Disability Rights Organizations Express Outrage Over Attacks at McCain-Palin Rally
Contacts:
Jim Ward, Founder and President
202-415-4753 or jward@ncdr.org

Marcie Roth, Executive Director
301-717-7447 or mroth@ncdr.org

(Washington, DC) The National Coalition for Disability Rights (NCDR) pushed back today against the McCain-Palin campaign for ridiculing the legal rights of people with disabilities. News reports describe McCain-Palin campaign representative Senator Kit Bond (R-Mo), joining Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin at a rally in Rush Limbaugh’s hometown of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, mocking Presidential candidate Senator Barak Obama for stating that he’s looking to nominate judges who empathize with “the disabled.”

“It’s Halloween and it seems that Sarah Palin’s mask of support for people with “special needs” is slipping. Despite past pandering to people with disabilities, McCain-Palin are actually opposed to vital disability legislation like the Community Choice Act and they want to appoint judges who will further roll back the civil rights protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act,” declared NCDR’s founder and president, Jim Ward.

NPR’s Nina Totenberg has reported that McCain-Palin’s and conservatives’ “most oft-mentioned prospects” for nomination to the Supreme Court include Ohio Judge Jeffrey Sutton. Sutton was opposed by hundreds of disability organizations when he was nominated by President Bush after successfully weakening the ADA with states’ rights arguments. As a sitting judge, he has recently supported the execution of criminals with developmental disabilities and has undermined the Help America Vote Act(HAVA).

Disability rights advocates are further incensed that the McCain-Palin campaign has reframed this civil rights struggle, one founded in concepts of equality, dignity and self-respect, as an issue of “special needs.”

Disability rights advocate, Steve Gold states, “Yes we need support services. Yes we need inclusive education. Yes we need integrated employment. Yes we need equal rights. This not “special”. These needs are based on us, people with disabilities, equal members of our communities. We are not inspirational nor are we “special”. We are PROUD PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES who should push back when anyone describes us as anything but equal members of our communities.”

The National Coalition for Disability Rights is a nonpartisan nonprofit that does not endorse political candidates. We are a coalition of national, state and local disability, civil rights and social justice organizations united to protect and promote the human rights of children and adults with physical and mental disabilities.

Posted by:

My name is Edward Janus.
I am a Disability Advocate and Activist. My Campaign and Mission is Fighting for Persons with Disabilities and Making Our Voices Heard.

Sincerely,
Edward Janus | Disability Advocate and Activist
10707 Wrightwood Ave. Northlake, IL. 60164
E-mails: EdwardJanus@msn.com
EdwardJanus@EdwardJanus.net
Web Site: www.EdwardJanus.net

Attendees filled out surveys and were given a three ring resource binder to take home. To help attendees start building an emergency ‘Go Pak’, they recieved an emergency flashlight that runs without batteries. The surveys were placed in a basket and a drawing for the grand prize ‘Starter Kit’ was won by Fred Issacs. Light refresments were available as people looked at the display of an emergency ‘Go Pak’, along with some items that a family may want to include in their own emergency planning. A short video of emergency planning was watched by several attendees.

As a result of this workshop, over 43 new resource links have been added to our Resource Page.

We would like to thank Watertown Disability Commission members Ann Doughty for assisting with putting the resource binders together, Carol Menton for arranging to have Sign Language Interpreters at the workshop and Councillor Marylin Pettito-Devaney, ex officio member of the Commission for attending.

On Saturday, October 18, at 10 a.m., the Watertown Commission on Disability and Watertown’s Emergency Management Coalition are sponsoring a workshop on how to plan for emergencies. The workshop will be held at the Watertown Free Public Library, 123 Main Street, in the Watertown Savings Bank meeting room.

Should you attend this workshop? Ask yourself these questions: Could you survive at home for up to three days on your own? Could you leave home within a few minutes with the basic things you would need? If you answered “no,” you are not alone. Come and find out why emergency preparedness begins at home.

You will learn about:
•the basic supplies you’d need at home;
•what you’d need packed and ready in a go-kit;
•how to plan for your household’s unique needs; and
•how to do it without spending a lot of time or money.

Please come and bring a friend! Enjoy the refreshments, take home some giveaways to get you started, and enter to win a raffle prize!

