One of the things that is sort of a mantra for me is that everyone will become disabled if they're lucky enough.

Aging is a privilege, and if you do get the opportunity, you will likely become disabled.

From the Advocate magazine in partnership with Glad, I'm Jeffrey Masters, and this is LGBTQ and A. Today I'm talking to

Maria Town. Maria is the president and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities.

That quote that you've just heard is something from her interview that I can't stop thinking about.

If you're lucky enough, she says, you will live long enough to become disabled.

Disability looks like so many things, right?

And in fact, over one third of the LGBTQ community has a disability.

So if you don't have one, you absolutely have a friend or a loved one who does.

And as we'll hear Maria say today, disability is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of strength,

resilience, and survival. So let's get to it. This is Maria Town.

You know, preparing for this interview, I was thinking about all the different aspects

of queer life.

Or should I say my queer life?

Because I was specifically thinking about how not accessible they are.

Yeah. And one of the biggest and most visible examples,

I think, is pride, pride celebrations. And I'm just curious about what is in your experience with pride.

Pride is interesting. The idea of like walking in a parade is very exclusive for a lot of people. There is always, you know,

bias towards being able to physically show up and watch or participate in a parade that I think,

you know, our experience with coronavirus may change. I hope that various Pride committees and

organizations across the country are actually

thinking about virtual engagement in subsequent years and how that can be a complement to

...