In September 2024, Florida and 16 other states filed a lawsuit, Texas v. Kennedy (Formerly Texas V. Becerra), to eliminate Section 504. A law that has protected disabled Americans from discrimination for over 50 years. They are claiming Section 504 is unconstitutional and should no longer be enforced.

If they succeed, millions of disabled people could lose their legal right to education, healthcare, jobs, and public spaces. This lawsuit also threatens the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was built on Section 504’s foundation.

We cannot let this happen. We demand that Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier withdraw from this lawsuit and protect the rights of disabled Floridians.

What is Section 504 & Why is it Important?

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a federal law that bans discrimination against people with disabilities. It applies to any organization that receives federal funding, including:

✔️ Schools (preschool, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary).
✔️ Businesses and workplaces.
✔️ Hospitals and healthcare providers.
✔️ Public transportation and government services.

This law ensures that disabled people have equal access to programs, benefits, and opportunities.

What Section 504 Does:

✅ Protects students by requiring schools to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE), fair evaluations, reasonable accommodations, and access to extracurricular activities.
✅ Prevents workplace discrimination by banning medical bias in hiring and requiring reasonable accommodations.
✅ Mandates accessibility in public transportation, government services, and healthcare. Doctors and hospitals cannot deny care based on disability.

Section 504 paved the way for future disability rights laws, including the ADA, further strengthening these essential protections.

How Will This Affect Disabled Floridians?

According to a 2021 report, 3.5 million Floridians—or 1 in 3 adults—have a disability. Many already face significant challenges:

🔴 4x more likely to struggle with food insecurity.
🔴 10x more likely to experience chronic stress.
🔴 2x more likely to skip medical care due to cost.

Without Section 504, these barriers will only get worse:

🚫 Students with disabilities could lose equal access to education.
🚫 Hospitals could deny critical care, including organ transplants, based on disability.
🚫 Employers could refuse to hire or accommodate disabled workers.

Section 504 protects millions of Floridians. Losing it would have devastating consequences.

To Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier

We, the undersigned, demand that Florida withdraw from the lawsuit against Section 504 and protect the rights of people with disabilities.

Attorney General James Uthmeier must stop this attack on disability rights. Instead of politicizing basic protections, he must listen to the disability community and defend the citizens he serves.

How You Can Help?

✍️ Sign this petition to defend the rights of disabled Floridians.
📢 Share it with family, friends, advocates, local news outlets, and disability rights organizations.

Disability will affect us all eventually, whether through illness, injury, or aging. Protecting these rights means ensuring a future where everyone has equal access, opportunity, and dignity.

💙 Sign & share now! Together, we can stop this attack on disability rights.

This petition was created by DISrupt Florida, a state cohort of The DISrupt Coalition.

The DISrupt Coalition is a nationwide movement uniting disability advocates, organizations, and allies to take coordinated action in defense of disability rights. Through grassroots organizing, policy advocacy, and direct action, we are mobilizing across all 50 states to protect Section 504 and every disability right under threat.

Join the fight. Join the movement. Join the DISruption.

Sources

“2021 Florida Disability & Health Stats.” Florida Department of Health, Oct. 2021, www.floridahealth.gov/programs-and-services/people-with-disabilities/disability-and-health-program/DHP2021DataReport.pdf.

“Frequently Asked Questions: Section 504 Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).” U.S. Department of Education, www.ed.gov/laws-and-policy/civil-rights-laws/disability-discrimination/frequently-asked-questions-section-504-fape#:~:text=The%20Section%20504%20regulations%20require,of%20nondisabled%20students%20are%20met. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.

“Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.” Disability Rights Florida, 3 Jan. 2013, disabilityrightsflorida.org/disability-topics/disability_topic_info/section_504_of_the_rehabilitation_act_of_1973.

“Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, June 2006, www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/ocr/civilrights/resources/factsheets/504.pdf.

“Texas v. Becerra: What It Is and How You Can Help Stop the Attack on Section 504.” DREDF, 19 Feb. 2025, dredf.org/protect-504/.