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Feminists Around the World: Lori Long · Stuff Mom Never Told You

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Okay, this is Sanny and Samantha and welcome to stuff
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: I never told you productive I Heeart Radio.
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: And we are kicking Disability Pride Month off. Yes, y'all,
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  Speaker 2: July first, we have begun with a bang for our
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: activists around the world and doing it a bit different
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  Speaker 2: because we want to talk about a reintroduced bill from
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  Speaker 2: California Representative Jimmy Panada and the woman who inspired this act,
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: Lori Long, which is titled the Marriage Equality for Disabled
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: Adults Act. So if you want more information, you can
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: actually go take a lesson to our past episode that
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  Speaker 2: Annie led on about marriage and disability, which we do
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: mention Representative Panada and his bill when he first introduced it,
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: but you know, signed for an update, and I'm not
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: going to tell you much because there's not much of
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: an update except for the fact that he reintroduced it
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: because it just kind of sat there. So all that
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  Speaker 2: to say, let's talk about Lori Long, a disabled woman
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: who resides in California. She met her partner Mark when
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: she was in her forties and it was doing this
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: relationship she was able to make it through all the
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  Speaker 2: trials and tribulations that is called dating. If you know,
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  Speaker 2: you know, and surviving that. They knew they wanted to
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  Speaker 2: be married and spend their lives together as a married couple.
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: But of course, because we can't have nice things and
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  Speaker 2: people are not allowed to have autonomy, they knew this
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  Speaker 2: would be complicated, especially with her disability benefits. Literally, she
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: would lose it benefits that she has received since she
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  Speaker 2: was a child due to her autoimmune condition known as
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  Speaker 2: ankylosing spondylitis. As we talked about before, benefits like DAK
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: or Disabled Adult Child and SSI would be eliminated due
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  Speaker 2: to the marriage penalty. This is from a twenty twenty
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  Speaker 2: four article written in today dot com about long story.
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  Speaker 2: Shout out to them because I'm a quote them a
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: little bit. The policies regulating disabled adult children only allow
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  Speaker 2: for marriage if someone marries another adult, disabled child or
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  Speaker 2: someone receiving Social Security because of disability or retirement of
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: Allah says who is a contributor. If they marry someone
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  Speaker 2: who does not receive DAK or SSI, they lose their benefits. Yeah,
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  Speaker 2: and it isn't just these benefits specifically, but also their
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: Medicaid could be at risk as well. So we wanted
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: to note that and here's a bit from their interview
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  Speaker 2: an article about Long. They say, growing up, Long was
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: diagnosed with enklosing spondylitis, an autoimmune condition that causes inflammation
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: in the joints in the spine. According to the National
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: Institute of Arthritis and Muscular, Skeletal and Skin Diseases, it
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: causes pain and stiffness as people lose flexibility in their spine.
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: People with it often develop problems with their gut, skin conditions,
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: eye diseases, and even bladder problems. It affects my daily
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: life and daily activities, Long says, and yet we talked
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: about in our episode, not many people understand about these
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: restrictions or that it even exists. Going back to this article,
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: they say, so few people understand the restrictions on marriage
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  Speaker 2: that when Long called her local Social Security office to
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: check if she would lose her benefits, the person who
• 3:11
  Speaker 2: answered the phone and accurately reassured her. They told me, oh, honey,
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  Speaker 2: of course you can get married. You're not going to
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  Speaker 2: suddenly become not disabled when you get married. Long recalls,
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: after chatting with a friend, she called back and asked
• 3:23
  Speaker 2: for a specialist in the marriage rules. She said, oh,
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  Speaker 2: I'm so sorry, they must have not realized your status.
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: If it's regular Social Security disability insurance, you can marry
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: whoever you want and keep your disability insurance and healthcare,
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  Speaker 2: Long says, But if you're a disabled adult child on
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: a parent's work record, you're limited as to who you
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  Speaker 2: can marry. And by the way, all of this includes
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: the fact that when she was a child being diagnosed,
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: her father's insurance dropped her. So they were like what
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: was going on and had to apply for it anyways.
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: So not only did they try to take care of
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: it on their own insurance, they were not allowed. By
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: the way, it was illegal at the time, but no
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: one cared, No one really stood up for their rights. Again,
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  Speaker 2: we talk a lot about this in this episode that
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: was previously recorded, and he did all that research, thank
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: you very much. And with the restrictions and roadbox, Long
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: had the courage to contact her then a local congress person, Rep. Panetta.
