Allison Lombardi

Alabama wants to lower the bar for executing disabled people—if SCOTUS lets it The case law is clear: There's more to intellectual disability than IQ tests. Will Trump's justices care?

We're not supposed to execute people with intellectual disabilities because it violates the 8th amendment. The Supreme Court will hear a case where Alabama argues that Intellectual disability when it comes to death penalty should only be decided only by IQ tests.
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

How right-wing superstar Riley Gaines built an anti-trans empire The swimmer tied a trans woman for fifth. The MAGA industrial complex took care of the rest.

How right-wing superstar Riley Gaines built an anti-trans empire www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

“With rising costs and President Trump’s chaotic trade wars, Wisconsin families are already struggling to make ends meet and put food on the table, and every day that Republicans continue this reckless and harmful shutdown is another day that our kids, families, farmers, veterans, seniors, and communities fall even further behind. There’s no excuse for it. None,” said Gov. Evers. “No person should ever go hungry—most especially not in the United States of America. President Trump and Republicans in Congress must work across the aisle and end this shutdown now so Wisconsinites and Americans across our country have access to basic necessities like food and groceries that they need to survive.”

Families are already struggling, and if President Trump and Republicans don't end their reckless government shutdown, basic food assistance that feeds our kids, families, and seniors is going to run out in just 10 days.

End the shutdown now. More here ⬇️
content.govdelivery.com/accounts/WIG...

#NoKings, Madison WI

Opinion: This is UConn: Zero paid family leave for professors UConn currently lets every pregnant/expecting individual reinvent the wheel, cobbling together a leave plan with whatever resources and departmental grace they can muster.

I wrote an opinion piece about parental/family leave at UConn. I’m only ~75% happy with it but … something needed to be said. Many things actually. Loudly. Repeatedly. And with as many voices as possible.

“This is UConn: Zero paid family leave for professors”

ctmirror.org/2025/10/21/t...

It’s disappointing that efforts to combat teacher shortages no longer aligns with this administration’s priorities www.jsonline.com/story/news/e...

Today marks the first day in public media’s history without federal funding. And we’re not going anywhere.

Listeners like you keep our mission alive. Protect one of the last places where America comes together to hear itself.

Stand with us today. Donate at this link: n.pr/46wamAj

YouTube video by LastWeekTonight Trump vs. Higher Education: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

Here’s last night’s story about Donald Trump’s war on higher education, and what a young Stephen Miller looked like. Brace yourself. youtu.be/xk94il8L820

RFK Jr. rolled out that old chestnut again about how healthy Americans were in the 60’s, so here’s a fact check.

In 1965:

-42% of American adults smoked; it’s 11% now.

-The infant morality rate was 24.7/1000; it’s 5.6/1000 now.

-Overall life expectancy was 70 years; it's about 77 years now.

2025 AAUP Faculty in the South Survey The Georgia conference of the American Association of University Professors [AAUP] and its partners in states across the South have been at the forefront of fighting attacks on higher education. To as...

The 2025 @aaup.org Faculty in the South Survey is live. If you are a professor in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, or Texas it's for you. Ends 8/29 at 5pm Eastern forms.gle/v7T3BH2w9LXs...

The Trump Administration’s War on Disability Executive actions, budget cuts, layoffs, and legislation—all enacted in the Trump administration’s first six months—have curtailed disability rights and services, including access to Medicaid and the ...

“In the first six months of his second term, the Trump administration has waged what appears to be an all-out war against disabled people.”

www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...

Coldplay concert at Camp Randall stadium in Madison, WI. Chris Martin pictured on Jumbotron wearing a cheesehead hat

Coldplay concert at Camp Randall stadium in Madison, WI. Fireworks above stadium lighting up the night sky

Had a blast at #ColdplayMadison

How Trump Deflected MAGA’s Wrath Over Epstein, at Least for Now

"Almost immediately, many of those who had been critical of the administration’s handling of the Epstein case cheered the president on as he vehemently denied the claims, [and] sued The Journal . . ."

His DARVO works again.

(thread to be continued)

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/21/u...

Pregnancy is a minefield when you're disabled Few OB-GYNs get disability training—and their disabled patients are far likelier to die.

Disabled people are 11 times more likely to die during labor/in the postpartum period than non-disabled people. Better education and smashing ableism is how we get out of this horrible stat.

