ANCOR’s Post

International day of disabled people - a sixty second interview with the DRN The DRN, are you radicals or pragmatists? We are radical about our pragmatism and pragmatic about our radicalism. Do you believe in a model of disability? Yes but adding more self determination to the social model and subtracting the deficit outlook from the medical model. Are you motivated by equality of resources or equality of participation. By both but allowing for the opportunity cost of not doing either to be even more persuasive. Isn't a rights based approach all that is needed? Required yes enough no; because many if not most attitudes and attributes are not governed by laws or enforceable by the judiciary. Just think of the power of Oprah Winfrey's dropped jaw when responding to Meghan Markle account of being asked what her babies skin colour would be. There are already laws and conventions in force but we still don't know if the future will be more or less inclusive than it is now. What else does the DRN exist for? Inclusive culture, technology and business models and that is because their combined trends shape the future. Where can we debate all this? In your own organisations but also at our AGM from 1 pm to 4 pm at the St Pancras and Somers Town Living Centre on December 16th 2023. https://lnkd.in/g-Ks92Z6

"Saying that we want to do it is very different from actually delivering." - Xavier Becerra, US Secretary of Health and Human Services. Think about these words when organizations trot out "DEIA Commitment" statements. SHOW how you deliver, the time for talking about disability rights and access as a concept is long gone. The ADA is 34. WCAG could rent a car now. (hat tip to Nicolas Steenhout for that analogy) Get started, show your progress. But saying things, often on repeat, does not manifest something into reality. Glomming onto 'miraculous instant solutions' is the reason the saying "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" exist. Deliver! Share your plan that is disability led and advised. Work that plan, show your progress and how you've validated the needs of disabled people. Admit when you hit a bump, and what you learned. Keep going. Compliance and minimum legal requirement are the starting block, not the finish line. Saying that we want to do it is very different from actually delivering. Image from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) statement updating the Rehabilitation Act regarding accessibility in healthcare, services, and communications. Image Description: A Black woman ASL Interpreter, Latino man: Xavier Becerra, United States Secretary of Health and Human Services at a podium,  and Black man who uses a wheelchair: Theo Braddy National Council on Independent Living Executive Director and member of the National Council on Disability in front of flags and signs for the US Department of Health and Human Services. Open captions read: "that we want to do it is very different from actually delivering." #accessibility #disability #DEIA #inclusion #access #equity

I was thrilled to moderate a panel at the latest NAA DEI Awareness Week, Expand Your Markets With Accessibility. I was joined by Jill Ramsey, Regina Weinstein ( MY TWIN!) and Maegan Blau, and we discussed how we can expand markets with accessibility by building a beyond compliance mindset. Our panel shared how the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law 33 years ago, and how the rental housing industry continues to struggle with moving beyond the legal compliance of checking the accessibility box. The panelist encouraged attendees that by reframing the lens of accessibility, that the housing industry has a chance to expand our markets, innovate our communities, advance inclusion and provide housing solutions that yield higher ROIs. This open discussion, led by the expert panel, shared about the best ways to leverage accessibility and inclusion as competitive advantages, and examined our implicit biases during the decision-making process from the top down and finding ways to budget for change! Our conversation delivered an engaging and informative session, packed with valuable insights and practical tips. Whether you are a professional looking to enhance your skills, a business owner seeking new strategies, or simply someone interested in the topic, this webinar is for you! If you missed out on this opportunity to attend live, don't worry you can access the recording below! Share this conversation with your teams to learn more about disability inclusion in October and beyond during National Disability Employment Awareness Month #NDEAM Enjoy! #Multifamily #MultifamilyRealEstate #NAA National Apartment Association (Naahq) #Accessibility #DisabilityInclusion #ADA #DEI #Housing #DisabilityAwareness

Discover how #LSHV champions the rights of individuals with disabilities, providing vital legal support and ensuring access to essential services. Click the link to learn more and be inspired by their incredible work! 👉 Read the full article https://lnkd.in/g3SPjRWY

Dwight Davis, president of the Alliance for Expanding America’s Workforce, wrote a commentary for the Federal News Network about the need to modernize disability employment policy and programs. He also introduced the Alliance and its goals. Didlake is among five nonprofit agencies that founded the Alliance. "Policies and programs like the Americans with Disabilities Act, the AbilityOne Program, and the Rehabilitation Act have been crucial steps to providing access and equity for Americans with disabilities. However, they must be strengthened and leveraged more effectively together to achieve their goals fully. This is why we formed the Alliance for Expanding America’s Workforce, a nonprofit dedicated to modernizing and expanding the federal government’s procurement process, direct hiring practices, and policies to generate greater opportunities for people with disabilities." Read more: https://lnkd.in/gTPcJxUR

