Disability Futures

To have an independent living movement there are only a few principles that are immutable. “I speak for myself.” It summarizes the revolution from dependence to independence. Once our lives were controlled by experts; doctors, teachers, researchers, institutions, but now as a consumers, Disabled people make informed choices about every aspect of life. “I am responsible to make decisions, weigh risks, deal with consequences, fair and fowl, and to measure personal satisfaction in my terms.”Service delivery systems are structured by national policy making the individual served responsible to create service plans that express their personal standards for a meaningful life. There aren’t, in theory, any conditions or qualifiers placed on the inherent right of every individual to design their service plan to meet their specific goals irrespective of their diagnosis or level of disability. “I am empowered by the act of asserting my voice and taking responsibility for my decisions.” No abled-bodied person should speak on my behalf or usurp my voice.

Like many other minorities, people with disabilities often find themselves outsiders to mainstream society. Ignorance and prejudice conspire to segregate and deny us many of the benefits of society. Disability pride and community answer back. “We are a proud people. Disability identity and culture replace internalized stigma. The experience of belonging and the support of peers replace vulnerability with strength.” We value interdependence and accept that we all have things we need and things we can provide; that we are stronger together.

Long derided for welcoming too few kids with disabilities, a new report finds that a growing percentage of charter school students qualify for special education.

About 10.4 percent of students at charter schools have disabilities compared to 12.5 percent of those attending public schools. Children with disabilities at charters, however, are far more likely to attend classes alongside their typically-developing peers.

The findings come from a report released this week by the National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools analyzing information gathered by the U.S. Department of Education in its 2011-2012 civil rights data collection.

“Charter schools have been operating for over 20 years throughout the U.S. yet too little is known about the status of students with disabilities in this growing sector of public education,” said Lauren Morando Rhim, the group’s co-founder.

The results suggest that special education enrollment at charters is inching up. In 2012, the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that during the 2009-2010 school year kids with disabilities accounted for only about 8 percent of charter school students and 11 percent of those at public schools.

People with Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis often have symptoms that get in the way of things we want or need to do. But are we ‘disabled’?

Short answer: yes.

The decision whether or not to self-identify as disabled can be difficult. When I first joined online communities for people with IBD, I found many other people who felt that ‘disabled’ was only for blind people or wheelchair users. Some people thought we were not even allowed to use ‘disabled’ restrooms.

It makes sense that some people refuse to let the disease take anything from them. For many people, the stigma of ‘disabled’ is something they do not wish to bear. For a long time, I saw myself as a very able person who happened to have a health issue.

But when I finally accepted I was disabled — my disease got too bad to pretend otherwise — I discovered that I was not, in fact, legally disabled. At least, not according to U.S. law.

When Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, ‘disability’ was defined narrowly. Court decisions made the definition even more narrow. When I began to self-identify as disabled, those court decisions meant I was still not covered by the ADA.

But in 2008, Congress changed the law. The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act took effect in 2009, expanded ‘disability’ in ways that clearly protect people with IBD. According to that definition, disability is

Helping people with disabilities help themselves. Working with homeless individuals with disabilities; also individuals who have experienced domestic violence.

When it comes to social or environmental issues, far too many people are content to "like" a Facebook page devoted to it and feel content with that being the extent of their effort. "[People] talk about it, but nothing ever happens, nothing ever gets solved," says Raymond Ferrero, an attorney who focuses on crisis intervention in mental health and substance abuse in his paid and pro bono work. "They move to the next trend," adds Rob Hust, a software developer who works in artificial intelligence (AI).

To offer a more effective alternative, Ferrero and Hust have developed a new online network for social causes called the Knowledge Ecology Engine (KEE). Prior to the launch, Fast Company got an exclusive first look at the project, which uses AI to match up not only people, but also information and even objects like physical tools for tackling challenges such as drug addiction, environmental protection, and economic development.

To mark the 25th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), CVS hosted a summit in Washington, DC featuring a panel discussion on the progress made since the passage of the ADA, and opportunities to bridge the gaps that remain for people with disabilities involved in the justice system. Speakers included Senator Tom Harkin and representatives from Vera, Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of the Deaf (HEARD), The ARC, and National Disability Rights Network.

“If you compare it to other groups, like the suffragettes or trade unionists, how disabled people gained their civil rights has really been a hidden history,” says Chris Burgess, curator of exhibitions and collections at the People’s History Museum in Manchester.

But that’s all about to change. The disability charity Scope has collaborated with the museum to collect and preserve archives that chart the fight by disabled people for their rights as citizens – from iconic images of activism, posters, banners, campaign badges, t-shirts to personal memoirs. The People’s History Museum is showcasing the DDA archives alongside original artwork, stories and poems by disabled artists and activists from across the country in a special exhibition.

Burgess says it aims to tell the story of a campaign movement that’s been largely ignored up to now. “If it is covered, it’s often not about people demanding change, it’s about ‘welfare’ or rights being ‘given out’,” he says.

A federal jury has awarded a man with Down syndrome $150,000 after a photograph of him was doctored and misappropriated on the Internet.

In what’s believed to be a first-of-its-kind case, Pamela and Bernard Holland of Nashville, Tenn.sued in 2013 after finding numerous instances of their son’s photo altered and reposted online.

The image was taken in 2004 when Adam Holland, who has Down syndrome, was 17 and attended an art class at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, which serves people with developmental disabilities. The photo shows Holland smiling and holding up a piece of paper with a drawing that reads “Go Titans.”