In February I was the victim of severe, blatant disability discrimination and violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The person who wronged me was nominated by the past governor of Michigan and appointed by the Supreme Court. In an effort to file a complaint against this high-level government employee, I have discovered that the jurisdiction of who can receive my complaint is limited but includes the Governor. I voted for Gretchen Whitmer, @gewhitmer on Instagram, after hearing her speak at the first Women’s March in Lansing, MI before she was elected. She spoke about the importance of diversity, community involvement, and listening to others.

Now I hope to work with Governor Whitmer, my governor, to prevent this type of discrimination from ever happening again in our state and country. I’ll keep reaching out to her office until we have the opportunity to discuss these issues and my evidence-based ideas for resolving them, which are grounded in my work as a disability expert. It’s 2019, and yet even as a disability expert and counselor I was shocked to experience the discrimination I faced solely because I am a person living with a physical disability. We cannot accept discrimination because to do so would be telling people with disabilities they are not worthy of respect, dignity, or opportunity.

•[image description for those using screen readers: a picture of the banner of a website showing Ashley Jacobson’s request to voice a concern to Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s office has been submitted. Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s picture is at the top of the photo, and she is a white woman with brown, shoulder-length hair who is wearing a navy shirt under a red blazer. She also is wearing a very classy pearl necklace. Next to her picture to her right is the text, “Governor Gretchen Whitmer,” and to the right of that is a small outline of the state of MI and “Michigan.gov” with a light picture of a bridge behind that.]