Our upcoming series – Understanding and Transforming the Medical Industrial Complex: Climate and Disability Justice Edition – invites communities to engage with essential political education for sense-making and collective action right now.
tinyurl.com/HJCSpring26PolEd
As we witness the continued escalation of violence against our kin in Iran, Lebanon, and Palestine, we remain committed to both global solidarity and disability justice, recognizing the two as deeply intertwined.
We owe each other everything, and we refuse to turn away from our precious kin in West Asia who deserve our grief and our unwavering solidarity.
A geometric patterned background in various shades of orange. The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the image. The slide says: “Essential Political Education for Right Now: Disability Justice & Global Solidarity.”
A geometric patterned background in various shades of orange. The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the image. The slide says: “Even though it is scary, now is a time to turn towards one another, dream boldly, build our communities’ capacity, summon new coalitions, and continue to demand and build the world we deserve.”
A geometric patterned background in various shades of orange. The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the image. The slide says: “We owe each other everything, and we refuse to turn away from our precious kin in West Asia who deserve our grief, our solidarity, and our fight. As we witness the continued escalation of violence against our kin in Iran, Lebanon, and Palestine, we remain committed to both global solidarity and disability justice, recognizing the two as deeply intertwined for collective liberation and our shared planetary futures.”
A geometric patterned background in various shades of orange. The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the image. The slide says: “Our upcoming political education series – Understanding and Transforming the Medical Industrial Complex: Climate and Disability Justice Edition – invites communities to engage with essential political education for sense-making and collective action right now. We invite you to join us and learn more! tinyurl.com/HJCSpring26PolEd.”
Even though it is scary, now is a time to turn towards one another, dream boldly, build our communities’ capacity, summon new coalitions, and continue to demand and build the world we deserve.
tinyurl.com/HJCSpring26PolEd
En un momento de dolor, ira y creciente crisis climática y autoritarismo, la serie también examina cómo el propio MIC sustenta, perpetua y se lucra de la guerra mundial, crisis climática, así como de las enfermedades que dice “sanar”.
La serie se enfoca en las intersecciones del capacitismo, el racismo médico y ambiental, sus lazos profundos con el Complejo Médico Industrial (o MIC, por sus siglas en inglés) y el alza del autoritarismo a nivel nacional y mundial.
INFORMACIÓN DE ACCESIBILIDAD: En todas las sesiones se va a proporcionar lenguaje de señas estadounidense (ASL, por sus siglas en inglés), interpretación entre inglés y español y subtítulos directos. ¡No se rechazará a nadie por falta de fondos!
Un fondo morado con algunas pinceladas moradas más claras que forman arabescos. En el centro del primer plano se encuentra la ilustración de Olly Costello. Un diente de león con tres tallos y tres hojas crece en tierra negra. En dos de los tallos han brotado flores amarillas mientras que el otro está compuesto por semillas blancas mullidas. El diente de león está rodeado y conectado por hongos color púrpura y rojo. Las plantas tienen constelaciones como raíces. Personas diminutas de diferentes edades y razas rodean las plantas y se acercan unas a otras. Las semillas flotan hacia el cielo y el texto blanco entre las semillas dice: “La crisis expande nuestras imaginaciones sobre lo que es posible.” El logotipo de Health Justice Commons aparece en la esquina superior derecha del gráfico. El texto negro que aparece encima y debajo de la ilustración de Olly dice: “Entendiendo y Transformando el Complejo Médico Industrial: Edición de Justicia Climática y de Discapacidad. ¡Más información e inscríbase! tinyurl.com/HJCSerieDePrimavera2026.”