For the past year, I’ve been looking into the topic of disability and pregnancy for @motherjones.com 🧵

Currently reading “Unfit Parent” by Jessica Slice. It is fabulous so far!

Celebrating Pride month in Wisconsin

Happy Pride Month, Wisconsin!

This month, we celebrate LGBTQ folks across our state and country and commit to the work ahead to make sure every Wisconsinite can live boldly in their truth without fear.

Everyone has a place and a home here in Wisconsin. 🏳️‍🌈

UW–Madison’s Lombardi, Mueller to examine experiences of disabled STEM students, faculty A new research project led by two School of Education faculty members seeks to increase understanding of the experiences of disabled graduate students and faculty in science, technology, engineering, ...

On May 2, the NSF terminated this grant. We planned to identify ways to increase representation of disabled scholars in STEM careers and address workplace inequities with a focus on graduate students and faculty studying and teaching physics. education.wisc.edu/news/uw-madi...

Proposed GOP cuts could jeopardize SNAP users, farmers and state budgets States will likely serve fewer people in need of food assistance, experts say, as Congress says it’s rooting out waste to meet spending-reduction goals for tax cuts.

Republicans want to pay for tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires, so they're pushing plans that will force kids and families to go hungry or without healthcare.

Unbelievable.
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

I built Democracy Docket to be fearlessly pro-democracy, period. It has no corporate overlords and no outside investors. It does not create false equivalencies or traffic in "both-sides."

It rises and falls on your support. Subscribe today. hubs.ly/Q03jcjqP0

A quarter of children have a parent with substance use disorder, a study finds A new study estimates that 19 million children in the U.S. have a parent with a substance use disorder and that alcohol is the most commonly used substance by the parents.

A new study estimates that 19 million children in the U.S. have a parent with a substance use disorder and that alcohol is the most commonly used substance by the parents.

CEC’s division, DADD, has released a statement in response to recent comments made by HHS Secretary Kennedy regarding autism. CEC echoes DADD’s commitment to individuals with autism and the importance of respectful, inclusive, and informed dialogue in all spaces.

daddcec.com/blog/dadd-st...

Institute of Education Sciences cuts imperil high-quality research, lawsuits allege Two separate complaints say the Education Department’s downsizing of IES was unlawful and will erode data collection and analysis.

Institute of Education Sciences cuts imperil high-quality research, lawsuits allege

Two separate complaints say the Education Department’s downsizing of IES was unlawful and will erode data collection and analysis. #EdResearch

www.k12dive.com/news/educati...

Trump administration has cut $12.6 million in research grants to UW-Madison, provoking a lawsuit The National Institutes of Health has canceled hundreds of active research grants related to DEI, LGBTQ issues or COVID, including four at UW-Madison.

UW-Madison lost at least $12.6 million in federal NIH grant funding after four grants were canceled last month, including one that studied the impact of social media on youth mental health and brain development. Another canceled grant focused on developing vaccines to protect against coronaviruses.

Are you a history professor who has been pressured to alter your curriculum — particularly regarding the history of Black & African American people in the United States?

We would love to talk to you. Send us a DM!

Crowds of protesters in front of the capitol building in Madison, WI

Sign with drawing of Donald Trump and state of WI

#HandsOff Madison, WI

Agency for older adults, people with disabilities to be shuttered under HHS cuts In 2022, the Administration for Community Living provided more than 261 million meals to older adults, assistance such as respite care to more than 1.5 million family caregivers, and independent-livin...

remember what i said about RFK Jr. being a eugenicist first and foremost? www.marketwatch.com/story/agency...

Did You Work on a Terminated NIH Grant? ProPublica Wants to Hear From You. The National Institutes of Health is canceling grants that are seen as conflicting with the Trump administration’s priorities. We want to hear from researchers who have been affected.

The National Institutes of Health is canceling grants that are seen as conflicting with the Trump administration’s priorities.

We need your help investigating this.

Did you work on a terminated NIH grant? Please get in touch.

www.propublica.org/getinvolved/...

One thing about me is that I’m always going to take the crazy woman’s side.

I've lived in three of the cities mentioned in this thread: Madison, Storrs, Eugene. Madison and Eugene have a lot in common with a blue/liberal vibe, except that Eugene is smaller and more dreary. Storrs is VERY different from them. Remote, rural, car dependent lifestyle