they're going to erase the existence of many folks with disabilities on the census by changing the questions so that you can answer something like "I have some difficulty hearing, even while using hearing aids" and count as "not disabled"
please submit a formal comment here, if you can, by following either of the two linked mastodon users' scripts to show that this would not be a welcome change.
qoph's script, lightly edited to remove parts that talk about who you are, reproduced below:
Please do not use Definition 1 of "disability," which only includes "A lot of difficulty" or "Cannot do it at all," as markers of what counts as "disability." Moving forward with Definition 1 would encourage a simplistic, binary view of disability that only entrenches the ableist status quo of our society that abled people don't even notice. Moving forward with Definition 1 would mean that millions of #disabled people would suddenly not count as "disabled." I understand that budgetary concerns are important; I ask that the ACS pause, and consult with a broader range of disability leaders (Dr. Bonnielin Swenor, for example), who could offer creative solutions from disability perspectives that would not result in erasing millions of Americans.
