Main Menu
By: Jalyn Radziminski
Dr. Walensky’s comments highlighted a trend of long-standing policy failures that have slowly eroded the trust of the people with disabilities, especially those who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC), in the pandemic response by the CDC and other agencies. Disabled lives are worth protecting from COVID-19. The CDC and other public health agencies must engage the disability community as they are making decisions related to the pandemic and beyond — something they have failed to do time and again. We are in solidarity with the #MyDisabledLifeisWorthy movement and conversation started by Imani Barbarin. We call on Dr. Walensky to rebuild trust by centering the voices, experiences and lives of people with disabilities, including those with mental disabilities, and especially those of color.
By: Jalyn Radziminski
After following the #FreeBritney movement all summer, we heard the news that “Britney was finally free” from the control of her father through a conservatorship. It is now time to take stock of the larger picture of often abusive and unjustified control over people with disabilities through systems of conservatorship, guardianships, involuntary institutionalization, and forced medication. In order to make lasting change, the voices of people directly impacted must be valued and heard.
Read more here.
By: Jennifer Mathis
During this anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), disability advocates call on Congress to pass the Better Care Better Jobs Act, which would make a greater federal investment in Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS) for people with disabilities. This legislation would bring a much-needed expansion of HCBS by authorizing a 10% increase in federal Medicaid reimbursement for these services.
Read more here.
By: Ira Burnim
A pivotal moment has come in the long and complex effort to reform the U.S. criminal justice system. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has directed officials in Alameda County, California, to fundamentally change the way it deals with people with mental illness.
Read more here.
By: Jalyn Radziminski & Sadie Salazar
“Let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down,” declared President George H. W. Bush as he signed the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law on July 26, 1990. July 26, 2021 marks the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the world’s first comprehensive declaration of equality for people with disabilities. When the civil rights legislation was passed in 1990, it had overwhelming bipartisan support.
Read more here.
© 2016-Present Bazelon Center. All rights reserved.