0:00:01.400,0:00:02.650 So, 0:00:02.760,0:00:04.560 My name is Michelle Nario - Redmond 0:00:04.680,0:00:06.320 I am a social psychologist and 0:00:06.370,0:00:08.380 I teach at Hiram College 0:00:08.519,0:00:11.404 in psychology and biomedical[br]humanities program 0:00:11.437,0:00:15.727 and I just wrote a book on ableism[br]the causes and consequences 0:00:15.727,0:00:18.967 of disability prejudice.[br]My first memory 0:00:18.967,0:00:21.267 and I'll just back up and say in 1990, 0:00:21.267,0:00:23.730 when the ADA passed [br]I was in graduate school, 0:00:25.099,0:00:33.134 in Kansas, and disability prejudice,[br]the ADA or anything 0:00:33.134,0:00:38.954 related to disability issues [br]were completely off my radar, 0:00:40.054,0:00:43.578 and I worked at a place [br]where one of the pioneers 0:00:43.578,0:00:46.756 of disability studies worked, [br]Beatrice Wright, 0:00:46.756,0:00:50.396 and I hadn't yet to have a class with her. 0:00:50.396,0:00:53.876 It really wasn't until 1995,[br]which was five years later, 0:00:53.876,0:00:58.566 when my daughter was born,[br]Sierra, with spina bifida, 0:00:58.566,0:01:03.394 that I became aware [br]of disability and found the work 0:01:03.394,0:01:08.862 of Carol Gill and Simi Linton[br]and began to educate myself 0:01:08.862,0:01:15.348 on disability studies and its scope,[br]and the first memory I have of 0:01:15.348,0:01:22.571 confronting inaccessible spaces[br]was a few years later, when we enrolled 0:01:22.571,0:01:26.520 my daughter Sierra in a preschool,[br]at a catholic preschool, 0:01:26.960,0:01:31.915 right down the road; and it just didn't[br]even dawn on me that we would have to 0:01:31.915,0:01:36.388 work so hard for her to be accommodated[br]as a preschooler, 0:01:36.472,0:01:41.209 and it was really a function of[br]the fact that the building was older, 0:01:41.252,0:01:47.109 there were steps, and they really didn't[br]know, nor did they need to legally know, 0:01:47.142,0:01:52.554 about reasonable accommodations [br]and civil rights of their students, 0:01:52.554,0:02:00.755 because they were a private facility and[br]weren't subject to the ADA's rules. 0:02:00.812,0:02:05.303 So... it became clear to me that [br]we needed to find a new preschool, 0:02:05.303,0:02:09.911 and luckily we found a private,[br]another private place. It wasn't 0:02:09.911,0:02:12.946 a public school, but it [br]was a music school settlement 0:02:12.946,0:02:16.407 and they had resources[br]and they were already operating 0:02:16.407,0:02:21.566 under a sort of set of presumptions[br]about the value of diversity 0:02:21.566,0:02:26.928 and diverse perspectives,[br]and we didn't really have to ask for much, 0:02:26.928,0:02:31.654 because they bent over backwards[br]to include my daughter 0:02:31.654,0:02:37.356 in a typical classroom, with her peers,[br]her preschool peers, music classes, 0:02:37.356,0:02:41.947 there were so many eclectic[br]movement classes, 0:02:41.947,0:02:48.049 and they even purchased[br]equipment for their exercise room 0:02:48.049,0:02:52.868 and movement room[br]that would be useful to her among others, 0:02:52.868,0:02:58.063 and she has since grown up to become[br]this teacher and has applied 0:02:58.063,0:03:01.595 to work there as a preschool teacher.