Disability Rights at Risk - Lawsuit against section 504

Has anyone else felt overwhelmed by the sheer number of policy changes in the past few months? With so much happening, it’s easy to miss the quieter battles taking place behind the scenes. One of those battles—one that could have devastating consequences for disabled people—is Texas v. Becerra, a lawsuit filed by Texas and 17 other states attempting to dismantle Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Texas vs. Becerra

Back in September 2024, Texas and 17 other states sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in an effort to declare Section 504 unconstitutional. You may remember me discussing section 504 and the disability rights movement prior in one of my recent blogs HERE. The lawsuit was initially framed as a response to the Biden administration’s decision to include gender dysphoria as a protected condition under Section 504. But here’s the problem: the lawsuit goes far beyond that one rule. It specifically challenges the entire law, including its integration mandate, which prevents disabled people from being forced into separate, unequal services.

If this lawsuit succeeds, it could gut disability protections across education, healthcare, public transportation, and outdoor recreation, allowing states to refuse compliance with Section 504 while still receiving federal funding. To understand how disastrous that would be, we need to step back and look at what Section 504 actually does.

Image Credit from Plain Language Explainer Texas v. Becerra

What Section 504 Does and Why It Matters

When the Rehabilitation Act was passed in 1973, it was the first time in U.S. history that a federal law explicitly banned discrimination against people with disabilities. Section 504 states that any entity receiving federal funds—such as schools, public transportation, and healthcare programs—must provide equal access to people with disabilities.

At its core, Section 504 is about ensuring disabled people aren’t segregated or excluded from society. It was the first federal civil rights law to ban disability-based discrimination, requiring that any program receiving federal funds—schools, hospitals, public transportation, parks, and more—provide equal access to disabled people. It is the beginning of Universal Design principles, focusing on equitable use.

This law isn’t just about paperwork—it changes lives. For example, in education, 1.6 million students had Section 504 plans in the 2020-2021 school year alone, ensuring they had accommodations like extra time on tests, assistive technology, or seating arrangements that met their needs. In healthcare, it mandates access to sign language interpreters, accessible medical information, and telehealth services. Public transportation agencies must provide priority seating and boarding assistance. And for federally funded National Parks, it ensures programming access for people with disabilities, making public lands open to everyone.

A real-world example comes from Mercy Botchway, a student who used a Section 504 plan to access class notes, assistive listening devices, and seating adjustments so she could fully participate in school. Without those accommodations, she said it would have been impossible for her to attend. Stories like hers remind us that Section 504 isn’t just a bureaucratic regulation—it’s a law that allows disabled people to fully engage in their communities.

Image Credit from the New York Times

A Hard Fought History

But Section 504 didn’t come easily. When the Rehabilitation Act passed in 1973, the federal government refused to enforce it for years. In response, disability activists led the 504 Sit-In of 1977, occupying federal buildings for nearly a month until officials finally signed the regulations into law. That victory laid the groundwork for future disability rights protections, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, which expanded access requirements beyond federally funded programs to state and local governments, businesses, and public spaces.

Now, Texas and other states want to roll back that progress.

Transphobia Hurts Everyone

Bottom line, this lawsuit is fueled by transphobia. You can’t get around it. The states pushing it are using harmful, false narratives that portray trans people as dangerous, echoing the same misinformation that has been used to justify discrimination for decades. This wave of anti-trans legislation has shamefully increased over the past few years. But here’s the truth: trans people have always existed and will continue to exist. They have the right to be here, just like everyone else.

And this isn’t just an attack on trans people—it’s an attack on all disabled people. By challenging the very foundation of Section 504, these states are arguing that they should be free to discriminate without consequence. But history shows us that when one group loses rights, everyone’s rights are at risk.

LFG

But let’s get to the good news. The disability community is fighting back against these attacks. They are uniting and pushing hard. Organizations like the National Disability Rights Network and the American Association of People with Disabilities are fighting in court, while activists are mobilizing online and in protests. Social Media Influencers have expanded the reach of this information and are massively spreading the word on the threats to section 504. Thanks to this pressure, the attorneys general of the 17 states have publicly claimed they only want to remove protections for gender dysphoria—but their lawsuit still challenges Section 504 as a whole. No changes have been made to their legal filing to reflect their so-called clarification.

For now, the case has been put on hold until April 2025, when the court will review updates from both sides. But the threat isn’t over. If this lawsuit moves forward, it could undermine decades of progress.

That’s why it’s critical to take action now. If you live in one of these 17 states, contact your attorney general and demand that they withdraw their support from this case. The fight isn’t just about policy—it’s about protecting real people, real rights, and real access. Check HERE for more ways to stay informed and please reach out to your representatives. To borrow the women’s national soccer team phrase, Let’s Fucking Go!