07/26/2026
July 26th marks the 36th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which works to ensure that all people with disabilities have the same rights & opportunities as everyone else. Last month, the DOJ released a memo announcing that the Olmstead Act is no longer enforceable & states are no longer required to provide home & community-based services that have kept Americans out of institutions. This follows the administration’s decision to move the Office of Special Education & Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), the backbone of the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), which guaranteed every disabled child a free & appropriate public education, out of the Dept of Education. More than 1 in 4 adults in the U.S. have some type of disability.
LRD is committed to making the league & our events more accessible. The roller derby community has opportunities for everyone to be involved; visit louisvillerollerderby.com/new-recruits if you are interested in skating, reffing, or officiating.
Local disability resources:
Kentucky Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Center for Accessible Living
NAMI Louisville
American Printing House for the Blind
(Pictured is the Disability Pride flag, designed by Ann Magill. It depicts a black/charcoal background to honor the disabled lives lost to systematic ableism with 5 diagonal stripes symbolically “cutting across” the barriers & systems that keep disabled people segregated. Red represents physical disabilities, yellow represents cognitive & intellectual disabilities, white represents invisible & undiagnosed disabilities, blue represents mental health disabilities, & green represents sensory disabilities.)
