People with disabilities and their families deserve leaders who lead with dignity, respect, and compassion. Yet this year alone, we’ve seen public figures use language that stigmatizes, mocks, and divides. Including recently, when a Cabinet Secretary used a term that mocks the disabled while his own daughter, who is disabled, stood nearby.

We won’t stay quiet! We have watched leaders mock people with disabilities, promote unproven claims about autism despite the lack of scientific evidence, and use inflammatory rhetoric toward others. Words matter. When they come from those in positions of power, they shape public attitudes, influence policy, and affect the lives of the people we support.

At Venture, we believe every person deserves to be valued, respected, and included. We will continue to stand with people with disabilities, advocate for their rights, and speak out against language and actions that undermine their dignity.

When will this end? It ends when respect is no longer the exception but the expectation.

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