Emily Ladau

Disability Rights Activist, Writer & Speaker

Emily Ladau is a passionate disability rights activist, writer, and speaker whose career began at the age of 10, when she appeared on Sesame Street to educate children about her life with a physical disability. A native of Long Island, New York, Emily graduated with a B.A. in English from Adelphi University in 2013 and now serves on their Board of Trustees. In 2018, she was awarded the Paul G. Hearne Emerging Leader Award from the American Association of People with Disabilities.

Emily is the Editor in Chief of the Rooted in Rights Blog. She also provides communications consulting, social media strategy, and editorial services for multiple disability-related organizations and initiatives. And, she co-hosts “The Accessible Stall Podcast,” a show that dives into disability issues.

Emily’s writing has been published in outlets including The New York Times, SELF, Salon, Vice, and HuffPost and she has served as a source for NPR, Vox, and Washington Post. Emily has spoken before numerous audiences, from the U.S. Department of Education to the United Nations. Central to her work is a focus on harnessing the power of storytelling as a tool for people to become engaged in disability and social justice issues.

Find Emily on Twitter and LinkedIn.

More of Emily’s work:

• Emily’s website, Words I Wheel By

• Emily’s forthcoming book, Demystifying Disability