[br]So, I think it would be really 0:03:01.595,0:03:08.320 amazing, if she came full circle. [br]But, I guess, to stance the broader 0:03:08.320,0:03:14.915 question about being frustrated and aware [br]of inaccessibility and lack of inclusion, 0:03:14.915,0:03:21.512 we were in a district that, when she then,[br]was about to move to preschool, I 0:03:21.512,0:03:27.059 knew that she wouldn't probably be able to[br]go to a private school, not only because 0:03:27.059,0:03:31.585 of the financial cost, but because [br]they would not have to think about 0:03:31.585,0:03:35.981 best practices and the law when[br]it came to accommodating 0:03:35.981,0:03:39.133 their students with disabilities,[br]and so I knew we would be 0:03:39.133,0:03:43.971 looking at the public school, and the [br]public school in our neighborhood 0:03:43.971,0:03:49.384 was not accessible. We went to visit it,[br]the playground had a little house 0:03:49.384,0:03:52.254 that she wouldn't have been [br]able to get into, 0:03:52.254,0:03:55.876 and it was really disheartening[br]and so it came at a time 0:03:55.876,0:03:58.393 when we were already looking[br]for other opportunities, 0:03:58.393,0:04:01.573 and my husband got an opportunity[br]to move us as a family 0:04:01.573,0:04:04.079 to the West Coast[br]of Portland of Oregon, and 0:04:04.079,0:04:10.507 so the way I...we had to[br]navigate her early educational experiences 0:04:10.574,0:04:17.591 was to only look at spaces and schools[br]that were in districts that were new, 0:04:17.591,0:04:23.109 so that had buildings [br]and had training in terms of 0:04:23.178,0:04:26.369 accommodating their diverse students[br]and their disabled students, 0:04:26.369,0:04:31.262 because just having the brief experiences[br]that I did with the preschool 0:04:31.319,0:04:38.810 and IEP meetings that were going to[br]require me to fight at every juncture 0:04:38.868,0:04:42.941 for her basic rights [br]to show what she knows 0:04:42.976,0:04:47.312 and participate and recognize herself[br]as a valuable contributor 0:04:47.360,0:04:50.910 to the school community.[br]We're not going to be forthcoming 0:04:50.943,0:04:54.411 without a fight, [br]and so we narrowed our search 0:04:54.454,0:04:57.194 to a district,[br]and thank God we had the opportunity 0:04:57.221,0:05:02.445 and the resources to do this,[br]that was pretty known for their 0:05:02.513,0:05:04.012 inclusivity. 0:05:04.095,0:05:07.731 We did that also when we came back [br]to the Cleveland, Ohio area. 0:05:07.806,0:05:12.412 We were able to avoid all districts[br]that weren't at the cutting edge 0:05:12.412,0:05:16.514 of full inclusion and proof of excellence[br]and had newer buildings 0:05:16.514,0:05:19.623 that could accommodate those [br]with disabilities, 0:05:19.623,0:05:25.967 but I guess that that was my earliest[br]memory of how, 'Oh, we have a road 0:05:25.967,0:05:32.468 ahead of us and we have to take it upon[br]ourselves to either continue to fight 0:05:32.468,0:05:40.316 battles that had already been won, [br]legislatively or find spaces, places 0:05:40.379,0:05:42.982 and organizations that were ahead[br]of the curve 0:05:42.982,0:05:50.434 in terms of implementing, monitoring and [br]just execute the basic civil rights 0:05:50.484,0:05:53.618 of their various constituents 0:05:53.736,0:05:58.568 The impact that all of that has had on me [br]is to just be able to communicate 0:05:58.640,0:06:02.284 with other parents and students [br]with disabilities 0:06:02.334,0:06:09.035 about not only knowing their rights but[br]knowing how to get those rights 0:06:09.086,0:06:18.638 how to advocate for ensuring that those [br]rights are addressed, are met. 0:06:18.638,0:06:21.099 I think the ADA has made [br]a huge difference 0:06:21.099,0:06:24.755 and the aha moment was even when I was[br]collating information for this book 0:06:24.807,0:06:28.922 on disability prejudice. I realized that [br]when I was a kid, 0:06:28.956,0:06:33.693 when I was growing up in the 60's and [br]70's, people with disabilities weren't 0:06:33.693,0:06:39.357 able to do any of the things that we took [br]for granted as kids: go to the movies 0:06:39.432,0:06:44.474 go to restaurants, go to visit a friend,[br]at a friend's house, or invite 0:06:44.546,0:06:47.559 others to your birthday parties. 