‘Back to school’ was always my favourite time of year as a child - and, let’s be honest, that feeling never really changes. The new pencil case, the highlighter… what’s not to love about that? (She says, eyeing the pencil case off camera as she writes this newsletter - along with niche eighties stickers that were, ahem, a *treat*.)
One of my most popular sections has been the new ‘Access Audit’ list for 2025. These are quarterly round-ups of new media releases, such as if there is a new book to be aware of, upcoming film media, even studies. If you want to see any of the previous lists, they are available here for free:
Disability is so often described as ‘niche’. A ‘niche issue’. A ‘niche specialism’. This is just coded language for likely ableism in my opinion; disabled people are a quarter of the UK’s population, and also form the biggest growing minority group around the world today. Who dares to suggest that this group somehow does not count? And why? Our stories, our goods, our art, our culture are just as good, and just as worthy - and some research even says inclusion is more profitable, too! And with the incredible benefit of brand loyalty, too! I rest my case…
September is going to be a very busy month for me - there are roughly 7,000 words left to complete on my book, before I edit for continuity, as well as the footnotes and legal checks. An edit by my editor takes place next year, along with planning what happens next - some of which I cannot wait to share on this newsletter.
But it does mean that there will be slightly less of me on here for now. I will be back on the 18th and 19th of this month - because Fashion Week! - and that means two dispatches on the matter. (Unhidden has a great few gems in store, and that’ll be documented on this newsletter.) There will also be the monthly favourites email for paywall subscribers, with the usual mini essays and extra links of curated reading.
I will be back in due course - and properly. I just need to attend to this next book for a little while; you’ll find out ‘why’ very shortly. I won’t be online either on Instagram until the 17th, too.
If you, however, would like to support the continued running of The Disabled Feminist, please consider sharing this post with your social media network - which you can do by clicking the button above. It’s free! And I’d like to get to the next milestone in terms of subscriber count by the end of the year, too. You can also tip me £1 or $1 by clicking this button - if every subscriber did, it would allow me to pay my rent each month:
And on with the… performance?
Out Now
The DecodeME study finally reported - with some groundbreaking research, meaning that advancements are slowly coming in reach. The day it dropped, Twitter and Instagram was just aflame; The Times has a great piece on this, what it means, and why everyone should care about this new research.
Dr Frances Ryan released the follow up to her book, Crippled - and it’s a cracking read. Who Wants Normal? is out now!
NeoWalk has released a new, dreamy walking stick - and it is in the exact pink shade that brands this newsletter. (I would love this for a Christmas present, I won’t lie.) Get it here.
The Museum of The Mind, near Surrey, has a new exhibition on the topic of insomnia - more information here.
Disabled beauty influencers have been dominating my Instagram feed lately - and I was intrigued by Sephora’s release of a colour changing lip and cheek tint, that seems to have been given the accessibility stamp of approval. May treat myself after fashion week is done.
Coming Soon
As part of the official London Fashion Week schedule, adaptive fashion brand Unhidden will be making their debut on 18th September. You can see their current clothing - including the dress in the photo above! - through this link meanwhile.
A new collection from Unhidden will also be dropping - and will be available early next year. This is just a preview - and shall report back shortly on what that looks like.
The Times seems to think that ‘young people’ are ditching dating apps, in favour of…. bookshop dates. Yes, really. However, a recent influx of like-minded companies suggests that this is likely an accessible dream. Bored Of Dating Apps (BODA) is one brand, along with Haystack Dating - all venues on this one are deemed accessible by host, Lucy Rout.
The Science Gallery in London is an accessible exhibition space, cafe - as well as being host to surrounding green areas and the rest of London Bridge. Quantum Untangled lands on the 8th of October.
And A Subscriber Offer…
I strongly believe that anyone who writes for a living should be paid for what they do, especially if they are trained and accredited. There is a value in a profession - and piracy, AI, whatever, takes away our autonomy in that particular matter far too much. I especially feel this as, once again, my first book has been stolen - free versions distributed by a large podcasting app was quite the wake up call. And not in a good way.
Writing as a profession is becoming harder than ever before - and that’s if you’re lucky enough to *still* be here. Too many people I know have upped and left in the last year, thanks to the economic climate, instability, the general changes that make the internet even angrier than ever before.
There is an offer of 25% off for one year of a paywall subscription. That’s access to all newsletters past and present, an extra round up email at the end of each month, as well as being among the first to have access to what I’m up to. (Because too many social media platforms is just, well, exhausting.)