Senator Elizabeth Warren has released a revised disability policy plan as part of her Presidential Campaign which affirms she understands the urgent need for disability freedom. Her original plan honored the work of ADAPT at the very beginning and also recognized the leadership of ADAPT organizer Anita Cameron. This acknowledgment by a presidential candidate is a first.
Senator Warren has been a consistent champion for Disability justice and has been an initial co-sponsor of the Disability Integration Act (DIA), a bill that provides an enforceable right to community integration for the two million people with disabilities in nursing facilities and other institutions. The DIA has broad-based support throughout the Disability, Aging, Social Justice and Civil Rights communities. When notified by ADAPT that her updated disability plan did not include the right to community and long term services and supports guaranteed by the DIA, she immediately responded with her amended plan.
We want to publicly thank Sen. Warren for her commitment to fighting for disability freedom in her race to become President of the United States!
“Thank you, Senator Warren, for recognizing the work of ADAPT and others in the disability rights movement for acknowledging all the work put into the DIA.” – Anita Cameron from Rochester New York
This is the first time that ADAPT has received a response from a presidential candidate with the speed and level of respect shown by Sen. Warren. It is a demonstration of her commitment to Disability justice and her responsiveness to the disability community as a candidate running for President. We are also grateful to our friends who volunteer with Disability Action for America for maintaining relationships with 2020 presidential hopefuls, and who were very helpful in leveraging their political and electoral power to make this happen as quickly as it did. Please consider taking a moment to personally thank Elizabeth Warren here: https://elizabethwarren.com/contact-us
“When Warren’s campaign released its latest platform for disability rights ADAPTers were disappointed to see that the Disability Integration Act was not included. We are very happy to see that mistake corrected within less than a day of ADAPT releasing a statement. We applaud Senator Warren’s commitment to ending institutional bias and recognizing the importance of DIA in progressing community living for people with disabilities.” – Marilee Adamski-Smith, ADAPT organizer from Wisconsin.
After years of work, the DIA currently has 237 cosponsors in the House of Representatives and 34 cosponsors in the Senate. Support for the Disability Integration Act has never been as strong as it is right now in a time for much needed societal change, and so ADAPT thanks Senator Warren for her dedication to the civil rights of people with disabilities by including a statement in her disability policy plan to enact and build upon the Disability Integration Act as part of her 2020 presidential campaign platform.
ADAPT is a cross disability, grassroots organization of disability rights activists who come together as volunteers to end the institutional bias that steals the lives and freedom of millions of Disabled people. Across America ADAPT volunteers organize direct action advocacy, to ensure no disabled person needing long term services and supports would have to make a choice between the support they need and their freedom.
ADAPT’s history, the issues we are fighting for and our activities can be followed on our web site at www.adapt.org, our ADAPT Facebook page and on Twitter – look for #ADAPTandRESIST