0:06:47.559,0:06:54.992 And, since the ADA passed in 1990, [br]it wasn't an immediate set of changes, 0:06:55.011,0:07:01.662 as, you know, there has been significant[br]progress made, particularly in public 0:07:01.662,0:07:07.910 spaces and in employment settings, [br]where there are even employers 0:07:07.959,0:07:13.827 who are part of an organization [br]of inclusive excellence, who 0:07:13.876,0:07:18.677 recognize that disabled employees are [br]actually more reliable and 0:07:18.724,0:07:23.145 have less turnover and are worth[br]investing in and promoting. 0:07:23.229,0:07:28.810 But, there are still so many places, [br]small businesses, educational institutions 0:07:28.937,0:07:40.893 that are not carrying out the basic, [br]sort of gains and practices that the ADA 0:07:40.893,0:07:45.131 has made possible .There's just way too [br]much variation, and I think part of that 0:07:45.232,0:07:48.983 is just a lack of education in [br]terms of what 0:07:49.135,0:07:54.635 is reasonable and what is necessary 0:07:54.711,0:07:56.933 in terms of accommodating your citizenry 0:07:57.008,0:08:01.185 and lack of resources in some cases but 0:08:01.260,0:08:03.633 also a lot of misinformation about whether 0:08:03.734,0:08:08.236 or not it's worth it. You know, [br]the ADA is going to 0:08:08.293,0:08:12.462 be 30 here in July. We're [br]celebrating around 0:08:12.544,0:08:15.543 the country and we are still fighting 0:08:15.543,0:08:19.813 for businesses to do what they should have 0:08:19.914,0:08:22.316 done 30 years ago, those that have been 0:08:22.392,0:08:25.493 around this long. They have not, they have 0:08:25.563,0:08:27.769 have waited for complaints or they have 0:08:27.846,0:08:31.416 failed to do but the bare minimum in 0:08:31.466,0:08:34.871 terms of recruiting the largest minority 0:08:34.922,0:08:37.693 I work in the education sphere and to me, 0:08:37.792,0:08:40.220 we could be doing so much more with 0:08:40.318,0:08:42.820 advertising and recruiting for those kinds 0:08:42.943,0:08:45.621 of students that we tend to really, at 0:08:45.697,0:08:49.244 least my institution, do well to retain 0:08:49.395,0:08:52.944 because we're a small, intimate college, 0:08:53.019,0:08:55.847 Hiram College. And, and for [br]years I've tried to sort of 0:08:55.922,0:08:59.624 encourage us to consider more universally 0:08:59.723,0:09:02.348 designed approaches, but also approaches 0:09:02.451,0:09:06.949 that do more than the bare minimum[br]when it comes to housing and 0:09:07.022,0:09:09.600 extracurricular accommodations for 0:09:09.678,0:09:12.398 students to who use mobility devices. For 0:09:12.525,0:09:15.424 example, my daughter ended up having to be 0:09:15.577,0:09:18.251 carried in her chair, to various club 0:09:18.449,0:09:20.556 meetings while she was on the Hiram 0:09:20.653,0:09:24.503 College campus. She was told that, [br]during the 0:09:24.554,0:09:28.102 winter, when the ice storms came, that 0:09:28.141,0:09:31.767 they couldn't transport her up the long 0:09:31.767,0:09:33.617 hill, while they were[br]telling everyone 0:09:33.617,0:09:37.324 else to walk like a penguin, and we had 0:09:37.324,0:09:41.271 vans to do this. We had to file with the 0:09:41.271,0:09:45.332 Ohio Disability Rights Commission and 0:09:45.408,0:09:48.242 request that the school thinks about other 0:09:48.242,0:09:50.506 ways of accommodating her, should there 0:09:50.506,0:09:52.558 be a storm, an ice storm, and she can't 0:09:52.558,0:09:55.057 get up to campus.