Rain... against my window...
In honor of Judy Heumann
Rain could beat against my window
But you drown it out
Be the darkest depths of winter
But your light shines down
When the world got my head spinning
Feeling stuck here on the ground
You lift me up
You lift me up
When the days get way too rough
And the stars don’t shine enough
It’s you who lifts me up
It’s you who lifts me up
‘Lift Me Up’ - Lachi
These are lyrics to the song, Lift Me Up, by Lachi (sung by Lachi,
, and ). It was written in celebration of Judy Heumann's life and work.
Judy was an activist who fearlessly led the civil rights movement for people with disabilities. As a child with a disability, she grew up in the late 1940s and early 1950s. This was a time when there was little to no access to buildings throughout towns and cities, including schools and churches. They knew how to use their voices and bodies in creative and effective ways. With nerve, foresight, and unimaginable energy, their determined fight made a huge impact on the lives of people with disabilities.
Due to all the work Judy Heumann and a team of people did even five years earlier, the world was already more accessible when I was ready to live on my own. Their hard work made a big impact on me as I began to discover my independence in the early 1980s and 1990s. I was able to attend college with access and accommodations, ride on accessible city buses, and enter buildings with automatic doors. By my second year in college, I was hired as a counselor at the Center for Independent Living in Boulder, Colorado. This was a Center modeled after the first of its type in Berkeley, California. It was a place of resource and support for people with disabilities as they began to live independently. At that Center, I had my first job!
The movie ‘Crip Camp’, tells the story of the disability civil rights movement and Judy's leadership. All of the people involved in that movement were ‘connection in action’! Through their commitment, laws were passed that opened ways for people with disabilities to access communities and contribute to the life of their own towns, cities, and beyond. For over 40+ years, these doors have been open, and laws have been in place to create more accessibility for people with disabilities, visible and non-visible.
Judy Heumann was an amazing leader. She knew the work it took to stay connected. She knew how to network and encourage everyone she met to stay involved, maintaining an accessible world for all.
I had the opportunity to spend time with Judy three years ago when she came to the campus of Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina. In those two days, she welcomed me into an amazing community of people from all over this country and the world. She could size up someone's strength in an instant and put them to work with encouragement and always a touch of humor.
Judy passed away in Spring 2023. Her death was a personal loss for so many of us. People with disabilities who are activists in this country and beyond looked at one another with recognition - it was our turn to be on the front line, to carry on.
And carry on, we must…
So much has been happening! I fluctuate between anger, deep sadness, and fear. Reeling from the passage of the "Big Beautiful Bill”, it is easy to feel all of these emotions at once. It is like ‘rain… against my window’!
Many of us are discussing how we can take action. The determined and successful work done by Judy and that amazing team of activists is being challenged. The laws that created access to schools, parks, theaters, and businesses throughout our country are being reversed.
I'm grateful for people in my extended circle who speak out –
, , , and Andrew D. Pulrang. They show us how we can stay connected and strive to make a difference together.Who do you know who is speaking out?
Let us be ‘connection in action’!
