Our Stories
Rooted in Rights tells authentic, accessible stories to challenge stigma and redefine narratives around disability, mental health and chronic illness.
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Frida Kahlo: A Bisexual Disabled Mexican Artist Marginalised in Life but Celebrated in Death
Content note: brief mention of cyber assault and suicide I find myself wondering how Frida Kahlo became such an icon. After all, not everyone can claim they are disabled, bisexual female artists of Mexican descent who attempt to live their…
An Account of Being Sentenced to Life in a Skilled Nursing Facility
Content notes: toileting, neglect, isolation, institutionalization This morning I watched my roommate eat her breakfast on a bedside commode that had been full since yesterday. Again. I don’t really know which stench was worse, the potty or the shame. If…
Intimacy After Trauma: Navigating Re-Entry Into a Pandemic World
Content note: eating disorders, COVID-19, sexual abuse, sex, trauma How do you let someone love you when you’re afraid of yourself? I first asked myself this at age 17, anorexic and emotionally isolated by the fear of what my body…
To Meet Disability Employment Goals, Disabled People Must First Have Access to Care
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, so let’s talk numbers: In 2020, 17.9% of people with disabilities were employed in contrast to the employment rate of 61.8% for people without disabilities. Although there have been shifts in employment…
My Incarcerated Truth: How Solitary Confinement Affected My Mental Health
This post mentions suicide. If you or someone you know are in need of support, please reach out for support. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 En Español: 1-888-628-9454 For people who are deaf/hard-of-hearing: 1-800-799-4889 Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to…
The Harms of Perpetuating “Illness Fakers”
I had not long been a part of the online chronic illness community when I discovered the Illness Fakers page on Reddit. I only saw it because someone I followed was being harassed, and their content being taken apart on…
Without Meaningful Allyship, Hearing People are Doomed to a Never-Ending Cycle of Poor Deaf Awareness
Deaf people exist, and if you’re a hearing person and are aware of that fact, then you win – though I don’t have any stickers left, and there’s no way for me to know that you are aware of my…
Accessible Housing is Healthcare. It Could Have Prevented My Hospital Readmission.
When my friend’s car pulled up to the front door of the hospital, I wanted to feel giddy with relief that I was finally heading home. Instead, my head spun with fatigue and vertigo. My body felt weak and my…