[br]And the solution 0:09:55.057,0:09:57.787 was to have her move to a[br]new dorm. 0:09:57.787,0:10:00.012 You can't just do that over night. 0:10:00.012,0:10:01.862 You can't just move all your bedding 0:10:01.862,0:10:03.923 and all your bathroom supplies 0:10:03.923,0:10:06.787 and your whole... you know at the moment's 0:10:06.787,0:10:09.125 notice, when the weather changes 0:10:09.125,0:10:11.005 and so it has been my experience that 0:10:11.005,0:10:15.474 still a lot of places have done[br]the bare minimum approach 0:10:15.364,0:10:17.815 and think that that's all they need to do 0:10:17.822,0:10:22.162 when instead, they could be following more 0:10:22.162,0:10:26.022 of the latest practices and [br]implementation's science 0:10:26.022,0:10:29.142 and making it easier for people to 0:10:29.142,0:10:31.719 register concerns or complaints. And 0:10:31.719,0:10:33.829 they often don't even need to file a 0:10:33.829,0:10:36.930 formal complaint issue, if you [br]approach a business or 0:10:36.930,0:10:39.856 your educational institution [br]with an issue. 0:10:39.856,0:10:45.131 Often times, progressive thinkers that [br]recognize the value of 0:10:45.131,0:10:49.191 customers with disabilities frequenting[br]their businesses or 0:10:49.155,0:10:52.056 diversifying their faculty or their[br]student body 0:10:52.056,0:11:00.839 will simply not be aware that they have[br]failed to accommodate or 0:11:00.839,0:11:05.113 make accessible various programs[br]and spaces. 0:11:05.113,0:11:09.378 And that can be as simple as asking.[br]But a lot of times a lot more 0:11:09.378,0:11:12.150 has to be done, you have to document[br]you have 0:11:12.150,0:11:14.909 to make sure your emails go to[br]multiple people 0:11:14.909,0:11:21.332 and make the business case of why [br]surveying your policies 0:11:21.332,0:11:23.933 to see whether they are biases or whether 0:11:23.933,0:11:26.205 there is discrimination in filing of 0:11:26.205,0:11:29.038 complaints or even you have a title 0:11:29.038,0:11:33.154 of, you know, an officer on campus[br]or ADA - cooridnator 0:11:33.154,0:11:36.203 so that you can let students[br]with disabilities know 0:11:36.203,0:11:38.603 who may have not proper documentation 0:11:38.603,0:11:40.472 how they can go about making sure that 0:11:40.472,0:11:42.671 they get what they need to show 0:11:42.671,0:11:46.701 what they know, before they fail classes 0:11:46.701,0:11:49.231 because they haven't knocked at the door 0:11:49.142,0:11:52.395 of disability services and provided proof 0:11:52.395,0:11:54.891 that they have a particular condition 0:11:54.891,0:11:57.320 So I know, I am sort of rambling a bit, 0:11:57.320,0:12:01.550 but I just, just wasn't aware of how much 0:12:01.550,0:12:04.958 further we need to go when it comes to 0:12:04.958,0:12:08.958 surveying and making sure that the ADA 0:12:08.958,0:12:12.958 is being implemented and just because 0:12:12.958,0:12:15.740 a law passes doesn't mean again 0:12:15.740,0:12:18.905 that it is just going to happen 0:12:18.905,0:12:22.101 you have to have allies and acitivists 0:12:22.101,0:12:23.697 and insiders working very hard 0:12:23.697,0:12:26.396 to make sure that people are recognizing 0:12:26.396,0:12:28.864 the value of legislation 0:12:28.864,0:12:31.585 which I think, still people are under 0:12:31.585,0:12:34.276 the assumption that it applies to 0:12:34.276,0:12:36.277 