks who've experienced the rationing-and-policing approach US colleges and universities take think of this.

A couple has donated specifically to the Cal State LA Office for Students with Disabilities. The employees there (IME, usually *abled* employees) decide how it gets used.

Apparently instead of hiring human assistants as a work/study thing which is what used to happen decades ago, they've used it on subscriptions to Aira visual description and ASL apps.

On the one hand - the fascist regime is against disabled people period so funds even for the sad state of "accommodations" are being cut so donations meant to help disabled students are cool, but is strengthening a system that benefits abled ppl & ableism more than disabled students the way to go?

https://news.calstatela.edu/2026/08/19/cal-state-la-alumnus-david-glyer-and-vicki-bier-support-accessibility-and-student-success/ #Disability #Ableism #UCAccessNow #HigherEd

How LA28 aims to stage 'the best Paralympic Games ever'

Just think…if UC had listened to disabled people going back decades now, they’d be ready. If they’d listened to #UCAccessNow going back to 2020, they’d be ready. But instead they spent their time and the public’s money fighting their bare bones legal obligations, much less any equitable accessibility that the Paralympics should be expected to offer to athletes, broadcasters, journalists, and spectators.

The Paralympics can be genuinely exciting and not as inspiration porn for abled people. And ideally, it can leave disabled people in its host cities with far better infrastructure than what they started with. It remains to be seen whether this will happen in LA. The outlook for it is not good, though.

https://archive.ph/wmyqp#selection-2517.0-2517.423

#NeoliberalHellhole #LosAngeles #USpol #Ableism #Paralympics #Sports

Note that UC is advertising such an event with NO accessibility info for the event included. This is a great illustration of systemic ableism as well as medical ableism.

“The UC Irvine Muscle Biology and Disease Research Center and CureDuchenne will host a free community screening of the award-winning documentary “The Remarkable Life of Ibelin””

"The documentary tells the story of Mats Steen, a young man with Duchenne muscular dystrophy whose family discovered after his death at age 25 that he had built a vibrant community and deep friendships through the online game “World of Warcraft.” It explores disability, connection and the impact of online communities.

WHEN/WHERE: Friday, Sept. 18, at the Rivian South Coast Theater in Laguna Beach. Doors open at 6:15 p.m., and the film begins at 7 p.m.

INFORMATION: The event is free and open to the public, including UC Irvine affiliates. Register at events.rivian.com/theremarkablelifeofibelin.”

https://news.uci.edu/2026/08/17/uc-irvine-and-cureduchenne-to-host-free-screening-of-the-remarkable-life-of-ibelin/

#UCAccessNow #Ableism #MD #Disability

Once more, the University of California's response to its inaccessibility being challenged is simply to make the resource unavailable to everyone...instead of just making it accessible as it should have been in the first place.

https://ucanr.edu/site/hilgardia
#UCAccessNow #Ableism #AcademicChatter #NeoliberalHellhole

The theme of the UC Davis Plant Breeding Retreat (an event that was made inaccessible to me many of the years I was there, incidentally) is Intellectual Property.

While being able to protect one's work (until the plant patent runs out) is important in the kind of world we're living in at the moment, the fact that this is the theme of a gathering of students, faculty and guests in plant breeding rather than any number of urgent topics right now disturbs me. #PlantBreeding #UCAccessNow

@ascentale @Amgine @bikenite A3. I certainly biked to campus when I went back to school - both a 10 mi RT to community college and a shorter commute to UC Davis. It was so important to me that UC Davis' inaccessible racks catalyzed me to write the Demandifesto and start @ucaccessnow

Because I was already cycling, it's not like bike-to-school as a day or month was that important to me. Maybe some free swag that was useful like strap-on bike lights for free.

What I really needed and did not get in time was accessible cycle infrastructure.

For other people, I think most people are such followers that a bike-to-school period helps them feel part of a group.

#BikeNite #UCAccessNow https://archive.org/details/disability-equity-and-justice-demands

The battle over People’s Park is over. Berkeley hasn’t yet kept its promise

Behind the shipping containers, a $312 million dorm is nearly done, while the building meant to house those it displaced has not broken ground.

"The $312 million Judith E. Heumann House, named for the disability rights pioneer, will offer apartment-style housing for more than 1,100 undergraduates. However, a long-promised project meant to house the people the development displaced has yet to begin."

You don't say...

https://sfstandard.com/2026/08/06/peoples-park-berkeley-dorm-unhoused/ #UCAccessNow #NeoliberalHellhole #Housing #EminentDomain

You can see which buildings still haven't had their HVAC upgraded to ASHRAE standard since the pandemic. https://airtable.com/appTHQJG8btoTfXdP/shrlOjzItLvCKUHrU/tblbkED5gx2LZ1ZJn

#NeoliberalHellhole #UCAccessNow #COVIDIsNotOver

We pointed out several times per year what bad news it was that UC Davis and other UC campuses used things like AirTable and Box instead of putting this public information up on PUBLICLY-OWNED AND RUN websites!

UC Davis has its table of HVAC info up on AirTable instead of someplace that makes more sense.