Un fondo morado con algunas pinceladas moradas más claras que forman arabescos. En el centro del primer plano se encuentra la ilustración de Olly Costello. Un diente de león con tres tallos y tres hojas crece en tierra negra. En dos de los tallos han brotado flores amarillas mientras que el otro está compuesto por semillas blancas mullidas. El diente de león está rodeado y conectado por hongos color púrpura y rojo. Las plantas tienen constelaciones como raíces. Personas diminutas de diferentes edades y razas rodean las plantas y se acercan unas a otras. Las semillas flotan hacia el cielo y el texto blanco entre las semillas dice: “La crisis expande nuestras imaginaciones sobre lo que es posible.” El logotipo de Health Justice Commons aparece en la esquina superior derecha del gráfico. El texto negro que aparece encima y debajo de la ilustración de Olly dice: “La serie se enfoca en las intersecciones del capacitismo, el racismo médico y ambiental, sus lazos profundos con el Complejo Médico Industrial (o MIC, por sus siglas en inglés) y el alza del autoritarismo a nivel nacional y mundial. 19 de abril hasta el 14 de mayo (seis jueves consecutivos). 5p - 7p PT | 7p - 9p CT | 8p - 10p ET.”
Un fondo morado con algunas pinceladas moradas más claras que forman arabescos. En el centro del primer plano se encuentra la ilustración de Olly Costello. Un diente de león con tres tallos y tres hojas crece en tierra negra. En dos de los tallos han brotado flores amarillas mientras que el otro está compuesto por semillas blancas mullidas. El diente de león está rodeado y conectado por hongos color púrpura y rojo. Las plantas tienen constelaciones como raíces. Personas diminutas de diferentes edades y razas rodean las plantas y se acercan unas a otras. Las semillas flotan hacia el cielo y el texto blanco entre las semillas dice: “La crisis expande nuestras imaginaciones sobre lo que es posible.” El logotipo de Health Justice Commons aparece en la esquina superior derecha del gráfico. El texto negro que aparece encima y debajo de la ilustración de Olly dice: “INFORMACIÓN DE ACCESIBILIDAD: En todas las sesiones se va a proporcionar lenguaje de señas estadounidense (ASL, por sus siglas en inglés), interpretación entre inglés y español y subtítulos directos. Todas las sesiones serán grabadas (con permiso de les participantes) para el uso de les participantes. ¡Más información e inscríbase! tinyurl.com/HJCSerieDePrimavera2026.”
¡Inscripción para nuestra serie de educación política de primavera — Entendiendo y Transformando el Complejo Médico Industrial: Edición de Justicia Climática y de Discapacidad — ya está abierto!
¡Más información e inscríbase!
tinyurl.com/HJCSerieDePrimavera2026
❤️ ❤️ ❤️
At a time of grief, rage, and mounting climate crisis and authoritarianism, this series explores how the MIC perpetuates, and profits from global war, the climate crisis and the illnesses it claims to ‘cure’.
ACCESS INFO: Live captioning (ENG), English to Spanish Interpretation, ASL. No one turned away for lack of funds!
This series focuses on the intersections of ableism, medical racism, and environmental racism and their entanglements with the Medical Industrial Complex (MIC).
A purple background with a few lighter purple brush strokes forming curlicues. In the center of the foreground is the aforementioned illustration by Olly Costello. The centerpiece of the illustration is a dandelion with three stalks and three leaves growing out of black soil. Two of the stalks have sprouted yellow flowers while one is made up of fluffy white seeds. The dandelion is surrounded by and connected to purple and red mushrooms. The plants have constellations as roots. Tiny people of varying ages and races surround the plants and reach out toward each other. Seeds float toward the sky and the white text amidst the seeds says, “Crisis expands our imaginations around what is possible.” The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the graphic. The black text above and below Olly’s illustration says: “Understanding and Transforming the Medical Industrial Complex: Climate and Disability Justice Edition. Learn more and enroll!"
A purple background with a few lighter purple brush strokes forming curlicues. In the center of the foreground is the aforementioned illustration by Olly Costello. The centerpiece of the illustration is a dandelion with three stalks and three leaves growing out of black soil. Two of the stalks have sprouted yellow flowers while one is made up of fluffy white seeds. The dandelion is surrounded by and connected to purple and red mushrooms. The plants have constellations as roots. Tiny people of varying ages and races surround the plants and reach out toward each other. Seeds float toward the sky and the white text amidst the seeds says, “Crisis expands our imaginations around what is possible.” The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the graphic. The black text above and below Olly’s illustration says: “This series focuses on the intersections of ableism, medical racism, and environmental racism and their entanglements with the Medical Industrial Complex (MIC) as well as rising national and global authoritarianism. April 9th - May 14th (six consecutive Thursdays). 5p - 7p PT | 7p - 9p CT | 8p - 10p ET.”