people who identify with disabilities but 0:12:36.277,0:12:39.824 I don't think that was even neccesserely 0:12:39.824,0:12:42.371 even the intent of the ADA 0:12:42.371,0:12:45.954 I think it recognizes that people flow 0:12:45.954,0:12:48.194 in and out of abilities and the extent to 0:12:48.194,0:12:51.954 which they are excluded or discriminated 0:12:51.954,0:12:55.408 against, because of their abilities is 0:12:55.408,0:12:58.117 really what this legislation was about 0:12:58.117,0:13:01.077 even having a record of having a 0:13:01.077,0:13:03.272 condition that maybe you no longer have 0:13:03.272,0:13:06.786 or you had it temporarily can mean that 0:13:06.786,0:13:09.933 you might be excluded. If you applied for 0:13:09.933,0:13:12.505 jobs recently, you know, many places 0:13:12.505,0:13:14.770 require a statement. You have to indicate 0:13:14.770,0:13:17.478 based on strict definitions whether you 0:13:17.478,0:13:21.238 have limitations in these major life 0:13:21.238,0:13:23.527 activities that will qualify you as a 0:13:23.527,0:13:25.801 disabled person and I want to believe that 0:13:25.801,0:13:27.703 they are asking those questions, so that 0:13:27.703,0:13:30.761 they can mindfully recruit people with 0:13:30.761,0:13:33.962 disabilities to join their ranks, their 0:13:33.962,0:13:36.351 staffing, but sometimes I think what 0:13:36.351,0:13:39.136 prevents people from using that 0:13:39.136,0:13:42.231 information to disqualify candidates 0:13:42.231,0:13:44.042 so there has to be checks and balances 0:13:44.042,0:13:46.107 and accountabilities when it comes to 0:13:46.107,0:13:49.499 making sure your civil rights legislation 0:13:49.499,0:13:53.177 doesn't put all of the owners on the 0:13:53.177,0:13:57.747 group itself to file and follow through 0:13:57.747,0:14:00.968 and figure out which parts of the ADA are 0:14:00.968,0:14:03.448 being violated. You know that can be 0:14:03.448,0:14:05.792 really discouraging when all you want to 0:14:05.792,0:14:08.905 do is go out and you know, go to the beach 0:14:08.905,0:14:11.457 and find out which beaches are accessible 0:14:11.457,0:14:14.082 or whether there is, you know, a mobility 0:14:14.082,0:14:17.279 devices that are availible via the sand or 0:14:17.279,0:14:20.119 you just want to go camping or you just 0:14:20.119,0:14:22.209 want to go frequent people who are 0:14:22.209,0:14:24.769 minorities on businesses or disabilities 0:14:24.769,0:14:27.471 on businesses and some of this is out 0:14:27.471,0:14:29.415 there and I tried to promote it through 0:14:29.415,0:14:32.533 books and activists pages, [br]but there is just so 0:14:32.533,0:14:34.922 much that we can do to leverage more of 0:14:34.922,0:14:39.466 these ways of monitoring and implementing 0:14:39.466,0:14:43.146 and taking access to [br]the next level whether 0:14:43.146,0:14:47.029 for the disabled community pro forma or 0:14:47.029,0:14:51.193 proper or for anyone who uses strollers 0:14:51.193,0:14:54.228 who might carry a lot of materials in 0:14:54.228,0:14:56.578 their hands could benefit from a push 0:14:56.578,0:14:59.992 button. I think we need all to do a better 0:14:59.992,0:15:03.287 job at making the business and the 0:15:03.287,0:15:08.822 other benefit cases for improving our ADA 0:15:08.822,0:15:14.143 access. Where my passions lie of late is 0:15:14.143,0:15:17.923 in getting out the votes because we know 0:15:17.923,0:15:19.791 that disabled people have been 0:15:19.791,0:15:22.301 disenfranchised from the vote and from 0:15:22.301,0:15:24.283 parenting and from all kinds of other 0:15:24.283,0:15:27.477 basic human rights