#NeoliberalHellhole #UCAccessNow #COVID

https://mastodon.social/@Pikapods/117036707865766016

Doctors at California's second largest employer launch campaign to unionize

"Last week, UC doctors gathered outside the Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital to announce the launch of a campaign to unionize. The campaign is in partnership with the Service Employees International Union ("SEIU").

The University of California is the state's second largest employer, and serves over two million residents a year across the state."

https://www.kalw.org/bay-area-news/2026-07-27/uc-doctors-launch-union-campaign #California #UCAccessNow #Union #Labor

“Why Are IEPs Rising in LAUSD and Elsewhere?"

Reading this, ask yourself if any of the folks quoted identify as disabled. Yes, abled people can have disabled kids. But so can disabled people. There are also disabled people who went through LAUSD with an IEP and who might be able to share their expertise. Who is quoteworthy to abled journalists?

Why is it mostly autism that is mentioned when talking about disabilities that might require an IEP? What prompted the journalist to write this story?

All questions to ask when reading about disability, “accommodations”, etc. Who is speaking into the microphone, figuratively? Who is holding it?

https://lamag.com/education/why-are-ieps-rising-in-lausd-and-elsewhere/ #LosAngeles #Disability #Education #UCAccessNow

@ascentale @pete @bikenite A5. This is regarding my herd before I had to move. When I arrived at UC Davis, the cycle racks were inaccessible yet they'd ticket/impound if your cycle was not parked at their racks. I arrived first thing in the morning to get an end spot - the only place my recumbent had a chance. Some upright rider SHOVED their bike in where they should not have, made my bike fall off its kickstand, bending the water cage and breaking the power button for the e-assist. Unfortunately, it remained broken the entire time until I sadly had to sell my herd.

#BikeNite #UCAccessNow #CycleParkingAudit

@ascentale @MarkBrigham @bikenite A3. I'm sure they must exist, at least informally as some "ADA Handbook" written by industry, but I haven't run across them.

What I did literally run across (because I'd see the road signs on my rides and experience the paving differences) is that UC Davis has a Pavement Research Center. https://www.ucprc.ucdavis.edu/

Despite UC Davis so-called cycle-friendliness, there's a good chance the research is car-centric. But its worth poring through the site to see if they have some papers of interest or links to city policies somewhere.

#BikeNite #UCAccessNow

@ascentale @MarkBrigham @bikenite A2. Despite decades being a member of cycle coalitions, I haven't been mentored in advocacy and how the sausage is made. So I just jump in on whatever the coalition is already doing and/or report it to any 311 or other things a city/county has for making such reports.

I think for me, another concern is the accessibility of the surface as well as its suitability for ever-worsening climate conditions. It would be good to get some pilot projects on permeable paving, for instance. #BikeNite #UCAccessNow #Accessibility

Today is the 6th anniversary of the release of the UC Access Now Demandifesto.

It was launched with a tool to allow people to contact Gov. Newsom, the UC Board of Regents, and every UC Chancellor to urge them to adopt its action steps.

This date was chosen because it is the anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. And at the time, 30 years later, UC institutions were routinely flouting the law. They still do.

We were successful in getting them to budge on some things, but they made sure to erase our name because they don't want students, staff & faculty to get the idea that banding together and pressuring them is at all effective.

https://archive.org/details/disability-equity-and-justice-demands

#DisabilityPrideMonth #UCAccessNow #Ableism #Disability #HigherEd #California #Education

This is something those who teach courses need to know - sometimes disabled students need to change position. They're not not paying attention. They're not trying to draw attention from others. They're trying to keep out of pain and keep functional.

Classrooms and lecture halls need the infrastructure that allows this, but they also need the *culture* that allows this.

(Note: not everyone who has this access need uses a wheelchair, or obvious mobility aid, either. It's still an access need.)

#UCAccessNow #Ableism #Accessibility #HigherEd https://www.youtube.com/shorts/TyMd_wuyAmw

UC Access Now was not the only disability activism group that ever sprung up at the University of California. But we did put forth a comprehensive vision for what UC owes the public in our Demandifesto.

UC's response in general was to ignore us or lie to the press about what they'd do, to generally bury us. But they did implement some of the accessibility we kept pointing out they were lacking (not consistently, and not crediting disability activists at UC).

To my shock, this is the first video I've ever seen UC put out that has audio description.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr0HgNFyv6I #Accessibility #UCAccessNow

"Such positions aren’t entirely new. UC Davis employs an assistant director of student expression. Lisa Loveall, who uses they/them pronouns, has served as the director of open expression programs at Emory University since 2024, shortly after the role was created. Before then, student expression work was “ad hoc” and split among many employees in the student affairs department, Loveall said. Their primary charge is to support and enforce Emory’s open expression policy." #USpol #UCAccessNow

"UC Santa Cruz recently hired a “student engagement and expression specialist” with expertise in student protest, demonstrations and free expression who will “ensure student rights are protected while safety, accessibility, and operational continuity are maintained,” according to the job posting." #USpol #UCAccessNow

:boost_requested: 🧵 I started UC Access Now in 2019/2020. I had been physically disabled for 25 years by that point. And my own public university was hurting my health while disobeying federal & state disability law.

