Melissa Blake
Illinois
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Writer. Blogger. Disability activist. Op-ed queen. Viral tweeter. Sassy redhead. Down-home Carrie Bradshaw. Bylines: CNN, Cosmo, Glamour. 💌 mellow1422@aol.com
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Articles by Melissa Blake
Florida 2026 General Election Results
November 6, 2026 To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: The 2026 Florida general election represents a critical juncture for the state’s political landscape, anchoring a highly competitive midterm cycle that tests partisan dynamics and shapes the state’s legislative and fiscal policy for years to come. Held on Nov.
Beyond the Statewide Ballot: A Guide to Colorado’s Key Local Measures in 2026
While much of the attention this election cycle has focused on Colorado’s statewide ballot, voters across the state will also decide a wide range of local questions on Nov. 3. From infrastructure and public safety to education funding and local elections, a clear common thread is the fiscal pressure pushing local governments, schools and special districts to cast a wide net to fund services amid rising costs and cuts. For coverage of key local and regional races across Colorado, click here.
Colorado 2026 Local and Regional Elections: Key Races to Watch
Colorado’s 2026 election will extend well beyond the statewide races for governor, Congress and the General Assembly. While those contests will command most of the attention, elections at the county, municipal and regional levels could have a more direct impact on issues such as development, infrastructure, transportation, energy, public safety, housing and economic growth.
2026 Gubernatorial Race Overview
September 24, 2026 Melissa Kuipers Blake, Douglas Friednash, Elliott Guffin, Gregory Hayes, Joe Jaso, Mackenzie Kay, Donovan McMahon, Steven D.
Colorado’s 2026 General Election Landscape
September 4, 2026 Melissa Kuipers Blake, Adam J. Burg, Douglas Friednash, Josh Friednash, Logan Fry, Donovan McMahon, Jia Meeks, Sarah Mercer, Cooper Reveley, Sloane Whelan, Sydney Ziegler Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck + Follow x Following x Following - Unfollow Contact To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: With Colorado’s June 30 primaries well in the summer rearview, all eyes now turn to the upcoming general election on Nov. 3.
Florida 2026 Post-Primary Election Report
[co-author: Heather Turnbull] Just over seven years ago, Brownstein established a strategic partner relationship with premier Florida lobbying firm, Rubin, Turnbull & Associates. A long-standing Florida firm with deep roots in the state’s political apparatus, Rubin Turnbull has offices in Tallahassee, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Tampa Bay. The following are high-level results for the 2026 Florida primaries from the Rubin Turnbull team.
Colorado 2026 Primary Election Results
July 2, 2026 Melissa Kuipers Blake, Douglas Friednash, Josh Friednash, Logan Fry, Donovan McMahon, Jia Meeks, Sarah Mercer, Cooper Reveley, Sloane Whelan, Sydney Ziegler Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck + Follow x Following x Following - Unfollow Contact To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog: Colorado completed its primary elections on Tuesday, June 30.
End of the Line: Colorado 2026 Session Defined by Budget Deficit, Pending Turnover
The second regular session of Colorado’s 75th General Assembly concluded last Wednesday, May 13. As compared to most sessions, the final days of the 120-day lawmaking period were notably characterized more by a sense of resignation than their normal frenetic pace. This marked tonal shift could have been caused by any number of factors, but in hindsight two reasons emerged above others.
Trump Administration Advances Marijuana Rescheduling
On April 23, President Donald Trump’s acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, signed an order reclassifying state-licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). While this action does not legalize cannabis federally, it marks a major shift in how the federal government treats medical marijuana and follows months of delay in implementing the president’s earlier directive to reschedule marijuana.
Helping Employees Understand Their Health and Financial Benefits
Date 12.19.2025 Read Time 3 minutes Benefit offerings that make life easier for your people and their families are essential. But when nearly 90% of employees don’t understand their options, improving the benefits and financial literacy of your people can help protect your investment while supporting your people. Making benefits information simple to find, easy to understand, and relevant to real-life situations isn’t just good for your people, it’s good for your business.
Colorado Governor Convenes Special Legislative Session
This morning, Gov. Jared Polis issued Executive Order D 2025 009, convening the Colorado General Assembly in an extraordinary legislative session to begin on Aug. 21, 2025. The governor has this power under Article IV, Section 9 of the Colorado Constitution. The scope of the legislature’s work during the special session, as outlined in the governor’s proclamation, is limited to the following topics: 1. Budget Cuts and Statutory Reserve Requirements: Gov.
