I am the mother to a bright, loving, daughter who has multiple disabilities including autism and a rare chromosome syndrome, so I’ve witnessed firsthand both the beauty of neurodiversity and the heartbreak that comes when our leaders fail to uphold their responsibilities to disabled Americans.

My daughter deserves a world where she is supported, understood and included — not sidelined by political agendas. Yet time and again, administrations — past and present — have made promises to protect the disability community, only to fall short. Whether it was slashing funding to Medicaid programs that provide lifelines to families like mine, failing to enforce education laws like IDEA or spreading misinformation about autism, these decisions have real consequences. They don’t just hurt policy; they hurt people.

My daughter’s future depends on access to therapies, inclusive education, community supports and employment opportunities. She depends on a society that sees her as fully human, not as a burden or a talking point. Unfortunately, proposals from current politicians like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. only add to this concern. When public figures cast doubt on science or minimize the lived realities of people with disabilities, they undermine the progress so many of us have fought for.

This isn’t about partisanship. It’s about people. About our children. About the nearly 61 million Americans with disabilities whose lives are shaped by policies too often made without their voices at the table.

We need leadership that protects our rights, funds our futures and listens to our stories. My daughter is not a statistic. She is a learner, a light in this world, and she, like so many others, deserves better.

So in closing, if we don’t care about our most vulnerable, who are we as individuals? That is the real question.

CHRISTINA MARTIN 

Kenner