but[br]this being an election 0:15:27.477,0:15:30.104 year there is all kinds of folks working 0:15:30.104,0:15:33.913 to crip the vote, #cripthevote Alice Wong 0:15:33.913,0:15:36.553 and others who have been trying to make 0:15:36.553,0:15:39.776 sure that candidates for president and for 0:15:39.776,0:15:41.842 congressional offices and even local 0:15:41.842,0:15:44.843 campaigns are expressing what their stance 0:15:44.843,0:15:47.755 is on the ADA and on disability rights and 0:15:47.755,0:15:50.306 human rights and hold, for the first 0:15:50.306,0:15:52.409 time we've seen some traction on that. 0:15:52.409,0:15:55.609 But what people don't realize is how many 0:15:55.609,0:15:58.808 places are not accessible to voters with 0:15:58.808,0:16:00.483 disabilities either[br]because they use 0:16:00.483,0:16:02.285 assisted technologies that don't 0:16:02.285,0:16:04.830 inter-phase with the electronic equipment 0:16:04.830,0:16:08.155 or they can't get accessible[br]transportation 0:16:08.155,0:16:10.289 or the place itself is simply inaccessible 0:16:10.289,0:16:14.305 or they are institutionalized and barred 0:16:14.305,0:16:17.699 from voting because of that and so the 0:16:17.699,0:16:19.606 center for American progress has been 0:16:19.606,0:16:23.653 publishing some of the numbers, like over 0:16:23.653,0:16:25.918 60% of polling places are considered 0:16:25.918,0:16:29.406 inaccessible. That's a problem. So voting 0:16:29.406,0:16:33.486 by mail may benefit a lot of groups if 0:16:33.486,0:16:36.157 you think of some of that in the future. 0:16:36.157,0:16:38.423 And then the second big issue we should 0:16:38.423,0:16:41.495 follow up on that not many people know 0:16:41.495,0:16:44.778 about and that I am not even so clear as 0:16:44.778,0:16:49.754 how is the ADA serves the population of 0:16:49.754,0:16:52.630 people who are incarcerated in jails and 0:16:52.630,0:16:55.861 in prisons and in institutions. I know the 0:16:55.861,0:17:00.752 ADA amendments have been 2009 done a 0:17:00.752,0:17:05.638 better job of successfully helping folks 0:17:05.638,0:17:08.790 litigate when they are isolated and there 0:17:08.790,0:17:10.778 for not included because of their 0:17:10.778,0:17:14.498 institutionalized placements, but I also 0:17:14.498,0:17:18.928 I am aware that not many people know about 0:17:18.928,0:17:22.066 the number, the sheer numbers of people 0:17:22.066,0:17:24.736 with disabilities visible and a lot of 0:17:24.736,0:17:28.212 invisible who are incarcerated[br]and who have been 0:17:28.212,0:17:35.200 caught up in that system of jailing and 0:17:35.200,0:17:37.932 aren't getting what they need inside or 0:17:37.932,0:17:40.708 should have never been incarcerated to 0:17:40.708,0:17:43.374 begin with because maybe they experience 0:17:43.374,0:17:46.730 a condition that was misunderstood from 0:17:46.730,0:17:49.479 the outset and so instead of deescalating 0:17:49.479,0:17:54.210 a situation. Police need more training, we 0:17:54.210,0:17:57.039 need to make the public more aware of how 0:17:57.039,0:18:01.377 many people are languishing in the 0:18:01.377,0:18:04.460 institutions where they are not only not 0:18:04.460,0:18:07.374 productive, but you know what a waste of 0:18:07.374,0:18:09.903 human capital. So, as we think about 0:18:09.903,0:18:12.084 the black lives matter movement and the 0:18:12.084,0:18:14.582 opportunities for intersectionality, I 0:18:14.582,0:18:18.744 think the opportunities for allies of all 0:18:18.744,0:18:21.526 kinds of civil rights groups need to come 0:18:21.526,0:18:24.756 together and really leverage their