A moment that changed me: my dad helped me with everything - then suddenly he was gone
‘I wondered how I would ever do life without him’ … a young Melissa Blake with her father.Photograph: Courtesy of Melissa Blake On a cloudy Monday morning in March 2003, my father came into my room to check on me. I felt him pull the blankets up around my neck – something he used to do when I was a child. He lingered for a moment, then quietly left the room. That was the last glimpse I ever had of him. On that day he took his own life. He had been suffering from sinus cancer for the last four months.
Beautiful People: My Thirteen Truths About Disability
Well-known disability activist and social media influencer, Melissa Blake, offers a frank, illuminating memoir and a call to action for disabled people and allies. In the summer of 2019, journalist Melissa Blake penned an op-ed for CNN Opinion. A conservative pundit caught wind of it, mentioning Blake's work in a YouTube video. What happened next is equal parts a searing view into society, how we collectively view and treat disabled people, and the making of an advocate.
Infant Nutrition and Other Early Life Risk Factors for Childhood Obesity According to Disability Status
1. Introduction One in every five children in the United States is affected by obesity [1]. Childhood obesity has been linked to various chronic conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain types of cancer [2]. Previous studies show that obesity in childhood tracks strongly into adulthood [3].
Breaking Through the Noise: How to Craft an Effective Open Enrollment Communication Plan
Date 9.10.2025 Read Time 4 minutes Approaching the open enrollment period with a strong communication game will benefit you, your employees, and your business. People don’t appreciate what they don’t understand, and insurance tends to top the list. Every human resources and benefits administration professional knows that it’s challenging to engage employees in the open enrollment process.
8 Ways My Disability Will Be Amazing For My Love Life
I'll just cut to the emotionally revealing, music-swelling rom-com monologue right now: I'm a woman with a physical disability. I've also never been on a date or had a boyfriend. That's not to say I've never fallen in love because I have. Many times. I've fallen hard and I've fallen fast and I've also fallen somewhere in between the two. They made my heart want to leap out of my chest and do cartwheels down the street like a scene from one of those old-time-y cartoons.
I Freaking Love Selfies
To me, they mean self-confidence, loving my disabled body fully and unapologetically taking up space. By Melissa Blake Photos by Melissa Blake I couldn’t have been more than 10 years old in the photo. I’m at the beach, grinning proudly like I’m enjoying the best day ever. The image isn’t the best quality — it’s a bit blurry and taken at a weird angle (to my credit, I was only 10, remember) — but joy practically radiates from it. There’s no mistaking: This was a selfie.
What I've learned from 16 years of therapy: 'There's no shame in seeking help'
Melissa Blake started receiving therapy following her dad's death by suicide. (Photo: Courtesy of Melissa Blake) It’s 2004 and I’m sitting in the waiting room of my university’s counseling center. My mind begins to race as I think about my first appointment; I don’t know what to expect, but I’m sure of one thing: I may be nervous, but I know I need to talk to someone about my grief. Just one year earlier, my father died from suicide following a four-month battle with aggressive sinus cancer.
Opinion: Bumble is driving powerful change for disabled women like me
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN.
Melissa Blake Is Disabled and Proud of It
It never fails: Every time I mention how I'm proud to be disabled, people react with a mix of awe and utter shock. "How can you ever be proud to be disabled? No one would ever actually want to be disabled, would they?" I keep encountering these words and reactions — over and over and … over. It's as if they can't imagine a more worthless, less-fulfilling life to live. Sadly, this is a notion that is regularly reinforced by society and how it views disabled people.
Opinion: This new holiday movie would have changed everything for my teenage self Original
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN.
Why Joe Biden's Promise to Support the Disability Community Is So Important to People Like Me
Like so many people across America (all 77,330,410 people who voted for him) I'm thrilled over President-elect Joe Biden's win. It felt like a victory that was a long time coming—one that punctuates a year of COVID-19 chaos and comes on the heels of disastrous and dangerous policies targeting marginalized people from the Trump administration.
I Took the Fight Against Ableism to the Polls
Writer Melissa Blake voted for the future that she wants to see in her lifetime—a future where disabled people are accepted and inclusion isn’t an after-thought or a fight. I couldn’t have been more than 10 years old when I first learned about the importance of being an advocate. That lesson came from my parents as they navigated the world of my disability—from making sure I got the care I needed in the hospital to helping me fulfill my educational goals.
Blake: Bullied for my disability in the era of Trump
One night last week, as I was checking social media before bed, I opened my direct messages on Instagram to find this: “Humans on this earth like you just shouldn’t be alive.
