Rebecca Cokley launches Ford’s U.S. Disability Rights Program on MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle Reports

In an exclusive on MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle Reports, Disability advocate Rebecca Cokley announces the Ford Foundation’s first-ever program focused on advancing the rights of people with disabilities in the United States.

“This is not about charity or inspiration,” says Cokley, who leads the new program as Ford program officer, “It’s about justice.”

In embracing the disability community’s motto of “nothing about us without us,” the foundation consulted about 200 disability leaders across the United States to shape the new program’s grantmaking strategy. With their guidance, Ford’s U.S. Disability Rights Program focuses on advancing economic justice; strengthening disability organizations through multi-year, core funding support; building a pipeline of diverse disability leadership, both within disability rights and justice organizations and in the broader social justice arena; and countering disability stigma.

Read more about the U.S. Disability Rights Program