Policy

None of four Senate candidates even mention the word disability on their campaign websites, and none of their websites are fully accessible to voters who are blind or deaf

Washington, D.C., Nov. 12 – Despite there being more than 1.2 million Georgians with some form of disability, all four Senate candidates in the most hotly contested Senate races in America have thus far failed to reach out to voters with disabilities. Indeed, none of the four candidates even mention the word disability on their campaign websites, and none of their websites are fully accessible to voters who are blind or deaf.

The failure of Georgia Senate campaigns to reach out to voters with disabilities is in stark contrast to President-elect Joe Biden who made outreach to the disability community a key part of his winning strategy. A poll conducted by Democracy Corps on behalf of RespectAbility in the major battleground states in the days leading up to Election Day found that 60 percent of voters with disabilities say they have or were planning to vote for Joe Biden, compared to 35 percent of voters with disabilities supporting President Trump. This showed a shift from 2016, when a poll conducted by Lake Research Partners and The Tarrance Group found that voters with disabilities split their votes between President Trump (46 percent) and Secretary Hillary Clinton (49 percent). [continue reading…]

As infection rates surge and hospitals struggle, people with preexisting medical conditions warn against discrimination in plans to ration life-saving care.

Washington, D.C., Oct. 26 – Hospitals across the country are scrambling to deal with a massive wave of new coronavirus cases, with new data showing more than 80,000 daily infections. This surge of cases is threatening to overwhelm strained hospital resources and push medical providers into making life or death decisions. Already, medical centers in Utah and Texas are contemplating plans to ration care, potentially leaving Americans with pre-existing conditions and disabilities to die from COVID-19.

The disability advocacy nonprofit RespectAbility urges hospitals to follow the law and not discriminate on the basis of disability, but rather treat patients with disabilities equally. [continue reading…]

Washington, D.C., Oct. 21 – With one in four adults having a disability, the national, nonpartisan disability inclusion organization RespectAbility is urging pollsters and polling firms to include people who live with a physical, sensory, cognitive or other disability in their polling data. For decades pollsters have included demographics by race, gender, age and educational levels. However, voters with disabilities often are left out of polling.

Researchers at Rutgers University estimate that approximately 38.3 million people with disabilities are eligible to vote in this year’s election, which is roughly one-sixth of the electorate. “Millions of Americans with disabilities are more engaged and active than ever before and it’s time for us to be counted, just like anyone else,” said RespectAbility’s President, Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi. [continue reading…]

Voters with disabilities can learn candidate plans on disability, education, jobs, immigration, climate crisis, criminal justice and more 

Washington, D.C., Oct. 7 – As Americans are voting in record numbers and just before the Vice Presidential debate tonight, the nonpartisan disability group RespectAbility has released 50 state voters guides containing key information on where candidates stand on issues impacting Americans with disabilities.

Voters with disabilities are a massive pool of potential voters who have often been ignored in past elections. However, those voters are now more engaged and active than ever. According to a recent study by Rutgers University, up to 38.3 million eligible voters are people with disabilities. This represents a massive increase in participation by voters with disabilities compared to past elections. Further, millions more Americans have friends or loved ones with disabilities. [continue reading…]

There are more than 22 million working-age people with disabilities in America, and today fewer than 1 in 3 has a job. Learn from top experts who are enabling employers to thrive by bringing in the talents of people with disabilities. 

Washington, D.C. Sept. 6 – This Labor Day, it is important to look beyond the headlines and the current economic crisis, and see where there is hope for the future. Yes, people with disabilities have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, across the country, there are professionals in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors dedicated to finding solutions and making the future of work better for the 22 million working-age Americans living with a disability.

Some of those leaders spoke earlier this summer during RespectAbility’s ADA30 virtual summit. On Thursday, July 30, leaders from across the economic and political spectrum gathered to discuss strategies, emerging practices and advancing inclusion for workers with disabilities.

This Labor Day, the RespectAbility invites you to learn from this insightful commentary and conversation brought forward by those leaders. The conversation that RespectAbility hosted that day reflects critical lessons that employers, large or small, as well as people with disabilities need to learn. With the annual celebration of Labor Day, now is a good chance for decision-makers to reflect on what advancing opportunities for people with disabilities really means.  [continue reading…]

Washington, D.C., Aug. 22 – As America celebrates the 100th anniversary of women getting the right to vote, diverse women with disabilities still face barriers to success. While the passage of the 19th amendment with women’s suffrage was a massive step in the right direction for women, because voting means a greater chance at ensuring political representation, it was only a start. BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) women did not gain the right to vote until decades later. Additionally, there are still many barriers for voters with disabilities of all genders. This includes a lack of accessible polling places or mail-in-voting measures necessary to ensure safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As of 2019, there were 164,776,771 women with disabilities in the United States. The 19th amendment brought many women the right to vote and therefore the option to participate in society to advance equity and progress.

Even as society works to ensure voters with disabilities have access to vote, many individuals with disabilities are excluded from participating in society in another way – the opportunity for employment. Many women with disabilities still cannot fully participate in society in ways that women without disabilities can for both voting and working. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, July 28 – This week, America has been celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the most comprehensive piece of civil rights legislation ever passed for people with disabilities.

In celebration, the disability advocacy nonprofit RespectAbility, with a significant operation in Los Angeles, is hosting #ADA30 Summit 2020. Its crowning day will focus on how citizens and the government can partner to bring about the future that we would like to see by the time the ADA turns 40. It will be star-studded with messages from national, state and local leaders, including National Governors Association Chair Gov. Larry Hogan, Former Gov. and Cabinet Secretary Tom Ridge and Sen. Chris Van Hollen. [continue reading…]

New Tools to Be Released

Washington, D.C., July 22 – As more than 6.3 million students in America with disabilities are coping with COVID-19, the national disability nonprofit RespectAbility is hosting experts and self-advocates to mark the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act and to promote greater success for students with disabilities.

“Thus far during the pandemic, distance learning has been a train-wreck for students with disabilities. Much more must be done so that no more harm comes to students with disabilities. This includes both access to real learning and preventing further mental health distress,” said Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, president of RespectAbility. Mizrahi is dyslexic herself and, as a parent of a child with disabilities, is working to enable her own child to have access to a quality education during this current COVID-19 crisis. [continue reading…]

“In less than six weeks, amidst an unprecedented situation, USDA has expanded SNAP online purchasing to 36 states and the District of Columbia – nearly three-quarters of the states, covering 90% of SNAP households.”

Washington, D.C., May 22 – On Wednesday, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that 90% of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) households now will be able to safely access food during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a major life-saving milestone achieved by the efforts of various disability advocacy groups, including the nonprofit RespectAbility.

In early April, RespectAbility Board Members Ollie Cantos, whose blind triplet sons are currently recovering from COVID-19, and Janet LaBreck held several virtual convenings for people with disabilities. During these gatherings, participants discussed the difficulties for people who are blind to socially distance while grocery shopping and conducting other essential business, necessitating the ability to shop online. [continue reading…]