Opinion: Someone told me I'd never model because I'm disabled. I proved them wrong at NY Fashion Week
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN)When I was a teenager, someone said that I could never be a model because I'm disabled. Those words stung.
Opinion | Bullies have singled me out in the Trump era because of my disability. But I won’t stop speaking out. Original
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer covering relationships, disability issues and pop culture. One night last week, as I was checking social media before bed, I opened my direct messages on Instagram to find this: “Humans on this earth like you just shouldn’t be alive.
Looking at "Independence" Through the Lens of Disability
Image: fran_kies/Shutterstock After my first day of college classes, I wanted to quit. I felt out of place and overwhelmed. As I sat with my mom in a local diner, I rattled off my fears – class sizes were bigger, the workload was intense, and my physical disability made maneuvering around the sprawling campus seem overwhelming. What if things weren’t accessible? What if the school was too big?
A Message To TikTok Parents Who Use My Face To Make Their Kids Cry Original
Photo: Courtesy of Melissa Blake. “Oh, look,” I deadpan as I read the latest message from someone letting me know that they saw my photo on TikTok being shared in a hurtful way. “Surprise, surprise!” I joke because I’m definitely not surprised. As a disabled woman, people ridiculing and mocking my appearance is practically the most predictable thing about social media.
A Message To TikTok Parents Who Use My Face To Make Their Kids Cry
“Oh, look,” I deadpan as I read the latest message from someone letting me know that they saw my photo on TikTok being shared in a hurtful way. “Surprise, surprise!” I joke because I’m definitely not surprised. As a disabled woman, people ridiculing and mocking my appearance is practically the most predictable thing about social media.
8 Ways My Disability Will Be Amazing For My Love Life
I'd always thought my physical disability was a negative asset. Turns out, I may be wrong. I'll just cut to the emotionally revealing, music-swelling rom-com monologue right now: I'm a woman with a physical disability. I've also never been on a date or had a boyfriend. That's not to say I've never fallen in love because I have. Many times. I've fallen hard and I've fallen fast and I've also fallen somewhere in between the two.
It's Disability Pride Month. You should know that I'm proud to be disabled.
Here's something you should know about me: I'm proud to be disabled. I can picture some of you looking very perplexed right now. Admitting this fact about myself is something I may have said in a hushed tone just a few years ago. Why? By all accounts, I'm not supposed to be "proud" of my disability. Not according to society, at least. But then again, I've never given much thought to societal conventions. Thankfully, I'm not alone.
How a wheelchair ramp and the ADA changed my life
This feature is part of the ADA 30th Anniversary series, which marks the 30th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act, civil rights legislation which prohibits discrimination based on disability, provides accommodations for employees with disabilities, and requires public spaces to be accessible. In July 1990, I was 8 years old and enjoying the carefree days of summer: going to the pool, reading books at the library and getting excited for my birthday the following month.
Facebook Avatars Are Fun...But They're Definitely Not Disability-Inclusive.
Image: Courtesy of the author Like many people, I’ve been spending a lot of my quarantine time mindlessly scrolling through Facebook. Amidst the cute cat photos, career updates from writer friends, and selfies of at-home haircuts, I noticed a new trend last week: People were posting their Facebook avatars. Imagining yourself in cute cartoon form is a great way to take your mind off the state of the world, right? So, I decided to give it a try. It was fun at first. Hair color? Red. Type of shirt?
Read This If You Don’t Understand Why Complimenting Adele’s Weight Loss is Toxic
The second I saw Adele trending on Twitter Tuesday night, I reflexively braced myself for the oncoming comments. Related story Inside Adele’s New Relationship with Rapper Skepta “Oh, here we go again,” I thought.
Questions Abound as Colorado General Assembly Extends Suspension of Legislative Session | JD Supra
Updated: May 25, 2018: JD Supra is a legal publishing service that connects experts and their content with broader audiences of professionals, journalists and associations.
The Self-Care of Escapist TV
“Am I binge-watching fictional political dramas to escape the real-life political drama of the Trump administration?” That’s the question I’ve been asking myself most evenings for a while now. After a long day of seeing troubling and frustrating headlines about the goings on in the White House, I eagerly queue up Netflix, where I’m quickly transported to another, very different White House – that of President Jed Bartlet on The West Wing.
'The Bachelorette' is growing up
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN. (CNN)It looks like after 15 seasons, "The Bachelorette" may be finally growing up -- literally.
