The Bay Remembering Disability Rights Activist and Author Alice Wong
Nov 21, 2025
In this poignant tribute, Alice Wong, a disability rights activist and founder of the Disability Visibility Project, shares her insights on the evolving landscape of accessibility. She discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the need for inclusive accommodations that benefit everyone. Wong also candidly reflects on her health challenges and the complexities of arranging home medical care. Additionally, she envisions a dignified and self-directed care infrastructure, highlighting the importance of community and political will in driving change.
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Pandemic Validated Disability Access
- During COVID-19, accommodations long advocated by disabled people proved beneficial for everyone.
- Wong highlighted that access measures like remote work and livestreaming are broadly useful, not niche concessions.
Crisis That Changed Her Care
- Alice Wong recounts sudden health crises that left her ventilator-dependent and using a text-to-speech app to communicate.
- She describes near-institutionalization after hospital discharge and relying on a GoFundMe to afford private caregivers.
Lifelong Care Management
- Alice describes learning to manage caregivers from childhood after losing mobility and needing respiratory support.
- She emphasizes the intimate burdens of care: loss of privacy, spontaneity, and constant dependence on others.
