Mike Ervin is a writer and disability rights activist living in Chicago. He blogs at Smart Ass Cripple, “expressing pain through sarcasm since 2010.”
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Mike Ervin
Smart Ass Cripple: The New Bathroom Wars
As some people continually seek to redefine what an inclusive public bathroom looks like, conservative forces staunchly defend the bathroom status quo. Read more
White House
Smart Ass Cripple: Happy Birthday Olmstead
Twenty years ago, a civil rights victory helped disabled people escape institutional life. Read more
via goodfreephotos.com
Smart Ass Cripple: Where Have All the Parking Lots Gone?
I’ve seen “For Sale” signs on parking lots around the city quite a bit in recent years. That’s how the descent into hell begins. Read more
Bagogames
Smart Ass Cripple: The Limits of Charity
Acts of extraordinary generosity get all the press. But we’re missing the point. Read more
Brad Dougherty
Smart Ass Cripple: Stuck in Limbo
If you’re wondering what life is like for many disabled folks, think about those TV commercials for amusement parks like Great America. Read more
AndreyKrav Getty Images/iStockphoto
Smart Ass Cripple: The State of Tennessee, Thank Goodness, Has Some Shame
The angry families and the media didn’t go away. In the end, the senate capitulated to human decency. Read more
Smart Ass Cripple: ‘You Want Autism with That?’
The extra dollars that customers give to White Castle go to Autism Speaks, which could be responsible for spreading the abject fear of autism that fuels the anti-vaccination crowd. Read more
College of DuPage newsroom
Smart Ass Cripple: Don’t Mess with the Special Olympics
The Trump Administration’s proposal to cut funding for the Special Olympics drew public scrutiny. Where’s the outrage over Medicaid cuts? Read more
Smart-Ass Cripple: The Only Gun I Ever Loved
Of course it’s not OK to bring a gun into a theater, restaurant, or emergency room. Why is that even up for discussion? Read more
pxhere
Smart Ass Cripple: ‘You’re Disabled? Prove It!’
If you or someone you love may apply for Social Security Disability support, you should probably stay off social media. Either that or only post pictures of yourself looking totally miserable. Read more
Molly Adams
The Medicaid for None Movement
The Medicare for All movement may be gaining steam, but so is its evil counterpoint. Read more
Smart Ass Cripple: The Tranquil Demise of the ‘Disabled List’
Major League Baseball has agreed to stop using the offensive term. Paradigm shift? Maybe not. Read more
waitscm
Smart Ass Cripple: Waiting 48 Years for a Subway Train
The subway station nearest my house is as inaccessible to me today as it was three decades ago. Read more
Roger McLassus
Once More, Into the Vortex of Dread
A lot of disabled folks are branded with the scarlet letter U, for “Uninsurable.” Efforts to change that are in danger. Read more
Smart Ass Cripple: Save the Bison!
Trump is hell bent on undoing everything done by his predecessor, so it’s only a matter of time before the bison is no longer the official mammal of the United States. The question is, what will it be? Read more
Smart Ass Cripple: FDA Needs to Stop the Electric Shocking of People
Only one place uses these devices, and it uses them to control the behavior of people with autism and other disabilities. Read more
Mike & Mckenzie
Smart Ass Cripple: Getting in Santa’s Face to Sit in His Lap
I wouldn’t describe my childhood as Santa-deprived, because I was pushy. Read more
White House
How George H.W. Bush and Other Conservatives Undermined his Americans with Disabilities Act Legacy
Bush deserves credit for what he did to make the ADA happen. But federal civil rights laws are just empty symbolic gestures unless the executive branch vigorously enforces them and judges take them seriously. Read more
Ted Eytan/Creative Commons
Smart Ass Cripple: Getting In the Big Man’s Face
Not every public protest will entice change, but that doesn't mean our efforts are futile. Read more