Fate of Colorado Legislative Session Unclear in Midst of COVID-19 | JD Supra
Updated: May 25, 2018: JD Supra is a legal publishing service that connects experts and their content with broader audiences of professionals, journalists and associations.
Top 5 Trends for Cannabis in 2020
To ask this author to identify the top five trends in 2020 for cannabis is akin to asking her to name only five of her favorite Coldplay songs. With so much energy for both topics, a selection of the absolute most favored components of either passion presents quite a challenge. But like the cannabis industry has done for 20 years under its state-legal regime and entirely illegal federal one, this author will endure under the confines of such limitations.
What 61 million Americans and I are still waiting for
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN.
Frozen 2 Plot and Elsa and Anna's Bond Shows Me The Importance of Sisterhood
By Melissa Blake Parade I’m 38, an adult by all accounts and yet, Frozen’s love story still tugs at my heartstrings. No, I’m not talking about the romance between Anna and Kristoff—I’m talking about the sisterhood between Anna and Elsa. One half of a sisterhood myself, Frozen and Frozen 2 provided the love story I never knew I needed.
FDA Cracks Down on Companies Selling CBD Products | JD Supra
Updated: May 25, 2018: JD Supra is a legal publishing service that connects experts and their content with broader audiences of professionals, journalists and associations.
My parents bought their first color TV so I could see Big Bird
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN.
My clap-back at online bullies inspired a global self-love movement
Courtesy of Melissa Blake I’ve been a writer for over a decade, so I’m used to people taking issue with my words at times. But I wasn’t prepared for the level of vitriol that came after I wrote an op-ed for CNN about unfollowing President Donald Trump on Twitter. A popular conservative YouTuber quoted from this piece in one of his videos, briefly sharing my photo. Soon the negative comments came pouring in—not about my opinions, but about my face.
A Love Letter to My Electric Wheelchair
Issues + Advocacy My social life and career wouldn't be the same without it. By Melissa Blake I spent my elementary school years playing outside with my friends. When I was in college, I spent my days as a reporter for the student newspaper, zipping around campus to interview everyone from students to the president of the university. And after I graduated from college, I found myself in the role of newspaper adviser to that same student newspaper.
I Was Told I Was 'Too Ugly' to Post Photos of Myself—So I Did It Anyway and Went Viral
My goal: give anyone who's been bullied or dealt with disability a voice. My weapon: my face. By Melissa Blake October 04, 2019 Our new series This Is Me is about being empowered to own who you are and defy any ridiculous societal expectations of beauty. We're not here to meet your standards, we're here to break them. Show us how beautiful you are! Tag us on Instagram: @healthmagazine #ThisIsMe Nearly a month ago, I went viral on Twitter simply for posting photos of myself.
Trolls Told Me I'm Too Ugly To Post Pics. Then I Did And Something Incredible Happened.
Courtesy of Melissa Blake “Melissa Blake should be banned from posting pictures of herself.” Those were the words that greeted me one afternoon as I was scrolling the internet. It was just 10 words, left by a stranger in the comments of a YouTube video I was mentioned in, but they packed a powerful punch. I winced, but not as much as you might think. Did those words hurt? Absolutely. Was I surprised by them? Not in the slightest. Sadly, I’ve come to expect them. Let me back up a little first, though.
Trolls Told Me I'm Too Ugly To Post Pics. Then I Did And Something Incredible Happened.
(Photo: Courtesy of Melissa Blake) “Melissa Blake should be banned from posting pictures of herself.” Those were the words that greeted me one afternoon as I was scrolling the internet. It was just 10 words, left by a stranger in the comments of a YouTube video I was mentioned in, but they packed a powerful punch. I winced, but not as much as you might think. Did those words hurt? Absolutely. Was I surprised by them? Not in the slightest. Sadly, I’ve come to expect them.
Bell bottoms and a blended family: 'The Brady Bunch' at 50
Melissa Blake is a freelance writer and blogger from Illinois. She covers disability rights and women's issues and has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping and Glamour, among others. Read her blog, So About What I Said, and follow her on Twitter. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers. View more opinion on CNN.
Let’s Talk About Suicide
By Melissa Blake 09/23/19 Changing misconceptions and long-held stereotypes won’t happen overnight, but making the conscious decision to talk openly and honestly about suicide is a strong start. If you are in crisis or are experiencing difficult or suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273 TALK (8255) Photo by whoislimos on Unsplash Suicide is everywhere. We hear about it on the news, we see the headlines, we read the sad statistics.
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