November 12, 2009
November 06, 2009
At Last....Research Tackles Intersection of Poverty and Disability
Much has been written about the impact of poverty on an extremely wide range of groups, including children, the elderly, and minorities. Yet, research on the effects of poverty on persons with disabilities has been scarce, to say the least.
That is, until now. The Center for Economic and Policy Research has released “Half in Ten: Why Taking Disability into Account is Essential to Reducing Income Poverty and Expanding Economic Inclusion”. This comprehensive document addresses precisely the questions that have gone unchecked for too long -- questions about where, why, and how poverty and disability intersect. Additionally, the study’s principal researcher, Shawn Fremstad suggests the kinds of policy change must be implemented if poverty (including that which is intertwined with disability) is to be effectively reduced.
The paper’s abstract provides a cogent summary:
Disability is both a fundamental cause and consequence of income poverty. The income-poverty rate for persons with disabilities is between two to three times the rate for persons without disabilities. Yet, contemporary policy debate and research about income poverty in the United States is largely silent about disability. This paper argues that we need to have a broader view of what poverty is and also that disability must be taken into account in anti-poverty policy.
(September 2009, Shawn Fremstad)
Let us hope that additional experts will join in the discussion sparked by this study so that we may continue to learn about the complex connection between poverty and disability .
November 05, 2009
New Encyclopedia Chronicles Disability History in America
Check out the Temple U Disability Studies Blog to learn a bit about The Encyclopedia of American Disability History.
Clearly, this promises to stand out as a remarkable tribute to the American Experience from a Disability perspective. The publisher, Facts on File provides a useful summary and a partial list of entries.
Let's encourage our public and University libraries to add this set to their holdings. Personally, I can't wait for an opportunity to peruse it. Of course, I'd love to secure a copy for our library, but Governor Paterson is about to cut the Independent Living budget AGAIN, so I'll have to put it on our wish list, for now.
If anyone has already checked it out, please share your impressions. Make a comment below....
November 04, 2009
Colorado Lawyer Denies Entry to Service Dog: DOJ Files Suit
Apparently, this guy slept through the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in law school....
Click here for details about the Department of Justice lawsuit against Patric LeHouillier.
November 03, 2009
Landlord Ignores Disabled Tenant, Judge Says Pay Up
Via New York Post
By DAVID SEIFMAN City Hall Bureau Chief
Last Updated: 6:13 AM, November 2, 2009
Posted: 4:05 AM, November 2, 2009
A Brooklyn landlord faces $80,000 in penalties, all because he refused to say two words: "I approve."
For nearly two years, according to the city's Human Rights Commission, Kong Chae Choi wouldn't give permission for a walk-in shower to be installed in the apartment of an elderly, disabled tenant in hopes she'd move from her home of 40 years, a $250-a-month rent-controlled railroad flat at 192 Nassau Ave. in Greenpoint.
The installation would have cost the landlord nothing.
Since the 77-year-old tenant, Ruth Russell, was suffering from emphysema, heart disease, sciatica and rheumatoid arthritis, United Cerebral Palsy agreed to put it in for free to replace a bathtub she was afraid to use.
Dennis Clark (2)
CLASH: Greenpoint landlord Kong Chae Choi faces an $80,000 hit for blocking an accessible bathtub for ailing tenant Ruth Russell (above), which a judge said he did to push her out of her rent-controlled apartment.
"He wants me out," Russell, who walks with a cane, told a reporter who visited her cramped third-floor walk-up. "But he's not getting me out until my legs give out."
For months, Russell bathed only every other day. Sometimes, she walked several blocks to bathe at a daughter's house. Other times, she'd call one of her children before and after bathing so they could rush to her aid in case of an accident.
"What happened here was a nightmare," she recalled.
Choi ignored every letter sent to him from Russell and the city.
On May 19, when an official got Choi on the phone, he "stated that Ms. Russell only pays $250 per month in rent and suggested Ms. Russell go to a nursing home," the commission said.
On Sept. 25, administrative law Judge Julio Rodriguez slapped Choi with a $50,000 fine, citing his "wanton failure to participate" in any proceeding. He also ordered that he pay Russell $30,000 for mental suffering. Finally, the judge ordered that the shower be installed at Choi's own expense.
"Respondent [Choi] is unhappy with the low rent Ms. Russell currently pays and hoping that by not allowing her to properly modify her bathtub, she would vacate her unit," Rodriguez concluded.
