Laura Hershey, a poet and disability rights activist passed away this weekend.

I had the great fortune of getting to know Laura this summer when we both participated in a writer’s retreat hosted by the Lambda Literary Foundation. I wish our paths had crossed sooner. She was a talented poet, passionate activist, mother and partner.

Laura was featured on Feministing in 2007, in an interiew by Celina.

Here is an excerpt from that interview:

What do you think are some common stereotypes of people living with disabilities?

I think the main thing is that people think of [one’s disability] as a private little problem, a tragedy. They don’t think it has anything to do with the world.

People with disabilities ...