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  Speaker 2: Now I think she also contacted her local state congress person,
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  Speaker 2: but they were like, no, this is bigger than just
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  Speaker 2: the local, We need this to be federal, so they
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  Speaker 2: went higher up. So Long has been rallying and advocating
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  Speaker 2: for herself at the same time as trying to get
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  Speaker 2: this done through federal policies and with a disabled community.
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  Speaker 2: She actually talks about how she wishes she didn't have to,
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  Speaker 2: but she literally does not know what else to do
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  Speaker 2: because it has impeded her life essentially. And again from
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  Speaker 2: Today dot com, they write, in September twenty twenty three,
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  Speaker 2: Long helped organize a rally, a mass commitment ceremony that
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  Speaker 2: took place in Washington, DC. Participants called attention to the
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  Speaker 2: restrictions disabled people face and advocated for marriage equality. I
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: said we need to start having protests out in front
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  Speaker 2: of the Capitol and have a mock ceremony. Long says,
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  Speaker 2: it was a great ceremony. We had a lot of
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  Speaker 2: wonderful people there. Love that kudos. So it was on
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  Speaker 2: Valentine's Day of this year, twenty twenty five that Reped
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  Speaker 2: Panetta reintroduced the bill. So from his site Panetta dot
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  Speaker 2: House dot gov, they write, under current law that beneficiaries
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  Speaker 2: more than one million Americans with lifelong disabilities lose their
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  Speaker 2: Social Security and Medicaid benefits if they marry a non
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  Speaker 2: disabled person. This antiquated rule strips individuals of their financial
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: and health care security. Simply because they wish to build
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  Speaker 2: a life with their partner. The Marriage Equality for Disabled
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  Speaker 2: Adults Act would repeal this unjust penalty and ensure that
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  Speaker 2: disabled individuals are not punished for choosing to marry. Which,
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: by the way, the riot has been pushing everybody, y'all
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  Speaker 2: need to get married. But we know it's about eugeniks
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  Speaker 2: so moving on and in that side, he is quoted
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  Speaker 2: with this, No Americans should have to choose between their
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  Speaker 2: happiness and their healthcare, said Reponetta. By reintroducing this legislation,
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  Speaker 2: we are standing up for the fundamental right to marry
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  Speaker 2: without fear of losing essential benefits. Every person, no matter
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  Speaker 2: their circumstances, deserves the dignity and freedom to build a
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  Speaker 2: life with their needed benefits and the person they love.
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  Speaker 2: And by the way, he does lean into like everyone
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  Speaker 2: equal marriage love is love type of thing. So just
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  Speaker 2: in case you were wondering, the Act includes that several
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  Speaker 2: key provisions, again from his site. One eliminates the requirement
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  Speaker 2: that a dakficiary remain unmarried to receive Social Security benefits.
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  Speaker 2: Two ensures that DAK benefits are not revoked upon marriage.
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  Speaker 2: Three modifies Social Security's rules regarding common law marriages, which
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: by the way, we talked about for protects SSI and
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: Medicaid eligibility for Dax who marry a non disabled person.
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  Speaker 2: So of course Long is hopeful and is waiting. Here's
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  Speaker 2: a quote provided to Monterey countynow dot com, who, by
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  Speaker 2: the way, writes a few things about her and really
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: really like is behind her and supports her. She says,
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  Speaker 2: it feels like the world is going full on chaotic
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  Speaker 2: and taking time to celebrate love may seem silly or
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  Speaker 2: even a little selfish. Long sins by text that having
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: been said, matters of the heart continue to matter, even
• 7:16
  Speaker 2: though meaning in the disability community feel like we have
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: front row seats to the chaos. So obviously she's talking
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  Speaker 2: about the many layers and layers that has happened which
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: their rights are being just trampled on on a constant basis.
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  Speaker 2: But this has been something that needed to be fixed
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  Speaker 2: from jump. Let's just be real honest, and I know
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  Speaker 2: again Annie has some amazing research listeners who have sent
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  Speaker 2: this in as a request. We know that y'all have
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: been following this closely. We thank you again for bringing
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: stuff like this to our attention because this is the
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  Speaker 2: intersectionality of it all. We need to have this conversation.
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  Speaker 2: And also kudos to the representative who is trying to
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  Speaker 2: push this forward and not allowing it just to sit.
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  Speaker 1: Yes. Absolutely, Thank you so much listeners for bringing this
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: to our attention and all kinds of resources that you
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: send us. Please keep that coming. If you would like
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: to contact us, you can email us at Hello at
• 8:11
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• 8:13
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• 8:15
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• 8:22
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• 8:25
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• 8:27
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