05/19/19 PRESS ALERT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information:
Dawn Russell: (303) 884-1471
Nancy Salandra: (215) 779-1014
Marilee Adamski-Smith: (715) 204-4152
WHO: National ADAPT
WHAT: ADAPT Honors “Warrior Women” of Disability Rights to Kick off Washington, D.C. Week of Action
WHERE: Washington DC
WHEN: Sunday, 19, 2019 from 12pm to 3pm
ADAPT Honors “Warrior Women” of Disability Rights to Kick off Washington, D.C. Week of Action
Disability rights activists from the group ADAPT return to D.C. this week to push Congress to move forward legislation that would allow disabled and elderly people to live in freedom, instead of being forced into nursing facilities or other institutional settings. ADAPT is a national grass-roots community comprised of disabled people, attendants, and allies that engages in nonviolent direct action, including civil disobedience, to assure the civil and human rights of people with disabilities to live in freedom.
This week, ADAPT will demand that the House of Representatives schedule Committee hearings on the Disability Integration Act (DIA). The DIA would codify the right of disabled people to have the option of receiving long term services and supports (LTSS) in their own homes and in the community, in compliance with the U.S. Supreme Court’s Olmsted decision and fulfilling the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Scheduling Committee hearings would not only be the next step in the bill becoming a law, it would be part of a historic timeline – ADAPT envisions a vote on the DIA to coincide with the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act on July 26th.
Today, ADAPT is conducting its customary start to the springtime action – the ADAPT FUNRUN. The FUNRUN raises money to support the activities of ADAPT’s efforts to ensure disability rights across the United States. The decades-old organization chose to make special mention of a particular group of its founding and early members. Veritable powerhouses like Anita Cameron and Dawn Russell acknowledge the important role of women within the movement.
“There ain’t no power like the power of ADAPT,” said Cameron, an ADAPTer from New York. “And there ain’t no women like the women of ADAPT, who have been some of our strongest voices.”
“The Warrior Women of ADAPT have made our history and are encouraging those of us who are newer to the movement,” said Jackie Mitchell from Colorado. “And we are ready to assert ourselves as the women before us have to ensure our liberty.”
Throughout this week, ADAPT will be asserting its demands in discussion with House Democrats to make sure the DIA is part of the party agenda. “In the wake of the overwhelming passage of the Equality Act to ensure LGBT rights, nothing should stand in the way of the House speaking to the rights of all Americans, including those of us with disabilities,” said Bruce Darling, an organizer with ADAPT from New York.
For decades ADAPT has worked to secure for Disabled Americans the same rights and liberties enjoyed by their non-disabled neighbors. Learn more about ADAPT’s history and activities at www.adapt.org, on social media with the National ADAPT Facebook and Twitter pages. Also, under the hashtag #ADAPTandRESIST.