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Betsy DeVos is what I would call a less than competent Secretary of Education. She has no regard for the lives of the disabled in this country and seems to enjoy trying to take away our favorite toy.
That’s right. I said, “our.” I have Asperger’s Syndrome and are thus on the spectrum, making me a legally disabled person. I don’t feel disabled, even though I technically am.
I don’t like what DeVos is doing to my brothers and sisters. My homies. My posse.
This is where I urge you to sit down and finish reading.
In her recent budget proposal, DeVos slashed ALL $17.6 million from the Special Olympics budget. Effectively ending the games for 272,000 kids due to zero federal support.
What kind of person spits in the face of the disabled and tells them they don’t get their one thing a year to train and look forward to? Someone special. That’s who.
In case Madam Secretary (it makes me cringe to even type those words) doesn’t realize it, the disabled community is largely a sheltered community. Partially because many of those on the spectrum fear social interaction and try to avoid friendships and partially because no one understands who we really are and we’re shunned.
Congratulations Secretary DeVos, you’ve now been outed as someone who doesn’t believe in inclusion, but rather exclusion. We don’t need a Secretary of Education who believes we should all be shoved in one room regardless of our IQ, grades, disabilities, or other emotional or behavioral problems.
If you say you do believe in inclusive classrooms, I’ll call you a liar because this Special Olympics nonsense proves you don’t care about our community one bit.
“I just have to say, madam secretary, you have zeroed out Special Olympics once again. I still can’t understand why you would go after disabled children in your budget. You zero that out. It’s appalling,”
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
It is appalling, Rep. Lee and thanks for calling her out on it. It’s also something I find absolutely disgusting and distasteful.
Now it’ in the hands of Congress and in a very rare moment, both sides of the aisle are joining to say there will be no budget passed with Special Olympics finding cut.
When you see Republicans and Democrats agree on something, you know it’s huge and that it has to do with pure morality.
Or a lack thereof.
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