Tomorrow, anyone could be disabled, reminds Jess Benham, a disabled activist academic, in this talk. People with disabilities have rights and contribute to our society in often unrecognized ways. Benham urges us to reconsider how disability and accessibility truly impact our lives, in the past, the present, and the future. Jessica is a strong advocate for Autistic rights and currently serves as the Director of Public Policy at the Pittsburgh Center for Autistic Advocacy. Among other projects, Jess has organized a statewide coalition against organ transplant discrimination, pushed successfully for more and better Medicaid waiver services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and trained first responders in autism competence. Jessica Benham is also a doctoral student in Communications, where she serves as a Graduate Teaching Fellow, and master’s student in Bioethics at the University of Pittsburgh. She holds a master’s in Communication Studies from Minnesota State University and Bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and Communication from Bethel University. In addition to her academic appointments and activism, Jessica’s research interest lies mainly in the investigation of the rhetorical and ethical constructions of disability in society. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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