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Thank you to Access Living, the Center for Independent Living that serves Chicago, Illinois. Access Living published an Action Alert on August 13, asking members of the community to take action against Judge

Brett Kavanaugh, the nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Below is information taken from the Access Living Action Alert. The information includes a link through which individuals can contact their U.S. Senator with concerns about the Kavanaugh nomination.

One important thing you can do RIGHT NOW is send your U.S. Senator an email about this using this updated action link. Please do this, and also ask all of your friends and colleagues to send emails too.

Disability advocates across the country are saying no to Kavanaugh because the nominee poses a threat in these areas:

 Health care

Access to health care is life-and-death for people with disabilities. That is why the disability community fought so hard when Congress tried to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and cut Medicaid. But those wins are at risk if Judge Kavanaugh is confirmed to the Supreme Court. In the past, Judge Kavanaugh has said that he thinks parts of the ACA might be illegal. If the Supreme Court decides the ACA is illegal, millions of people will lose access to health care–especially people with disabilities and other pre-existing conditions.

 Self-Determination

People with disabilities are often denied the right to make their own choices. One case in particular shows that Judge Kavanaugh has not respected the rights of people with disabilities.

 DC made two women with intellectual disabilities have abortions, even though the women didn’t want to. DC also made another woman with an intellectual disability have eye surgery. These were not surgeries that they needed to save their lives. In general, DC usually didn’t ask people with disabilities what they wanted before letting doctors operate on them.

 Judge Kavanaugh said that was okay. He said that DC did not need to ask people before letting doctors operate on them. He said that people with intellectual disabilities do not have the right to have any say about their bodies and their health care. He said it was okay for a state to operate on people with intellectual disabilities, even if the person said no. Judge Kavanaugh said it doesn’t matter what people with intellectual disabilities want.

 Because of Judge Kavanaugh’s decision, it took a long time for these women to get justice.

Enforcement of Civil Rights Laws

Congress has passed civil rights laws to help stop discrimination. Judge Kavanaugh has made many decisions that would make these laws more narrow and harder to enforce. His rulings have also made it harder for workers, voters, and people with disabilities to use our rights.

Education

Education is very important to the disability community. IDEA says that all students with disabilities have a right to a Free and Appropriate Education. School voucher programs often make families give up their rights in order to use the voucher. But Judge Kavanaugh has a long history of advocating for vouchers. Advocates are also worried that Judge Kavanaugh’s views on vouchers might hurt how he thinks about the rights of students with disabilities in general.

Presidential Power

The President has to follow all of our laws, even if he doesn’t like a certain law. Judge Kavanaugh has said that the President should get to choose which laws to follow. That is very dangerous. If the President didn’t like an important disability law, like the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Judge Kavanaugh would say that the President could just ignore it. Ignoring the law would hurt people with disabilities.

Thank you again to Amber Smock and to Access Living for developing this material.

Statement from Progress Center for Independent Living on the 28th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

As Progress Center for Independent Living celebrates the 28^th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 26, 2018, we applaud the members of the disability community who advocated fearlessly to pass the law, which was signed by President George HW Bush on July 26, 1990. Their dedicated work has paved the way in securing equality and inclusion for people with disabilities.

Many physical barriers have been eliminated as a result of the ADA, giving people with disabilities and opportunity to participate in society.  The elimination of physical barriers benefits not only people with disabilities, but all people, creating better access for fathers pushing strollers, travelers carrying luggage, and seniors navigating their communities.

One significant barrier that people with disabilities still encounter, however, is misguided and antiquated attitudes and misconceptions about disability.  Many still believe disability should be pitied, disability should be cured, and that people with disabilities living their lives the way a non-disabled person would is inspirational.  The ADA can’t change these attitudes; as the law moves into its 29^th year, it is up to people with disabilities and their allies to continue to educate and change perceptions some people have toward people with disabilities.  People often don’t pay attention to the views of disabled people, but as more and more do, attitudes and perceptions will begin to change.

The Americans with Disabilities Act is law that protects all people with disabilities, no matter their race, ethnicity, gender, or sexuality. Moving forward, disability advocates must also address racism, bigotry and prejudice within our own community.  For too long, the voices and concerns of people of color within the disability community have been silenced or ignored.  For too long, the community has not been a community that is fully inclusive and representative of all its members, and the community has failed to prioritize issues that impact disabled people of color and disabled people who are LGBTQ.

The ADA is a vehicle that drives the spirit of civil rights for people with disabilities.  In order to continue the success of the Americans with Disability Act, all members of the community and members of the non-disabled community must work together and create an inclusive movement that welcomes all members and that supports all members.  Progress Center is ready and Progress Center is excited to play a role in this effort.  People who have experienced or are experiencing discrimination, or who have concerns about issues impacting people with disabilities, are encouraged to call Progress Center at (708) 209-1500.

Progress Center is the Center for Independent Living that serves Suburban Cook County. Progress Center works to provide people with all types of disabilities the tools and resources to be independent in their own homes. Progress Center is one of 22 centers serving Illinois, and one of more than 400 centers in the United States.

For more information, contact Larry Biondi at lbiondi@progresscil.org or Gary Arnold at garnold@progresscil.org