About

The Beginning

The Nebraska Spoonie Initiative was created by two Disabled individuals with personal experience inside and leaving institutions. They have experience advocating against oppressive state regulations, and abusive behavior from staff within disability agencies, which reinforced their firm values rooted in disability justice.

During their time in support work, they witnessed how easily disabled people are forced into abusive systems that controlled their daily lives and refuse to honor their intrinsic right to choice. Disabled people within these institutions and even within many programs are systematically discouraged, and even denied access to, the ability to self advocate. These systems are still built around abled and neurotypical supremacy, rather than providing care that is disability-affirming, trauma informed, or person-centered. Even when these systems claim otherwise. 

Through direct experience and seeing this happen time and time again, it became abundently clear that this wasn't just a case of poor circumstance, but a systemic issue upheld by a culture of ableism. Disabled people are greatly disenfranchised and the ability to escape institutions is nearly impossible for many individuals who rely on daily support. The Nebraska Spoonie Initiative was built to provide The Disabled People of Nebraska a village where they can express themselves and learn to advocate free of oversight from people who silence them.

As The Nebraska Spoonie Initiative grows, our organization will offer programming to assist The Disabled People of Nebraska through community lead peer support. We aim to equip agencies with the ability to provide person-centered care that is guided by the individuals they serve, rather than quotas and what their personal belief of what “independence” should look like.

Why "The Nebraska SPOONIE Initiative"?

Many disabled people refer to the "spoon theory" to describe the amount of physical, emotional, or social energy that they have to exert in a day. "Spoonies" refers to those in the disabled community who align with this model. We chose this name to represent our respect for your time shared into participating in our mission and acknowledging that we all have the ability to honor our own needs while still being a valuable part of our community. 

Our Mission

The Nebraska Spoonie Initiative is a grassroots organization located in Omaha, Nebraska. We are Disability-Led, POC-Led and Queer-Led.

We're an anti-institutionalist organization that advocates through the framework of Disability Justice. We oppose institutions and systems that encourage disability paternalism, and passionately advocate for all Disabled individuals, regardless of level of care, have their dignity and freedom honored by their support systems.