Communication FIRST | CommunicationFIRST

Screengrab of the NIDILRR Research Long Range Planning Stakeholder Follow Up Webinar on April 20, 2023. On the left, there is a slide with the working definition of “Ableism” by Talila Lewis. At the top of the slide, the word “ableism” is followed by its pronunciation and the word, “noun.” Below, the definition reads, “A system of assigning value to people’s bodies and minds based on societally constructed ideas of normalcy, productivity, desirability, intelligence, excellence, and fitness. These constructed ideas are deeply rooted in eugenics, anti-Blackness, misogyny, colonialism, imperialism, and capitalism. This systemic oppression leads to people and society determining people’s value based on their culture, age, language, appearance, religion, birth or living place, ‘health/wellness’, and/or their ability to satisfactorily re/produce, ‘excel’ and ‘behave.’ You do not have to be disabled to experience ableism.” Below the definition, yellow text reads, “Working definition by @TalilaLewis, updated January 2022, developed in community with disabled Black/negatively racialized folk, especially @NotThreeFifths.” On the right, there is an ASL interpreter with light skin wearing a black shirt. On the right of the ASL interpreter, there is a woman with brown skin and long black hair up in a ponytail wearing a red shirt with flowers and a black suit jacket.

When Agencies Listen

May 16, 2023 Communication FIRST

It’s gratifying when policymakers #LISTEN! On November 21, 2022, CommunicationFIRST submitted comments to the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living,…

Leadership Changes

April 26, 2023 Communication FIRST

CommunicationFIRST is excited to announce the following additions to its leadership team: Our new Vice Chair is Pancho Ramirez Our…

AUCD Leadership Award

April 24, 2023 Communication FIRST

On April 19, 2023, CommunicationFIRST was honored to be given an award from the Association of University Centers on Disabilities…

The Power and Art of AAC: Disrupting Racism, Ableism, and Oppression

April 4, 2023 Communication FIRST

On June 20, 2022, the evening after Juneteenth, CommunicationFIRST Policy Director Bob Williams, and CommunicationFIRST Advisory Council member Devva Kasnitz…

Bob Williams, an older white man sitting in a wheelchair and wearing a yarmulke looks at the audience while presenting in front of a microphone. A speech generating device is in front of him. Two women rabbis sit behind him looking on.

Bob Williams Eulogy for Judy Heumann

March 8, 2023 Communication FIRST

Bob Williams delivering a eulogy at Judy Heumann’s memorial service at the Adas Israel Congregation synagogue in Washington, DC, on…

A photo collage containing eight different photos of Judy Heumann with Bob Williams, Jordyn Zimmerman, Tauna Szymanski, and others

“All Voices Matter” – Remembering Judy Heumann (1947 – 2023)

March 7, 2023 Communication FIRST

Like others in the disability community and around the world, everyone at CommunicationFIRST is devastated by the untimely loss of…

out of focus image of a parked police car with blue lights on at night

Police Brutality: A (Speech) Disability Concern

February 14, 2023 Communication FIRST

Content Warning: This post discusses police brutality against disabled people. On January 26, 2023, police in Huntington Park, California, fatally…

Two Black men kneeling on a stage facing the audience. One is behind the other and his hands are on the biceps of the man in front, who is wearing a grey tanktop and white trousers. Both men have serious looks on their faces. The man in back has long hair and a short beard, and his face is partially obscured by the man in front. The man in front is Lateef McLeod and he has very short hair with a hint of a beard. His hands are balled into relaxed fists and are laying on top of each other at the wrist. They are bathed in a warm light, and the background is bathed in an electric blue light.

So Much

Communication FIRST

I hear their painful cries jut up from cracks on the street.

The block is a scorching frying pan,

frying my brothers on the pavement.

What is Speechism?

December 16, 2022 Communication FIRST

A Working Definition and Request for Input For centuries, people with significant speech disabilities have been treated as if we…

A smiling white woman in her 20s with medium length brown hair wearing a light pink blazer over a grey t-shirt that says "Speech does not make someone more human" and a conference lanyard around her neck that says "Jordyn" and "Presenter" and has a mini-fidget attached. She is standing in front of a screen that says "2022 ASHA Convention - SLPs as Gatekeepers: Reimagining, Challenging, and Pushing Our Assumptions - 2:45-3:45". The bottom of the screen says 2:22 PM and November 18, 2022, and New Orleans Convention Center.

SLPs as AAC Gatekeepers

December 12, 2022 Communication FIRST

Guest blog by Jordyn Zimmerman, M.Ed. On November 18, 2022, CommunicationFIRST Board Chair Jordyn Zimmerman gave an invited presentation at…

Kids Need to Be Able to Communicate with their Doctors

November 23, 2022 Communication FIRST

Bob Williams Testimony on behalf of CommunicationFIRST on the Rights of Children and Youth to Effective Communication and Quality Health Care…

Run for Office with a Speech Disability?

November 4, 2022 Communication FIRST

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CommunicationFIRST joins other disability rights advocates to express dismay at the public and media response to a…

stock photo image of a government building looking up at columns and a blue sky with clouds

CommunicationFIRST Urges HHS to Strengthen Communication Regulations for People Who Need AAC

October 5, 2022 Communication FIRST

On October 3, 2022, CommunicationFIRST submitted comments to the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on its proposed…

Attend this live webinar (with CART and ASL and Spanish interpretation) to learn from Board Member Pancho Ramirez and the University of California San Francisco neuroscientists about groundbreaking technology to reduce communication barriers for people with speech disabilities

Brain to Text Technology?¿Tecnología de Cerebro a Texto?

September 27, 2022 Communication FIRST

(Leer en español abajo) In this open-captioned, ASL-interpreted webinar, which originally aired live on October 19, 2022, you’ll hear from…

How Do You Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month?

September 26, 2022 Communication FIRST

Leer en español How we Communicate our Culture September 15 through October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month, a month-long…