2025 Was a Year of Collective Mourning for Disabled Communities

"An unfathomable number of disabled people died in 2025. In the U.S. these deaths have come as political will has swayed toward limiting oversight in cases of abuse, locking away the unhoused - many of whom are disabled - instead of providing resources, and making the road to education even more difficult for disabled people. Five years ago, in 2020, we saw a disabling pandemic wreak havoc on our communities. Those ripples have now converged into a full-on tsunami of fear and pain."

"Attempts to quantify the acute experience of mortality that disabled communities are facing feel both impossible and vital. For example, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, which organizes an annual Disability Day of Mourning, has highlighted more than 60 cases of disability-related filicide, where a disabled person is murdered by a family member or caregiver. Meanwhile war and genocide across the world have also fallen heavily on disabled communities, as Russia sends disabled people to the front line as cannon fodder"

An unfathomable number of disabled people died in 2025, with disproportionate losses across settings and nations. In the U.S., reduced political will has led to less oversight in abuse cases, increased institutionalization of unhoused disabled people, and greater barriers to education. The aftermath of the 2020 disabling pandemic amplified vulnerabilities. Disability-related filicide cases exceed sixty, according to the Autistic Self Advocacy Network’s Disability Day of Mourning. War and genocide have targeted disabled communities, including forced frontline deployment and repeated attacks on hospitals. Formal counts miss avoidable nursing home deaths, coerced assisted dying, and ongoing COVID-19 fatalities. Communities are increasingly talking about these impacts and seeking remedies.

Read at Truthout