Boots on the Ground is committed to amplifying the voices of those most impacted by the current administration’s harmful, anti-democratic policies.
Laura Robeson is a mom, Kansas activist and member of Little Lobbyists, a non-profit that works to ensure issues critical to the lives of medically complex and disabled children are given top priority by our elected leaders. The group is active in the fight to save Medicaid.
The facts
House Republicans want to slash Medicaid as part of their broader budget plan to offset tax reductions earmarked for the wealthiest Americans.
The Senate is expected to discuss the budget in the next couple of weeks.
Nearly 80 million Americans receive Medicaid; 7 million of those are children.
In Kansas, 428,000 get Medicaid and, in Missouri, about 1.3 million people.
By Laura Robeson
There is not one single thing I would change about my son. Not one thing.
Danny came into this world and he has been everything we could have hoped for in a child. He is happy. He is kind. He is stubborn. He is resilient.
Danny also has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. He uses a wheelchair and has a feeding tube. He needs support for his care and constant supervision to ensure his safety.
Danny was recently sick and in the hospital. During the stay, when sleep was minimal and he needed supplemental oxygen, he told us that there was nowhere else he wanted to be. He was having a great time. When we got home, he said he was thrilled to be back home. I asked him, "Do you just make wherever you are the place you want to be?" Delightedly, he said “Yes.”
That is Danny.
In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson wrote that ..."All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
These words rang hollow when they were written for Black people, for Native Americans, for women, for poor working people. But could these words be further from the America of 2025, where elected officials are:
Revoking equal rights' protections
Kidnapping immigrants off the street
Calling Autistic people's lives "a tragedy”
And where Medicaid, a life saving program, is being threatened to create tax cuts for the ultra wealthy?
As much as we have imagined our American story as success through grit and rugged individualism, anyone who has lived on this earth knows it's a fiction. Our success has always been through the power of community, through interdependence, and through shared struggle and prosperity. We are intimately bound. It is impossible to parse where the success or failure of any one person starts and ends.
There is enough America for everyone. We live in a country of abundance. The billionaires would rather have us squabble over the crumbs, than to look up at the cake they’re hoarding. The lie of white supremacy is that rights are a scarce resource.
White supremacy would have us burn this country to the ground rather than share it.
Danny has the same right to the promises of America as anyone. Kilmar Abrego Garcia has the same right to pursue his American Dream as anyone. If one of us is not free, none of us are free. If one of us does not have the right, none of us has the right.
The best thing in my life, the greatest thing I have ever done, is be Danny's mom. He is a child filled with joy, with curiosity, and has enormous talents and love to give.
Danny's life is not a tragedy. The tragedy is living with a government that does not recognize the value of his life. The tragedy is living in a country that no longer even attempts to live up to its ideals.
I would change nothing about my son. I would change the world for him.
So I have teamed up with some of the best moms I know, and we are a part of Little Lobbyists. Together, we are fighting for an America that is deserving of our children.
We ask that you fight with us. We can save Medicaid. Particularly in Kansas and even in Missouri, we have an opportunity. Today, please call your Senators and use your voice to ask them to protect Medicaid. It is one thing, but it is an important thing. We can do it the way we always do: together.
Call Your Senators Today — and Tomorrow and the Next Day and the Next Day
Remember, calls to elected officials should have a clear message on a singular topic — and a specific request. Make it your own! Here’s a starter for you.
Hello. My name is ______ and I live in _________. I’m calling to express my extreme dismay at the current budget proposal that could devastate Medicaid.
Medicaid helps our most vulnerable citizens receive the healthcare they need — and deserve. In what world is it OK to hurt vulnerable citizens so the ultra-wealthy can be even wealthier?
I’m asking Sen. ______ to stand on the right side of history and protect our vulnerable citizens by voting against budget proposals that slash Medicaid.
Beautiful and vital. Thank you, Laura, for this powerful story.