Section 504 rules will decrease the barriers disabled people face when attempting to receive crucial medical diagnostic information and treatment. The rules will also help increase child custody protections for disabled parents and decrease other discriminatory practices within social services that make it hard for disabled people to receive the services they need. Ensures that medical treatment decisions are not based on negative biases or stereotypes about individuals with disabilities, judgments that an individual with a disability will be a burden on others, or dehumanizing beliefs that the life of an individual with a disability has less value than the life of a person without a disability. Prohibits the use of any measure, assessment, or tool that discounts the value of a life extension on the basis of disability to deny, limit, or otherwise condition access to an aid, benefit or service. This Final Rule extends Presidential Executive Order 14091, entitled Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. Details requirements to ensure nondiscrimination in the services provided by HHS-funded child welfare agencies, including, but not limited to, reasonable efforts to prevent foster care placement, parent-child visitation, reunification services, child placement, parenting skills programs, and in- and out-of-home services. Rule finalizes: May 9, 2024 #Section504 #RehabilitationActOf1973

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark decision in #Olmstead vs. L.C! In their ruling, the Supreme Court affirmed the right of people with disabilities to live and receive care in their communities. States are now mandated to no longer segregate people with disabilities unnecessarily. Learn more about the decision and its legacy in this article from The Arc: https://lnkd.in/e84ZCAns.

On Tuesday, July 9th, 2024, Maria Town, President & CEO of AAPD, joined Disability Matters host Joyce Bender to commemorate the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Maria shared how AAPD is working to uphold the ADA and advocates for the rights of people with disabilities. You'll hear hear insightful discussions on the ongoing efforts and challenges in the fight for disability rights. Listen to the podcast episode on-demand: https://lnkd.in/eaz2uHQG #DisabilityMatters #Podcast #ADA #AAPD #DisabilityRights #Inclusion #Advocacy #AmericansWithDisabilitiesAct #DisabilityAwareness #DisabilityAdvocate #DisabilityInclusion #TheBarriersWeFace #HandsOffMyADA #CripLivesMatter #NothingAboutUsWithoutUs #DisabilityPolicy #DisabilityAgenda

Success! We applaud the Federal Communications Commission for setting a new rate structure that WILL permit captioned telephone service providers to sustain "functionally equivalent" services. Equitable and effective communication access is not only critical for hundreds of thousands of Americans with disabilities, veterans, and seniors, but it is also a fundamental right under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Telecommunications Act, and 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act. Thank you to so many of our Coalition members and partners for reinforcing the value and importance of accurate, reliable, and high-quality captions. AccessReady.org | The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) | Black Veterans Empowerment Council Inc. | Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) | Disability Belongs | CSAVR | Global Alliance | National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities | National Council on Independent Living | National Disability Rights Network | The Enlisted Association | World Institute on Disability | Wounded Warrior Project | Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network Internet Protocol Captioned Telephone Service (IP CTS) Compensation Plan: https://lnkd.in/ezxTf2eh As of July 31, 2024 through June 30, 2029, the Report and Order adopts a five-year compensation plan with annual adjustments for inflation for Communications Assistants (CA)-assisted IP CTS. For the first year, the per-minute compensation rate for Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR)-only IP CTS is $1.17, a 10% decrease, and the rate for CA-assisted IP CTS is $1.35, a $0.05 increase, from the current $1.30 per minute for both formats. The supplemental rate for CA-assisted IP CTS in the first year is $0.21.

A recent study on prejudice showing how persons with disabilities are not (always) viewed in a monolithic manner: „The results underscore the need for a more comprehensive understanding of how ableist beliefs manifest in the daily lives of people with disabilities. Most previous research investigating ableism has limited itself to general attitudes, often towards a single disability. Our findings reveal that the detecting ableism depends on several factors, including disability type, gender, the social context and whether the judgement concerns the disabled person or how they are treated by others. There are likely to be other factors not included here. This study represents an initial step in understanding this broader conceptualization of ableism. Future research using contextually rich materials covering various disability-related issues is essential for gaining a deeper understanding of and combatting ableism.”