A purple background with a few lighter purple brush strokes forming curlicues. In the center of the foreground is the aforementioned illustration by Olly Costello. The centerpiece of the illustration is a dandelion with three stalks and three leaves growing out of black soil. Two of the stalks have sprouted yellow flowers while one is made up of fluffy white seeds. The dandelion is surrounded by and connected to purple and red mushrooms. The plants have constellations as roots. Tiny people of varying ages and races surround the plants and reach out toward each other. Seeds float toward the sky and the white text amidst the seeds says, “Crisis expands our imaginations around what is possible.” The Health Justice Commons logo is in the top right corner of the graphic. The black text above and below Olly’s illustration says: “Access Info: All sessions will provide ASL, interpretation between English and Spanish, and live closed captioning. All sessions will be recorded (with participant permission) for the use of participants. Learn more and enroll! http://tinyurl.com/HJCSpring26PolEd.”
Enrollment for our spring political education series — Understanding and Transforming the Medical Industrial Complex: Climate and Disability Justice Edition — is now open!
Visit our website to learn more and sign up!
tinyurl.com/HJCSpring26PolEd
A green background with VCR static. In the center of the image is large text with the name LOIS CURTIS. There are two accompanying photos of Lois, a smiling Black woman with dark brown skin. In one of the photos, she is holding two pieces of her artwork. The remaining text on the page reads, from top to bottom: “Lois Curtis (1967-2022) was an artist, advocate, and survivor of institutionalization. She was forced to reside in medical facilities beginning at the age of 11. Curtis lived with developmental and cognitive disabilities, and was involuntarily committed for nearly 20 years. She went on to become the lead plaintiff in the legal case Olmstead v. L.C., which was decided by the Supreme Court in 1999. According to her obituary in the NY Times, the court ruled that “warehousing people with developmental disabilities in deficient mental institutions, when they are capable of being integrated into community settings in group homes or host homes, constituted discrimination discrimination under the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).” Lois’ brave work secured her freedom and set important legal precedent in the process.”
A green background with VCR static. Near the top of the image is large text that says, TO LEARN MORE. Below this are links to “Interview with Johnnie Lacy: Director, Community Resources for Independent Living: An African-American Woman’s Perspective on the Independent Living Movement in the Bay Area 1960-1980; Latonya Reeves and the Fight for Freedom; and Lois Curtis: How People with Disabilities Won the Right to Choose Their Own Homes.” There are three photos of Black disabled women — Johnnie Lacy, Latonya Reeves, and Lois Curtis — at the bottom of the image. The very top of the image has a label with the words: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Black Futures, Black Health.”
We continue the struggle against institutionalization and the warehousing of disabled people into settings that deny our autonomy. And we assert that everyone deserves to receive life-affirming care with dignity in the setting of their choice.
A green background with VCR static. In the foreground, in the center of the image, is text that says: “3 Disabled Black Women Who Shaped the Independent Living Movement.” Above the text are three squares: a photo of Lois Curtis holding two of her paintings, a dark green-white patterned box, and a photo of Latonya Reeves. Below the image’s central text are three squares: a dark green-white patterned box, a photo of Johnnie Lacy, and another dark green-white patterned box. The very top of the image has a label with the words: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Black Futures, Black Health.”
A green background with VCR static. In the center of the image is large text with the name JOHNNIE LACY. There are two accompanying photos — one from 1975 and one from 1998 — of Johnnie, a smiling Black woman with dark brown skin and an afro. In the photo where she is older, Johnnie wears glasses and a clip-on microphone. It is not apparent in the tightly cropped images, but she is a wheelchair user. The text in the foreground of the image, from top to bottom, reads: “Johnnie Lacy (1937-2010) was a fierce disability rights activist who was integral to the independent living movement. At the age of 19, Lacy survived polio, experienced paralysis, and became a wheelchair user. She contracted the virus while completing her nursing practicum as a student at Chico State University. When she went to attend San Francisco State University to major in speech pathology, Lacy experienced a widely inaccessible campus. She also experienced other forms of discrimination based on her disability, such as being denied entry into the speech pathology program and not being allowed to participate in her graduation ceremony.” The very top of the image has a label with the words: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Black Futures, Black Health.”