The Act includes the following:

1. Mitigating measures – such as medication, prosthetics, and other aids used to ameliorate the effects of an impairment – may not be considered when determining whether a person has a disability. This supercedes the Supreme Court decisions that mitigating measures should be considered when determining whether a person’s impairment substantially limits a major life activity.

2. Ordinary glasses and contact lenses may be considered in determing whether a person has a disability. Employers may use a test or qualification standard based on an job applicant’s uncorrected vision only when it’s “job-related and consistent with business necessity.”

3. Major life activities include, but are not limited to, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working

4. Major life activities also include the operation of a major bodily functions, including but not limited to, functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions

5. Impairments that are episodic or in remission are disabilities if they would substantially limit a major life activity when active.

6. Transitory impairments are impairments that lasts for six months or less – they do not qualify as a disability and are not covered by the ADA.

7. A person who is regarded as having a disability need not show that his or her employer believed that the impairment (whether actual or perceived) substantially limited a major life activity.

8. Reasonable accommodations are only required for people who have an impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, or a record of such impairment. Accommodations need not be provided to a person who is only “regarded as” having an impairment.

9. Language about discrimination against a person `with a disability because of the disability of such individual’ is replaced with `on the basis of disability.’

Interpreters are made possible by the Watertown Commission on Disability and can be found at the main information tent/Commission on Disability table on the Corner of Saltonstall Park on Main Street next to the Town Hall. For more information contact Carol Menton, Watertown Commission on Disability: camenton@tmo.blackberry.net.

Scott Shupert’s hand moved quickly, as if wind were pushing it backward, inches above his hair.

Finally, I thought. Finally he’s asked a question I can answer.

Yes. Yes, this is going way over my head.

Only it wasn’t meant as a snide question, and it wasn’t directed at me.

Shupert was asking a student if she was having trouble understanding his seemingly impertinent query: Did she have a key to her boyfriend’s house?

After going around the room and coming up with nothing but house and car keys, plus one to a storage room, which did offer a momentary challenge, Shupert was looking to introduce another new word – Motorcycle? Boyfriend? Girlfriend? – to add to what his students had learned about keys.

The key part wasn’t too tough. Not like Westborough.

The sign looks like a key going into a lock, only the palm of your hand is the lock. Westborough requires positioning your fingers in a W-like formation, moving your arm in the direction of west on a compass, then spelling out b-o-r-o so quickly it appears to be three letters instead of four.

But is it compass direction as if you’re the compass, or is it from the vantage point of the person you’re talking to? Momentary confusion on that point, and the fact that, as with writing, you use your dominant hand, led a rightie’s and leftie’s thoughts to collide when the two were seated side by side.

Which led Shupert to do what he did frequently Wednesday evening in the American Sign Language Level 1 course at Framingham’s Learning Center for the Deaf: use a light touch to correct an error. [continued. . . ]

You are invited to hear about a strategic plan and share your ideas to improve the employment picture for people with disabilities in the Commonwealth. Consumer Quality Initiatives (CQI) will be holding five regional forums to get your input on a strategic plan for improving employment for people with disabilities in Massachusetts. The first one is this coming Saturday at the Somerville Public Library from 2-4 p.m.

These forums will be held on the following dates and locations:

• Somerville Public Library, 79 Highland Ave, Somerville, MA 02143 on Saturday, September 27 from 2-4 pm

• Taunton Public Library, 12 Pleasant St, Taunton, MA 02780 on Thursday, October 2 from 5:30-7:30 pm

• Pollard Memorial Library, 401 Merrimack St, Lowell, MA 01852 on Saturday, October 4, 2-4 pm

• Hoagland Pincus Center, UMass Medical School, 222 Maple St, Shrewsbury, MA 01545, Monday, October 6, 6-8 pm

• Western Mass: Location and date to be determined

CQI is non-profit, consumer-run research and evaluation organization. This event is being sponsored by the University of Massachusetts Medical School, along with the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services and the Institute for Community Inclusion at UMass Boston. Beginning in January of 2008, these three organizations began a strategic planning process to increase employment among people with disabilities in Massachusetts as required under the Massachusetts Medicaid and Comprehensive Employment Opportunities (MI-CEO) Grant.

