Robyn Powell

What About Disabled Parents? (with Dr. Robyn Powell) - upEND Movement Season 3, Episode 2

A new episode of The upEND Podcast is out now! Listen to “What About Disabled Parents?” with special guest Dr. Robyn Powell! We’ve been following Dr. Powell’s work for years, so it was great to finally have this conversation.

Nicole Porter’s work has been so important to understanding disability law and her leadership helped make our affinity group a reality. Congrats, Nicole!

Congratulations to Professor Nicole Buonocore Porter @WM.edu Law School for winning the AALS Section on Law Professors with Disabilities and Allies' 2026 Chai Feldblum Award!

My article argues that true marriage equality requires dismantling these barriers. Until then, the promise of marriage equality remains unfinished.

Disabled people face barriers to marriage through guardianship restrictions, benefit penalties, institutional rules, and stigma. These structures turn a constitutional right into a conditional one.

I’m excited to share my article, Holding Out for Love: Why Disabled People Can’t Say “I Do”, forthcoming in the Wake Forest Law Review (2026). It explores why marriage equality remains out of reach for many disabled people. SSRN: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

I was 8 years old when the ADA became law. As a disabled woman, I celebrate its promise—but also know how fragile our rights remain. 35 years later, we’re still fighting for true equality.
www.damemagazine.com/2025/07/25/t...
#ADA35

That is very smart of you. However, it is hotter than hell here, so we will have to hope that Miley doesn’t bark. 😂

The Promise, and Failure, of the American Disabilities Act - Dame Magazine I was 8 years old when the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law. I didn’t yet understand legislation, or what “civil rights” meant. But I already knew there were places I couldn’t go — res...

The ADA is hailed as a historic civil rights milestone, recognizing people with disabilities as a protected class.

Yet now, on the 35th anniversary of the ADA, we've made so little progress. With Trump back in office, is the ADA doomed forever?

The Promise, and Failure, of the Americans With Disabilities Act - Dame Magazine I was 8 years old when the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law. I didn’t yet understand legislation, or what “civil rights” meant. But I already knew there were places I couldn’t go — res...

Tomorrow is the 35th anniversary of the ADA. It changed lives—but it was never enough. As disability rights face growing threats, I wrote about the law’s promise, its failures, and what’s at stake now.
www.damemagazine.com/2025/07/25/t...
#ADA35

Excited to be a part of this. There’s still time to sign up!

Thrilled to share this new article that I co-authored.

Dobbs, Disability, and the Assault on Reproductive Autonomy The Dobbs decision compounds historical reproductive injustices against disabled people, connecting modern abortion restrictions to the eugenic legacy of Buck v. Bell.

"Through a reproductive justice lens—which demands attention to the social, political, and economic conditions that shape reproductive decision-making—we can better understand why abortion access is fundamentally a disability rights issue." www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/...

“The Department of Energy—not exactly an obvious hot spot for attacks on disability or other civil rights,” said UPenn law professor Jasmine Harris, who also specializes in disability law. “Anti-civil rights creep often happens away from the main stage, more likely to be under the radar.”

“The Department of Energy’s decision to rescind the Section 504 new construction accessibility requirement is a direct attack on disability rights and part of a broader pattern of civil rights rollbacks aligned with Trump-era policies,” said law prof Robyn Powell.

Honored to be interviewed for this podcast.

Thankful to be interviewed for this important article.

“Disability is seen now as very much a Democratic issue and not a Republican issue,” @robynmpowell.bsky.social said. “I have significant concerns about what will happen, because the Fifth Circuit is, of course, just so notoriously conservative.”

Ultimately, I advocate for a more holistic, intersectional approach to reproductive justice—one that fully includes and empowers the disability community. This requires robust coalition-building between disability rights and reproductive justice movements.​

The article also proposes legal strategies, including leveraging state constitutional provisions, expanding health exceptions, and protecting abortion providers through statutory presumptions and burden-shifting provisions.​

I explore constitutional arguments, even under rational basis review, to demonstrate that these bans lack legitimate governmental interest and contradict core disability rights principles.​

My article argues that these bans not only exacerbate existing healthcare barriers for disabled people but also perpetuate discrimination by undermining principles of bodily autonomy and self-determination central to disability rights.​

Post-Dobbs, many states have enacted restrictive abortion laws with vague health exceptions. These laws often ignore the complex realities faced by disabled people, particularly regarding mental health and medical emergencies.​

Just got the print copy! My latest article, “Disabling Abortion Bans,” is out now in UC Davis Law Review. It explores how post-Dobbs abortion bans harm disabled people—and how the law can fight back.
lawreview.law.ucdavis.edu/sites/g/file...

Excited to be speaking at "Three Years after Dobbs: The Reproductive Justice Landscape" at Northeastern Law!

So happy to see @maddow.msnbc.com feature
@autisticadvocacy.org's important statement about how dangerous RFK Jr. is for autistic people.

The APHA Disability Section invites abstract submissions for our 2025 Annual Meeting in Washington, DC. Submit your abstract by Friday, March 28! More info available at: apha.confex.com/apha/2025/di...

Four Things You Should Know About the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act At a time when civil and reproductive rights are under constant attack, there remains at least one bright light: the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), a relatively new law that grants landmark pro...

The PWFA ensures pregnant and postpartum workers can access essential job protections—offering leave for recovery, mandating reasonable accommodations, prohibiting employer retaliation, and filling gaps left by other workplace policies.

📢 DISABILITY SECTION CALL FOR ABSTRACTS! APHA 2025 Annual Meeting in Washington DC is accepting submissions until March 28! Topics include disability justice, health equity & more. Submit at: apha.confex.com/apha/2025/di... #APHA2025

Check out @robynmpowell.bsky.social‬’s new article in the California Law Review exploring how the family policing system disproportionately surveils disabled parents, harming families under the guise of protection.
buff.ly/mAfgMxO