A green background with VCR static. Near the top of the image is large text with the name JOHNNIE LACY. Below this, the text reads: “These experiences propelled Lacy into disability rights activism. Lacy completed her graduate education at the University of California, Berkeley, which became a major site for disability rights activism — mostly centered on white men who were wheelchair users. Lacy was a co-founder of the Berkeley Center for Independent Living, the first of its kind in the country. She went on to serve as executive director for Community Resources for Independent Living. Another of her many roles was with the California Attorney General’s Commission on Disability. As a Black disabled woman, Lacy worked hard to highlight the intersections of race, gender, and disability as axes of oppression. In her own words: ‘One of the things that I’ve learned is that I cannot allow myself to fall into the trap of being identified by others, that I have to have a sense of my own personal identity. And that sense is very much tied into who I am as a woman of color and as a disabled person, and I try not to distinguish between the three anymore.’” The very top of the image has a label with the words: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Black Futures, Black Health.”
A green background with VCR static. In the center of the image is large text with the name LATONYA REEVES. There are two accompanying photos of Latonya, a smiling Black disabled woman with dark brown skin. She is a wheelchair user. The remaining text on the page reads, from top to bottom: “Latonya Reeves (1964-2023) was a fearless disability rights activist who, with the support of community, secured her own freedom from institutionalization inside a nursing home. She spent her life working hard to support people on similar journeys, resisting institutionalization while fighting to access dignified in-home care. She was a member of ADAPT, a national disability rights group that, among other work, played a major role in getting the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) passed. Reeves’ work has improved the lives of disabled people across the country. In 2023, ADAPT introduced the Latonya Reeves Act, a national bill that would expand and protect people’s ability to receive long-term services and supports in the setting of their choice across the US.” The very top of the image has a label with the words: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Black Futures, Black Health.”
Black people have been at the forefront of disability rights and justice movements for generations. Today, we are highlighting the lives of 3 Black disabled women — Johnnie Lacy, Latonya Reeves, and Lois Curtis — whose activism and advocacy have catalyzed and shaped the independent living movement.
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Callie House spoke truth to power and contributed to a long lineage of Black women leading the fight for reparations. From Belinda Sutton to Callie House to Queen Mother Audley Moore, the fight for reparations – as part of the wider Black liberation struggle – has been renewed time and time again.
The federal government saw her as a threat and tried to discredit the work. In 1916, the US Postmaster General worked to have House indicted on charges of mail fraud. An all white male jury convicted her, and she served 1 year and 1 day in jail.
This is one example of what mutual aid looked like among Black people in the post-Emancipation era.
Callie House traveled across the country, raising awareness about the reparations movement while empowering Black people to petition the US Congress based on the First Amendment of the Constitution.
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. There are yellow scribbles in the top right and bottom left corners. In the bottom right corner is an image of Queen Mother Audley Moore, a seated older Black woman with brown skin, grey-white hair pulled into an updo, a multicolored dress, necklace, bangles, and rings. The text above her says: “Callie House spoke truth to power and contributed to a long lineage of Black women leading the fight for reparations. From Belinda Sutton to Callie House to Queen Mother Audley Moore, the fight for reparations – as part of the wider Black liberation struggle – has been renewed time and time again, continuing into the present.”