To develop a successful plan, we need to hear from people with disabilities, their families and other interested parties. Just to be clear, this is not a job fair. It is an opportunity for you to have your voice heard on employment issues. We are looking to hear your personal experiences and your thoughts about how to increase access to jobs for people with disabilities.

Light refreshments will be provided.

We hope that you can join us for this important forum. If you are interested in attending, please respond to this email to CQI at (866) 895-4400 or (TTY: 617-442-6042) or info@cqi-mass.org. See www.cqi-mass.org for more information.

If you need a reasonable accommodation to attend these forums, please also contact CQI at least one week before the forum or ASAP.

We look forward to seeing you!

In Attendance: Carol Menton, Kim Charlson, Ann Doughty, Gayle Shattuck, Marilyn Devaney, Alex Liazos, Fred Isaacs

Meeting called to order at 7:05pm

Guests: Jerry Mee, Supt. of Public Works

Roll Call

Alex asked for one addition to the agenda, the Charles Street Bridge

A vote of the minutes from the June meeting is tabled until the September meeting.

Treasurer’s report was read, and a vote to accept was made.

Announcements:

Fred said that the SEPAC is looking for co-chairs.

Kim informed the Commission of a Court decision that paper currency is discriminatory for people who are blind. It appears that the government won’t appeal the decision. The alternatives are that some countries have a clipped corner, something tactile like a foil shape or different size bills to indicate differences in denominations.

Also, the President of Perkins will be invited to the September meeting as a guest speaker.

Closed Captioning: In response to Alex’s question in June about including closed captioning into the contract with Comcast, the Purchasing Agent has indicated that the contract between the Cable Access and Comcast is not up for renewal for a few years. Carol suggested that this be tabled until the September meeting.

Marilyn arrived at 7:15pm from the State House.

Safety and Access:

Jerry Mee came to the meeting to give an update on the installation of tone generating devices. He had a meeting with TriState and got them to start the project today. Four devices have been installed with more to be done. Kim asked that he send to Gayle the brand of the signal device and that information will be shared with the Commission and that updates on the installation be provided so the blindness community can provide him with feedback. Jerry said that the devices being installed are those that were requested by the WCOD years ago.

Bus Stop update: Jerry said that the consultant’s report which has a lot of statistics and data supporting moving the bus stop to the delta has been completed and will go to the Town Council and then to the WCOD.

Keyspan did an excavation and placed road plates in the sidewalk and in the street. Jerry made the case that this was unacceptable and that this created an unsafe situation for people with sight impairments. He demanded that they make the necessary corrections immediately.

Carol said that she appreciated that Jerry came to the meeting to proactively inform the Commission about safety issues in the Square.

Emergency Preparedness:

As a follow up to last month’s meeting, Raymond Isaacs came to the meeting to explain about his Boy Scout Troop Emergency Preparedness badge project. Fred would like a subcommittee meeting with George and Ann to be scheduled for next week.

Faire on the Square: Carol discussed sharing a table with the Council on Aging and the Scouts. Alex said he will be in Greece and won’t be available that day.

SPED: SEPAC will hold a special election in October for co-chairs.

Carol discussed the Watertown Library Reading program. Kim said that the Braille and Talking Book Library will coordinate with the Watertown Free Library to make sure that borrowers are participating in this town event.

Alex provided a follow up to the discussion on the bridge behind the swimming pool. He had called Dan Driscoll to find out when the bridge would be brought into compliance. Carol suggested other people to contact.

8:05pm motion to adjourn was made, seconded, voted and approved.

In Attendance: George Donahue, Chair, Carol Menton, Bob Hall, Kim Charlson,
Ann Doughty, Gayle Shattuck. Marilyn Devaney attending following an out of town wake.

Meeting called to order at 7:00pm

Guests: Gail Nordby, grant contractor for Emergency Preparedness working with the Department of Public Health. David Russo, Chair of the Historical Commission.

Announcements from the Chair:

George gave an overview of the May 28th emergency preparedness regional meeting at the Library and introduced Gail Nordby for her presentation.

