Disability Rights Now: Inside the Fight for Accessibility, Inclusion, and Independent Living

n this episode of Disability Rights Now, host Matt Shedd talks with National Council on Independent Living director Theo Braddy about his new memoir, From Shack to the White House: A Memoir of Four Lives. Theo traces his journey from growing up poor in the deep South, to acquiring a spinal cord injury at 15, to surviving a nursing home, becoming a family and community leader, and ultimately servin...

In this episode of Disability Rights Now , we speak with Keri Gray—speaker, entrepreneur, and keynote speaker at this year’s NCIL Conference. Keri shares her perspective on the intersection of race and disability, the need for sustained investment in Black disabled leadership, and the importance of centering lived experience in systems change. We discuss what it takes to build truly inclusive spac...

In this episode of Disability Rights Now , we speak with Keely Cat-Wells—entrepreneur, advocate, and keynote speaker at this year’s NCIL Conference. Keely shares how she’s using technology to build more inclusive hiring pipelines, reshape outdated systems, and create new pathways to employment for people with disabilities. We talk about authentic representation, accessibility in media and business...

In this special NCIL Conference preview episode, we talk with Theo Braddy , Executive Director of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) , about the urgent threats facing disability rights in today’s political climate—and how the independent living movement can respond. Theo shares his vision for the future of NCIL, what it means to lead with lived experience, and why building cross-mov...