Note: The following is a transcript of remarks entitled “A Call to Action to Defend Section 504” by LIFTT Executive Director Carlos Ramalho during a virtual press conference held with other leaders of Montana’s disability community on February 24, 2025. The purpose of the press conference was to draw attention to the fact that Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has joined with 16 other state attorney generals to file suit against the federal government (Texas v. Becerra), asking that Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 declared unconstitutional rendering null and void any federal regulations promulgated under the section and to draw attention to disastrous consequences such an outcome would have Montanans and all Americans with Disabilities.
This is not just a speech — it is a call to defend human dignity!
Good afternoon, and thank you all for being here today. We gather not as isolated organizations or individual advocates but as a united front, standing in unwavering defense of one of the most fundamental civil rights protections for people with disabilities — Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
We are here because that protection is under attack. Texas v. Becerra, a lawsuit that Montana has shamefully joined, seeks to weaken the enforcement of Section 504 and roll back the clock on five decades of progress. Let me be clear: this is not just a legal battle. This is a moral reckoning.
For more than 50 years, Section 504 has been the cornerstone of disability rights in America. It was the first federal law to prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities the foundation upon which the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was built. It is the reason that:
- Students with disabilities receive accommodations in public schools.
- Disabled veterans cannot be denied federal employment.
- Hospitals and clinics must provide accessible medical care.
- Public transportation must be accessible to all.
And let us not forget what life looked like before Section 504. If you had a disability, you were not protected. You were not included. You were not seen. You could be denied education, turned away from jobs, left without medical care, and institutionalized against your will.
That was not ancient history. That was America — just 50 years ago. And if the plaintiffs in Texas v. Becerra have their way, we will return to that world.
Make no mistake: Texas v. Becerra is not about “government overreach.” It is about power — the power to decide who gets to participate in society and who does not.
Montana and 16 other states claim they are not trying to eliminate Section 504, just to limit its enforcement. But let’s call this what it is: a deliberate attempt to erode protections until they are meaningless.
The plaintiffs argue that requiring states to provide services in the “most integrated setting” possible is an undue burden. In other words, they want the power to institutionalize people with disabilities rather than provide them with the resources they need to live independently.
They argue that states should not be held accountable if their policies put people at “serious risk of institutionalization.” In other words, they want to cut services without consequence, even if it forces people into nursing homes or segregated facilities against their will.
They argue that the federal government has no right to set conditions on how states use federal disability funding. But let’s be clear: you cannot take the money and reject the responsibility.
If this lawsuit succeeds, it will not be politicians or bureaucrats who suffer. It will be:
- The child with cerebral palsy who is told her school is no longer required to accommodate her.
- The veteran with a spinal cord injury who finds that his healthcare options have suddenly narrowed.
- The Montana senior with mobility impairments who is forced into an institution because home-based services were quietly defunded.
- The young professional with vision loss who is denied a job because her employer no longer fears legal consequences.
This is not theoretical. This is what will happen.
We often hear the words, “All men are created equal.” But do we mean it? Does equality stop at the presence of a disability? Are we really willing to return to a society where disability rights are optional?
We, the organizations gathered here today, refuse to accept that future. We are here because disability rights are civil rights. Independent living is not a privilege—it is a right. Access to education, healthcare, and employment should not be determined by geography or politics but by justice and human dignity.
We are calling on Attorney General Austin Knudsen to immediately withdraw Montana from this lawsuit and on Governor Greg Gianforte to use his leadership to advocate for the thousands of Montanans who rely on Section 504 protections.
History will judge the choices made today. Let us be remembered as those who stood on the right side of justice — as those who fought not for power but for the fundamental truth that all people, regardless of ability, have the right to live, work, and thrive.
Thank you.
Carlos A. Ramalho, LLB, LLM, PhD, MDiv
Executive Director
LIFTT – Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow
About Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT): LIFTT is a Montana 501(c)3 corporation organized as a Center for Independent Living (CIL). With team members based in Billings and Glendive, LIFTT provides aging and disabled members of the community with programs and services that help empower them to break down the physical, bureaucratic, and cultural barriers that prevent them from being fully independent participants in their lives and communities throughout 18 counties in southeastern and south-central Montana: Big Horn, Carbon, Carter, Custer, Dawson, Fallon, Garfield, Golden Valley, McCone, Musselshell, Powder River, Prairie, Richland, Rosebud, Stillwater, Treasure, Wibaux, and Yellowstone. For more information, please visit liftt.org or download our mobile app for your Apple or Android Device.