Gail discussed the activities with emergency preparedness on the local level. FEMA and MEMA want the word to get out that people should not rely on services from the federal or state level to provide direct aid in the case of an emergency. The message they want is for residents to be prepared to manage on their own. At the May 28th meeting the MEMA representative had told the group that each community has responders who should handle emergencies first, then call MEMA as back-up. Watertown Public Health, Police, Fire and Public Works departments have been meeting with the Town Manager on a regular basis regarding emergency preparedness initiatives. Bob asked how this project differed from the Special Populations group that used to meet. Gail said that interest had fallen off by the outside agencies involved, but meetings are starting up again with the focus on agencies dealing with children, the elderly and culturally isolated residents. Gail said that the role of individuals is to be prepared with three days of supplies for the family and pets and have contact information shared with all family members. Local agencies should not rely on the Town to handle everything. Gail showed and described the Red Cross bags that are available for purchase so that each family can have 3 days-worth of supplies packed and be ready to go if needed. Fred suggested to Gail that she coordinate with the Boys and Girl Scouts on anything appropriate for them to work on for badge projects. George and Ann said they would work on this project with Gail.

The emergency shelter for Watertown is the high school. Kim discussed the issue of service dogs being allowed in with their owners, and Bob discussed accessibility issues with the high school. George discussed getting people to register with the E911. Bob and Kim suggested that the Police Department be invited to a future meeting to give an update on the E911 system.

7:55pm – 8:10pm Break
Marilyn excused herself to go to the Nonantum Road Improvement meeting at the Library.

Closed captioning – Carol reviewed the efforts on this project since it’s inception by Pam Piantedosi and the previous Cable Access Executive Director. The WCOD had purchased an analog coder and the Cable station had broadcast two school committee meetings and then the project came to a halt when Peter Z resigned. Pam was hoping that she could get sponsorships for the costs of closed captioning of Town Council meetings. Carol had invited David Russo for input on the issue of wiring the Town Council Chamber in the event a closed-captioning system was in place. David said that given the dimensions of the room and the crown molding near the ceiling, wiring wouldn’t be a problem because it could be attached to the top of the molding where it wouldn’t be seen and wouldn’t make holes in the wood or walls if it is placed on existing seams. Carol said that under the ADA, small local cable stations are exempt from closed captioning. Gayle stated that in addition to the exemption, the public can request tapes or transcripts of the town council meetings and that suffices as the required accommodation. Alex suggested that when the Cable Commission contract is up for renegotiation that the next contract with the town require closed captioning. Gayle will find out when the contract is up for renewal.

Chair’s Report:

There is a meeting taking place tonight 6:30-9:00pm at the Library regarding the DCR and preliminary designs for the Nonantum Road Improvement Project. Discussion about the Charles River Bridge issue of not being level. George said the history about that is the DCR was given 10 years to make the changes to the bridge by the Architectural Board. That was over 4 years ago. Alex said he will contact DCR – they were supposed to provide monthly updates and the WCOD has never received an update.

Treasurer’s Report

Gayle reported the expenses and balance to date. Motion to accept the Treasurer’s report was made, seconded and approved.

May Minutes: Bob requested a change of wording regarding the ADA requirement for the agenda item of Title I review of ordinances for disability compliance. A motion to accept the May minutes as amended was made, seconded, voted, moved to approve.

Treasurer’s Report was motioned, seconded, voted, and approved.

Faire on the Square on September 27th – George is working on getting a good placement for the WCOD table. Carol said she will talk with Caryl Fox about having a table with COA. Coverage is still needs to be determined.

8:45 pm Marilyn returned to the meeting.

New Business:

Marilyn said that she had an update on the site plan review meeting that was held regarding the corner of Fayette Street and Waverly Avenue; that it is for 18 units with 2 parking spaces for each unit. She asked them to report back to her regarding the handicapped parking spaces.

Special Education:

Fred said that Sarah Ward spoke at a May meeting and it was very well attended. They are going to fund a scholarship for a slot for the Sibling Group.

Carol gave an update on the Labeled Disabled event. It went well and was well attended. She suggested that Maggie Dobin be invited by SPED Pac as a possible speaker.

Bob asked about the accessible parking issue at the high school. The handicap spot is at the bottom of the hill and the accessible door is at the top of the hill. David Leone was supposed to call George to discuss.

9:10 pm motion to adjourn was made, seconded, voted and approved.