[nfb-talk] FW: A Disability Agenda for the Midterm Elections
Christopher McMillan
chrismcmillan at earthlink.net
Fri Oct 13 05:29:21 CDT 2006
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From: owner-justice at jfanow.org [mailto:owner-justice at jfanow.org] On Behalf
Of Justice For All Moderator
Sent: Thursday, October 12, 2006 3:46 PM
To: justice at jfanow.org
Subject: A Disability Agenda for the Midterm Elections
A Disability Agenda for the Midterm Elections
Dear JFA Readers:
Consistent with our promise to provide voting information in the
weeks prior to this year's elections, below is an article by Frank
Bowe which was included in a recent edition of Ragged Edge Online.
Thanks to both Frank Bowe and Ragged Edge for allowing us to send
this out on JFA. Frank's primary issues are totally consistent
with those of AAPD and other disability organizations. We hope it
will help you in making your choices! But remember -- REGISTER and
VOTE!
"Vote as if you life depends on it; Because it does!"
- Justin Dart
______________________________________________________________
A Disability Agenda for the Midterm Elections
By Frank Bowe
The November 7 "midterm" is a change election. Disability
advocates raising issues with candidates for office especially
U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate seats are
discovering that campaigns are paying attention. The next three
weeks are critical. By reaching out now -- volunteering, showing
up at campaign events, calling in to radio and TV talk shows,
writing letters to the editor our people can place our issues on
the table. I know first-hand that office holders long remember
constituent concerns that surface during campaigns. The old adage
is very true a friend in need is a friend indeed. Candidates in
hotly contested races are "friends in need" and they will
greatly appreciate our help now. Later, once they are in office,
they will remember that we were there for them when they needed
us.
Back in mid-August, I wrote a piece previewing the Fall elections
for the Justice For All (JFA) website. Now, with the election much
closer, I update that story and offer some suggestions for issues
that advocates might raise with candidates for national office.
In the JFA story, I offered my opinion that advocates should
examine each campaign individually, on a non-partisan basis. There
are Republicans and Independents who are supportive of our goals.
We need to avoid simplistic and reflexive actions such as reaching
out only to Democrats.
The most recent snapshot of the national picture is this. In the
U.S. House of Representatives, 40 races are competitive. That's
just 10% of the total (435 seats). Of the 40 races, 33 are
considered to be vulnerable for Republicans and 7 are seen as
vulnerable Democratic seats. For Democrats to take control of the
House in January, a net change of 15 seats is required. The number
of competitive races is much larger than that, suggesting that a
party change in the House is possible. The situation in the Senate
is different. While it is true that a net shift of 6 seats from
Republican to Democratic would return the Democrats to power in
the Senate, only 8 Republican seats seem to be vulnerable (vs. 3
Democratic seats).
For Americans with disabilities, this change election holds much
promise. We need to seize the day to push our agenda.
Other groups are active. Organized labor is spending $40 million
on voter education and turnout, especially in swing states such as
Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Business interests,
too, are concentrating on those states and on key Congressional
Districts.
What is our agenda? Different people will advance different views.
For me, it is a refocusing of policy and resources on long-
neglected domestic issues. Here are a few.
1. Medical Insurance. Americans with lifelong medical conditions
(disabilities) should have lifelong medical insurance. Today,
fewer than half have private health insurance. Many rely on
Medicaid and/or Medicare. Our nation should aim for a seamless
system assuring medical insurance.
2. Employment. The key to the American Dream, for most of us, is
a good job. While many people with disabilities who possess a
college diploma and/or other training have benefited from the
non-discrimination and reasonable-accommodation provisions of
Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, others with
less education and training need more support. A recent
Government Accountability Office (GAO) report identified more
than 100 federal disability employment-related programs, most
small, that were poorly coordinated. Again, we need a seamless
system. The country needs to make it a priority especially
now as many aging Baby Boomers prepare to retire to educate
and train working-age people with disabilities for employment.
3. Housing. We need accessible and affordable housing. People
need a place to live near a job in order to accept an offer
for employment. It has to be an accessible home or apartment.
And it must be affordable.
4. Television and the Internet. The Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) recently has acted to weaken the commitment
to captioning on TV. We need to reverse its latest decisions.
It is long past time, too, for video description on
television. Meanwhile, more and more, the Internet and
specifically broadband communications are "the" way Americans
seek and exchange information. Congress has debated bills that
would take some very positive steps toward accessibility on
the web. Nothing has been enacted, though. We need to finish
the job.
There are more, of course. Issues vary from state to state, and
even Congressional District to Congressional District.
What matters to me is not so much whether advocates press the same
agenda items as I do, but rather that they get involved now.
People should show up at campaign rallies and ask questions. They
should call in to radio talk shows. They should volunteer to help
out in the campaigns.
There are only three weeks to go to November 7. Let's make them
three weeks to remember.
To keep up with the ever-changing electoral landscape, I suggest
two wonderfully helpful resources. The first is an election guide
in the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/ref/washington/2006ELECTIONGUIDE.html
The second is a similar resource by the Washington Post:
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/elections/keyraces/map/
Frank Bowe led the 1977 nationwide protest that gave us section
504, worked with Justin Dart and others on ADA, and helped to make
TV captioning available everywhere. A professor at Long Island's
Hofstra University, his newest book is Making Inclusion Work
(Prentice Hall, 2005). Read his other articles for Ragged Edge
Online, The Midterm Elections and Us, Disability Meets the Boom,
and The Time to Rise Will Come Again.
______________________________________________________________
For more voting news issues, see:
http://www.aapd.com/dvpmain/votenews/indexvotenews.php
# # #
DISCLAIMER: The JFA Listserv is designed to share information
of interest to people with disabilities and promote dialogue
in the disability community. Information circulated does not
necessarily express the views of AAPD. The JFA Listserv is
non-partisan.
JFA ARCHIVES: All JFA postings from 1995 to present are
available at: http://www.jfanow.org/jfanow/
MODERATOR, Gwen Gillenwater, JUSTICE FOR ALL -- A Service of
the American Association of People with Disabilities. To
contact Gwen, please email her at JFAgwen at aol.com.
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