Recently, I’ve taken up disability issues and advocacy. It’s one of my main uses of social media platforms. A big issue in the community right now, is plastic straws. Many disabled people require straws, because of a plethora of reasons. States, the government, and some congressional leaders have called for the banning of plastic straws, and environmentalists have begun shaming disabled people who require straws. As a result of these recent actions, I’ve done three things…
1. I’ve written multiple blog posts and Twitter threads defending plastic straws. The links are as follows:
https://derekschmitzviews.wordpress.com/2019/06/11/the-straw-ban-hurts-people/
https://derekschmitzviews.wordpress.com/2019/09/30/covering-plastic-straws-again-twitterarchive/
2. Written an open letter to Congress regarding these issues, which may be found here: https://derekischmitz.home.blog/2019/10/07/an-open-letter-to-congress-regarding-plastic-straws/
3. I’ve created an official petition with The White House to address these issues. I would really appreciate if you would sign and share the petition to get this issue and issues like it the traction they deserve here: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/stop-banning-plastic-straws-sake-disabled-people
But, it goes further than just straws. There are millions of mistreated disabled people, and thousands of “hot-topic” disability issues, and I want to help them get seen and heard.
For those asking why I care, I feel like I have been called to do this. I have platforms that I can utilize to help disabled people, so I’m going to use them. Thank you for taking the time to read all this and sign the petition, I as well as many other disabled people truly appreciate it.
Derek I. Schmitz 