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. At the bottom of the image are the book covers for “Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and the Untold Story of Audley Moore” and “My Face is Black is True: Callie House and the Struggle for Ex-Slave Reparations.” There are grey and yellow scribbles behind the books. Above this is text that reads, from top to bottom: “@HealthJusticeCommons. More Readings + Viewings: My Face is Black is True: Callie House and the Struggle for Ex-Slave Reparations (Mary Frances Berry), Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and the Untold Story of Audley Moore (Ashley D. Farmer), We The People - National Constitution Center Podcast - Callie House: Reparations Advocate and Trailblazer (August 16, 2018), Callie Guy House (1861 - 1928) - Linda T. Wynn (2022) - Tennessee State University - Nashville Conference on African American History and Culture, Truthout - The History of Black Women Championing Demands for Reparations - Ana Lucia Araujo (2019).”
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. There are yellow scribbles in the top right and bottom left corners. The text reads, from top to bottom: “SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER. Tired of social media surveillance? Looking for more health and disability justice news and analysis delivered straight to your inbox? Interested in reading resistance roundups that highlight the ways our communities are building the world we deserve? tinyurl.com/HJCnewsletter. @HealthJusticeCommons.”
Callie House (1861 - 1928) co-founded the National Ex-Slave Mutual Relief, Bounty, and Pension Assoc. which, at its height, had almost 300,000 members. Local chapters emerged across the country and used monthly dues to take care of those who were sick or disabled and cover members’ burial expenses.
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. In the foreground is a row of three identical portraits of Callie House, a 19th-century Black woman with her hair pulled back, wearing a ruffled black dress with a white lace collar and black bow. The portraits are tinted orange, grey, and yellow, respectively. There are orange and yellow scribbles behind the row of portraits. The text above says: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Black Futures, Black Health.” And the text below says: “Callie House and the movement for reparations.”
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. In the foreground is a row of three identical portraits of Callie House, a 19th-century Black woman with her hair pulled back, wearing a ruffled black dress with a white lace collar and black bow. The portraits are tinted orange, grey, and yellow, respectively. The text above says: “@HealthJusticeCommons. A formerly enslaved Black woman with limited access to education. A working-class widow, mother, and washerwoman. An advocate who petitioned the US government for reparations in the form of pensions and encouraged other formerly enslaved Black people to do the same. Co-founder of a national organization with nearly 300,000 members at its height. Her name was Callie Rose.”
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. There are yellow scribbles in the top right and bottom left corners. The text from top to bottom says: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Callie House (1861 - 1928) co-founded the National Ex-Slave Mutual Relief, Bounty, and Pension Association which, at its height, had almost 300,000 members. Local chapters emerged across the country and used monthly dues to take care of those who were sick or disabled and cover members’ burial expenses. This is one example of what mutual aid looked like among Black people in the post-Emancipation era.”
A pastel grey-yellow newspaper background with splotches of faded ink. There are yellow scribbles in the top right and bottom left corners. The text from top to bottom says: “@HealthJusticeCommons. Callie House traveled across the country, raising awareness about the reparations movement while empowering Black people to petition the US Congress based on the First Amendment of the Constitution. The federal government saw her as a threat and tried to discredit the work. In 1916, the US Postmaster General worked to have House indicted on charges of mail fraud. An all white male jury convicted her, and she served 1 year and 1 day in jail.”
A formerly enslaved Black woman with limited access to education. A working-class widow, mother, and washerwoman. An advocate who petitioned the US government for reparations in the form of pensions and encouraged other formerly enslaved Black people to do the same.
Her name was Callie House.
The image has a red background with translucent cream-colored dots. In the top right corner is the edge of a white star with black dots. The text, from top to bottom, reads: "SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER. Tired of social media surveillance? Looking for more health and disability justice news and analysis delivered straight to your inbox? Interested in reading resistance roundups that highlight the ways our communities are building the world we deserve? tinyurl.com/HJCnewsletter. @HealthJusticeCommons."