Two weeks ago, when Russell returned from the hospital following a one-week bout with pneumonia, she found the shower she'd been requesting for nearly two years.
Asked last week why he blocked the shower installation for so long, Choi insisted he doesn't understand English. The one thing he did manage to say was that the building is owned by his wife.
david.seifman@nypost.com
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/horror_landlord_oaked_LniQvuDiw6GE6EFnS6TDmO#ixzz0VpVNc9vB
November 02, 2009
Let's Go Yankees!
As we head into game 5 of the World Series, with the Yankees in the lead, a hearty shout-out to blogger Wheelie Catholic for posting a picture of one "too-cool" Yankee fan. Gotta love that ride!
NJ Poised to Offer PWD Greater Choice in Home Care
Congratulations New Jerseyans with disabilities! It is awesome to see that your state is following others in the adoption of a home care model that gives people with disabilities greater control over the details of their personal care.
Wheelie Catholic posts about New Jersey's soon-to-be-enacted "Cash Model" home care option for its citizens with disabilities.
Here in New York State, we have in place the Consumer Directed Personal Care Assistance Program (CDPAP) which provides people with disabilities who are Medicaid eligible to opt for direct control over who works for them as a personal care attendant -- independent of "traditional" home care agencies that send strangers into consumers' homes to fill these positions.
Programs like NY's CDPAP and NJ's Cash Model place control back where it belongs -- in the hands of consumers themselves. When administered properly, these programs can make life-changing differences in the lives of people with disabilities, often serving as a key to preventing them from being placed in nursing homes and allowing them to live full lives as part of their communities.
Click here to read about the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) that is provided to Nassau County, Long Island consumers by the Long Island Center for Independent Living, Inc. (LICIL).
To find contact information for other CDPAP programs throughout NYS, click here.
New Scholarship for Film Students with Disabilities
An article in Variety describes a new scholarship being offered to aspiring student filmmakers with disabilities as well as to non-disabled film students who create films pertaining to disability.
This initiative has positive implications from both angles. Clearly, it opens doors for students with disabilities to further their education in the arts and encourages interest in the perspective of these students, not just on issues of disability, but on the rich array of subject matter to be examined in film.
As for candidates without disabilities, the scholarship promotes the exploration of disability in film from the point of view of individuals who, otherwise, may not have considered making diability a factor in one of their films. Indeed, the chance to step outside of one's creative comfort zone often leads to tremendous results -- for both artist and audience.
Ultimately, these two perspectives work together to broaden the scope of the representation of disability in this major art form, both in terms of the films themselves and the creators behind them.
Tell us what you think....
October 30, 2009
Catskills Center for Independence Celebrates as Project HAVA Turns Seven
A great deal continues to happen around the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), including in the areas that cover the ability of people with disabilities to fully and independently exercise the right to vote. For information on the latest in the world of HAVA, take a look at the seventh anniversary issue of the HAVA Quarterly.
Produced by the Catskills Center for Independence (CCFI) in Upstate New York, this publication represents a wonderfully successful effort to keep us informed about the goings-on both in the forefront and behind the scenes of the ongoing battle for equal access to the Vote for citizens with disabilities.
Congratulations to Catskills CFI and its HAVA Project staff on seven years of great work. Rock on!
October 29, 2009
Hate Crimes Law Extends Potection to PWD
“No one in America should be forced to look over their shoulder because of who they are or because they live with a disability.”
Those were the words of President Obama as he signed into law yesterday the bill that puts Federal muscle behind bias crimes, including those motivated by disability.
Click here for full details.
With the advancement of hate crimes against persons with disabilities to the level of federal crime, many members of our community hope that victims will be less hesitant to notify authorities. Some also anticipate that law enforcement personnel will treat such reports with increased seriousness....
Tell us what you think.
Make a Comment below.
Search
Categories
Recent Posts
- Advocates Protest As Paterson Cuts Target People with Disabilities
- At Last....Research Tackles Intersection of Poverty and Disability
- New Encyclopedia Chronicles Disability History in America
- Colorado Lawyer Denies Entry to Service Dog: DOJ Files Suit
- Landlord Ignores Disabled Tenant, Judge Says Pay Up
- Let's Go Yankees!
- NJ Poised to Offer PWD Greater Choice in Home Care
- New Scholarship for Film Students with Disabilities
- Catskills Center for Independence Celebrates as Project HAVA Turns Seven
- Hate Crimes Law Extends Potection to PWD
Powered by
Movable Type 3.2ysb5-20051201
Movable Type 3.2ysb5-20051201