In this essay, writer Rebekah Taussig reflects on co-writing the film Being Heumann, which chronicles disability rights icon Judy Heumann and the historic 1977 sit-in for Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. While celebrating the film's premiere and the growing cultural representation of disability, Taussig contrasts these victories with ongoing systemic barriers—such as airline mistreatment of wheelchair users—and recent legal threats, including a lawsuit and a Department of Justice memo that sought to undermine community integration protections under Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Ultimately, she emphasizes that today's generation must actively defend the hard-won legacy of earlier activists to ensure true societal inclusion.