And subscribe to our newsletter for more Resistance Roundups! tinyurl.com/HJCnewsletter
Check out this article to learn how the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is fighting medical mis- and disinformation. They also became the first national medical society to reject funding from the current administration.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
A screenshot of an article from The Guardian US is in the foreground against a patterned golden orange background. The screenshot contains the headline: “Meet the OB-GYNs fighting back against Trump’s ‘guerrilla war on science.’” The subheading says: “As some medical groups cave to the Trump administration, the American College of OB-GYNs is taking a stand.” Two people dressed in business attire — a white woman with long brown hair and a white man with short white hair — are photographed sitting at a table in a conference room together. The caption for the photograph identifies them as Rachel Gandell Tetlow, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) vice president of government and political affairs, and Steven Fleischman, president of the ACOG. Above the article screenshot are the words: “Resistance Roundup” accompanied with the Health Justice Commons logo. Below the screenshot is an attribution for the article, dated 1/23/26.
The text in the foreground — positioned against a patterned golden orange background — reads, from top to bottom, “@HealthJusticeCommons. This article from The Guardian focuses on the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and how they’re fighting medical mis- and disinformation from the current administration. Resistance Roundups are HJC's listings of ways that our communities are building the world we deserve, how you can take part, and feel less alone. In each newsletter, we link 3-5 stories with powerful examples of people challenging the status quo. Together, we are powerful! Subscribe to our newsletter for more! tinyurl.com/HJCnewsletter.”
A quote from the article is positioned in the foreground against a patterned golden orange background. The text reads: “As the premier membership group for US-based OB-GYNs, ACOG provides its more than 62,000 members with clinical guidance, educational opportunities and career help. It also advocates for abortion rights – a stance that has long made the organization far more politically active than many other major medical societies. And in the last year, the non-partisan organization has become a leading voice in the fight against Donald Trump’s anti-science crusade and the US government’s embrace of medical misinformation, especially on the topic of pregnancy and childbirth.” An attribution with the article title — Meet the OB-GYNs fighting back against Trump’s ‘guerrilla war on science’ — and publication, The Guardian 1/23/26, is below this. A label in the top right corner of the image says @HealthJusticeCommons.
A quote from the article is positioned in the foreground against a patterned golden orange background. The text is a quote from Rachel Gandell Tetlow, vice president of government and political affairs at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). She says: “The reality is that this is a very scary time for many people. There have been fundamental changes made to our public health infrastructure, some of which may be irreparable, though I hope that’s not the case. While ACOG cannot replace some of these entities or fix these monumental problems on our own, we can continue to be an unwavering voice in support of medical evidence.”
We love Resistance Roundups! These are listings of ways that our communities and allies are building the world we deserve. In each newsletter, we link 3-5 stories with powerful examples of people challenging the status quo.
Here's a @theguardian.com story that recently caught our attention! 👀
The first batch of welcome emails have gone out to the dozen folx who are already signed up, so if you have been thinking about Saturday's Disability Justice 101 Workshop, please do not hesitate to join us, as we would love to have you, including if a free spot is needed! 🫂 forms.gle/ZoHsEvmJWdvF...
“There must be those among whom we can sit down and weep, and still be counted as warriors. (I make up this strange, angry packet for you, threaded with love.) I think you thought there was no such place for you, and perhaps there was none then, and perhaps there is none now; but we will have to make it, we who want an end to suffering, who want to change the laws of history, if we are not to give ourselves away.” ― Adrienne Rich
Red background with translucent cream-colored dots. The text reads, from top to bottom: "As we continue to build the world we deserve, our solidarity, struggle, and imagination must extend beyond US borders. In conceptualizing and proliferating health and disability justice, we in the belly of the imperial beast have much to learn from our siblings in the Global South. Rather than caving to disinformation or turning inward, we can use moments like now to deepen our commitment to learning new ways to practice international solidarity, care beyond borders, and disabled futurism. We in the US are continually propagandized to believe in notions of exceptionalism and superiority as it relates to our country. Let us shed those lies and build anew. The struggle continues. @HealthJusticeCommons."
Red background with translucent cream-colored dots. In the top right corner is the edge of a white star with black dots. The text reads, from top to bottom: "SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER. Tired of social media surveillance? Looking for more health and disability justice news and analysis delivered straight to your inbox? Interested in reading resistance roundups that highlight the ways our communities are building the world we deserve? tinyurl.com/HJCnewsletter. @HealthJusticeCommons."
