Supporting Allies

This morning, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network released a joint letter from over 60 disability rights organizations calling on sponsors, donors, and supporters of Autism Speaks to end their support for the organization because of Autism Speaks' hateful attitudes and exploitative practices. ASAN also issued a press release and set up a petition site where individuals can endorse the letter.

The disability rights advocates who are supporting ASAN and the autistic community in this effort are not receiving any financial benefit whatsoever from doing so. Rather, they are standing in solidarity with our community because it is the right thing to do. In the interest of reciprocating, and to advance the rights of people with disabilities everywhere, I suggest that the members of our community read the list of signatories to the joint letter and provide assistance to their advocacy efforts. In particular, ADAPT has an event planned in Georgia beginning this Sunday. If at all possible, go there and help out! Details below:


COMMUNITY ADVISORY

Community Choice is a Civil Right: Disability Rights Direct Action Arrives in Atlanta

Who: 400 ADAPT activists from Georgia and across the United States
What: ADAPT Fall National Action 2009
When: October 11-14
Where: ATLANTA, GEORGIA!

Links: www.adapt.org and http://www.disabilitylink.org/docs/adapt.html

Direct action is about to strike the hometown of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. As the nation continues to struggle with health care reform, ADAPT grassroots disability rights and senior activists continue to advocate for the end of the institutional bias in Medicaid and a revolution in community choice.

Over 62,000 Georgians with disabilities live in nursing homes and institutions. The 1999 Olmstead Supreme Court case, fought by Georgians, guarantees that no one has to live in a nursing facility or institution against their will---it is a civil rights violation. Now, ten years past Olmstead, Georgia remains out of compliance and thousands of Georgians with disabilities lack adequate access to community supports, like millions across the nation. The percentage of Georgians with disabilities under age 65 who live in nursing homes is on the rise. When the system doesn’t work, it’s time for the people to take action.

Neither of Georgia’s Senators officially support the Community Choice Act or Community First Option. Adequate funding for Georgia disability programs is currently in danger. Federal institutional bias affects every single state. Through Atlanta, we will expose to the nation how nursing homes and institutions steal the lives of people with disabilities and seniors.

We are kicking off on Sunday, October 11, with an afternoon Community Choice March through Atlanta. We will follow up with three days of direct action. Stay up to the minute with Twitter updates and action alerts starting Sunday. Follow Nationaladapt on Twitter or go to www.adapt.org and hit the ADAPT Twitter button to check out our tweets.

ADAPT is a national grass-roots community that organizes disability rights activists to engage in nonviolent direct action, including civil disobedience, to assure the civil and human rights of people with disabilities to live in freedom.