I figured if I had to fight this hard to get the bare minimum (while also dealing with grad school that's hard even for abled ppl), I wanted it fixed for everyone & wanted to work with other disabled students, staff, and faculty to do so.

I did not have a deep background in theorizing about disability. So I definitely learned even more about systemic ableism as a result of trying to fight how that manifests at University of California.

An important thing to learn is that systemic ableism moves the frame to what the system wants & needs it to be. So as a disabled person, if they need you to be framed as "too weak to hire", that's it. If they need you to be "faking it", that's it. If they need you to be "too lazy", that's it.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-civil-rights-special-education-3483478a51ea8001fcc70e8a77d08d9a #USpol #Ableism #Disability #UCAccessNow

@ascentale @MartyCormack @bikenite A5. Cargo quadricycle had just been fixed at the LBS. I'd ridden away and was on UC Davis campus when I noticed I somehow had a flat. My disabled hands cannot handle fixing a flat even if I know how. I was so dismayed because being on campus, I should have been near lots of people that could help, but the pandemic response super-charged UC Davis' ableism and I was isolated from my cohort. I couldn't reach my PI. So I called AAA and then they FREAKED about the fact I had a quadricycle instead of an upright bicycle and refused to send a van or truck to help. So I had to push, with my damaged hands/arms, and walk the cargo quad, with my damaged knees/feet more than a mile home. And pay extra for a mobile mech to come fix it. Once more. #CripTax #UCAccessNow #BikeNight

@ascentale @bikenite @ucaccessnow A4, cont'd: What could be improved: The racks need to be installed farther apart so that two fat riders of two trikes with panniers attached could be locking up at the same time without rubbing up on one another. The rack installation could also use a shelter from sun and rain (it doesn't really snow at that location, but for places with snow, the shelter needs to be designed for snow as well).

Another improvement would be having an accessible cycle tool installation, water fountain, accessible map of cycle routes nearby, and safe & accessible e-cycle charging infrastructure.

#CycleParkingAudit #UCAccessNow #BikeNite

@ascentale @bikenite @ucaccessnow A4. cont'd. They went on to ban e-cycles and e-scooters from inside buildings, even if they are folding. So having accessible safe and sheltered racks is even more important, but they largely resisted UC Access Now's rack initiative and buried credit when they did make some of the changes we suggested in a "pilot program".

Despite this, organizations like League of American Bicyclists continue to give UC Davis a "platinum bike-friendly" rating, allowing them to sweep any criticism under that award.

Below is a photo of a one of the "pilot projects" they did without ever consulting us to catch problems in the design. It's an improvement, but needs more. And is rationed out - which means abled cyclists who don't need the room often take it because - SURPRISE - it's better parking than the default. #CycleParkingAudit #UCAccessNow #BikeNite

@ascentale @[email protected] @bikenite A4. I have made a study of cycle racks for about 15 years now. I have hundreds & hundreds of photos of the good, the bad, and the ugly. So many it's hard to find the best and the worst without dedicating more time to going through things than I have today. I have not found the perfect cycle rack anywhere. I would add that there are also racks on buses, trains, trams, etc. that should also be addressed as the accessibility problem is even worse than street parking.

So I'm going to show the rack that ruined my health and was the final straw that made me start @ucaccessnow UC Davis rules threaten ticketing and impounding if your cycle is NOT parked at their inaccessible racks. Despite this, they keep getting "bike friendly" awards that allow them to resist activism for accessible and safer cycling infrastructure.

Upright cyclist later shoved in and broke my bike.

#CycleParkingAudit #BikeNite #Cycling #UCAccessNow

@ascentale @bobjonkman @bikenite A2 cont'd. My impression is that in the high cycle theft cities, brute force is still the most common attack, despite the fact that lockpicking sport seems to be skyrocketing in the US. Portable angle grinders are the tool of choice AND in the UK and US, the thieves also use the tool as a weapon to threaten any passers-by or cycle owners who are trying to stop them from stealing.

So I focus on choosing something angle grinder resistant and I also choose more than one kind of lock/layers of security so if someone generally uses one tool, there's still another lock that would require a different tool to break. Having more than one kind (U-lock, chain, etc) also gives flexibility in what one is capable of locking up to and how. #BikeNite #CycleParkingAudit #UCAccessNow

@ascentale @bobjonkman @bikenite A2. I think there's not a one size fits all recommendation. Depends on the bike frame geometry, what the cycle rack or other infrastructure you'd lock to where you're using it, your physical capabilities, and your resources for replacing the cycle should it get stolen.

For me, this meant getting very heavy Kryptonite and other motorcycle and construction equipment chains because I could not easily afford to replace my rides and because it is harder for someone with a portable angle grinder to manage holding the chain safely while cutting it. Because of inaccessible racks, I needed a LOT of meters of chain to have flexibility. It was heavy as shit and inconvenient, but less inconvenient than my ride being stolen.

I watched Lockpicking Lawyer videos and cycle vlogger videos to decide what to do & which brand/models to trust. Recently I came across this site as well:

https://www.bikelockwiki.com/ #BikeNite #CycleParkingAudit #UCAccessNow