Red background with translucent cream-colored dots. The text, from top to bottom, reads: "US Leaves the World Health Organization. What Now? A Health Justice Analysis. @HealthJusticeCommons."
Red background with translucent cream-colored dots. The text reads, from top to bottom: "On January 22, 2026, the administration announced the United States’ official withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO). Founded in 1948, WHO is the United Nations agency focused on coordinating global responses to international public health emergencies; setting international health standards; providing technical assistance to improve health and safety worldwide; and expanding access to universal health coverage. From coordinating and funding both the research and distribution of vaccines globally to providing data about emergent public health threats, despite our critiques, WHO has played a significant role in addressing global health and safety for the past 78 years. @HealthJusticeCommons."
Red background with translucent cream-colored dots. The text reads, from top to bottom: "The US – a co-founder of WHO – is the first nation to leave the alliance. This decision comes at a time of growing authoritarianism; the spread of health disinformation (including anti-vaccine eugenics + ongoing COVID denialism); as well as the public health crises of genocide, state repression, ever-expanding carceral apparatuses, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other mounting epidemics, like measles. In no uncertain terms – through decisions such as withdrawing from WHO and shutting down USAID – this government states its refusal to be accountable to global institutions and the people of the world. This is yet another manifestation of necropolitics, a way of dictating how some may live while others die. @HealthJusticeCommons."
Red background with translucent cream-colored dots. The text reads, from top to bottom: "The World Health Organization (WHO) never has and never will be on the frontlines of our struggle for collective liberation. In fact, health and disability justice encourage us to think and imagine way beyond neoliberalism. That said, we live in a world where – as many have said before – disease knows no borders. And refusing responsibilities for global cooperation in this instance doesn’t make anyone safer or healthier. The selectivity of US involvement in global affairs is notable and cannot be overlooked either. It is right to ask why the US funds and profits from genocide. Why the US bombs and invades countries across the Global South while denying people inside its own ‘borders’ access to free, universal, life-affirming healthcare. @HealthJusticeCommons."
US LEAVES THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
WHAT NOW?
A Health Justice Analysis
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Kin and comrades have poured loving labor into developing the work-in-progress Patty Berne syllabus and study guide. We will be sharing this critical resource during tonight’s celebration, as well. #PattyLivesThroughUs
This will be a space to share memories, lessons, songs, images, and poems honoring Patty’s life; anchoring our visions for liberatory futures in what #PattyTaughtUs.
In the foreground is text that says: “Disability Justice Dreaming: A Memorial Birthday Celebration for Patty Berne. Thursday, January 22, 2026. 5-7p PT / 7-9p CT / 8-10p ET. Virtual (Zoom) – FREE. Access Info: Live Captions in ENG, ASL, SPA <> ENG interpretation. Additional access support — including sharing video and/or transcript — available upon request. REGISTER: https://tinyurl.com/HJCpattybday. @HealthJusticeCommons.” In the bottom left corner of the image is a photo of Patty Berne — a Japanese-Haitian person with light brown skin, dark hair pulled into space buns, and a multicolored outfit — sitting in a power wheelchair surrounded by various green plants. Patty smiles, their face aglow with the light of birthday candles atop a colorful cake. The purple textured background of the image is overlaid with a translucent illustration taken from the 2nd edition, 2019 cover of Disability Justice primer Skin, Tooth, and Bone: The Basis of Movement is Our People. Artwork by Micah Bazant. The primer is available to purchase via the @sinsinvalid website. Per Sins Invalid, this illustration consists of “a gradient background of brown and lilac with grey skin cell pattern, a row of pointy teeth hovering over a big green leaf, a curved spine, orange and purple octopus tentacles, and a beautiful crip dahlia.”
Today’s the day! In honor of beloved Patty Berne’s 59th birthday (Jan. 21st), we will be virtually gathering for a memorial celebration. You can still join us!
✨ Disability Justice Dreaming ✨
🗓️ Thurs., Jan. 22, 2026
⏰ 5-7p PT / 7-9p CT / 8-10p ET
📍Virtual (Zoom)
Signup: tinyurl.com/HJCpattybday