powers 0:18:24.756,0:18:27.640 to begin to think about not necessarily 0:18:27.640,0:18:31.642 just defunding police or the decarcerating 0:18:31.642,0:18:35.482 institutions but recognizing how many 0:18:35.482,0:18:38.696 people of color have disabilities, [br]how many 0:18:38.696,0:18:42.475 women, and how many are incarcerated with 0:18:42.475,0:18:46.793 disabilities that may not [br]even belong there 0:18:46.793,0:18:49.710 so there is so much to be done on those 0:18:49.710,0:18:54.203 two funds alone. And, clearly employment,[br]you know that 0:18:54.203,0:18:58.051 people are still way under employed but I 0:18:58.051,0:19:01.493 know there are folks working to improve 0:19:01.493,0:19:05.414 that and I am trying to work with those 0:19:05.414,0:19:08.731 organizations to araise awareness about 0:19:08.731,0:19:10.834 how they can do better in terms of 0:19:10.834,0:19:15.235 their work force and retaining[br]and recruiting actively 0:19:15.235,0:19:18.311 professionals who, you know, they may not 0:19:18.311,0:19:21.781 consider as a valuable resource but gosh 0:19:21.781,0:19:23.634 people with disabilities [br]are some of the 0:19:23.634,0:19:25.834 most creative folks because they have to 0:19:25.834,0:19:28.508 figure out how navigate and they do have 0:19:28.508,0:19:31.949 persepctives that are normally based on 0:19:31.949,0:19:34.535 maybe their particular[br]impairment experinces 0:19:34.535,0:19:37.245 but having to navigate the world that 0:19:37.245,0:19:40.316 isn't accessible, how to find the backdoor 0:19:40.316,0:19:43.919 how to find the policies and so there is a 0:19:43.919,0:19:46.892 lot of resilience to be found there, too. 0:19:46.892,0:19:51.941 We need to be asking community members to 0:19:51.941,0:19:56.350 confront ableism when they see it and part 0:19:56.350,0:19:58.816 of that is educating people on the various 0:19:58.816,0:20:02.969 forms that disability prejudice[br]and discrimination can take. 0:20:02.969,0:20:05.662 There is an interesting moment right now 0:20:05.662,0:20:08.588 with regard to anti-racism frameworks 0:20:08.588,0:20:10.982 that are getting a lot of traction and 0:20:10.982,0:20:14.473 people are beginning to, at least[br]educational institutions, 0:20:14.473,0:20:19.008 start teaching circles where many of us 0:20:19.008,0:20:21.800 are reading Ibram Kendis book how to be an 0:20:21.800,0:20:25.155 anit-racist, how to first recognize when 0:20:25.155,0:20:27.215 prejudice and discrimination exist on the 0:20:27.215,0:20:30.045 bases of race, that we could also be doing 0:20:30.045,0:20:32.796 with books related to disability prejudice 0:20:32.796,0:20:35.174 and ableism but I really think the moment 0:20:35.174,0:20:38.092 is now to consider some of the things at 0:20:38.092,0:20:41.446 the same time because I think we may loose 0:20:41.446,0:20:44.805 nuances of people who are confronting 0:20:44.805,0:20:47.188 multiple oppressions. Though, I am just 0:20:47.188,0:20:49.455 bringing that up because I know there is a 0:20:49.455,0:20:52.138 lot of folks at my school now thinking 0:20:52.138,0:20:56.740 about that we review policies to find out 0:20:56.740,0:20:59.813 whether our syllabi are discriminatory 0:20:59.813,0:21:03.256 whether our policies [br]for recruitment may have 0:21:03.256,0:21:06.207 things embedded or cooked into the 0:21:06.207,0:21:08.998 algorithms that are unintentionally 0:21:08.998,0:21:13.282 excluding or failing to retain or promote 0:21:13.282,0:21:16.887 those with disabilities[br]at our institutions 0:21:16.887,0:21:19.275 and so, when I think about the next steps 0:21:19.275,0:21:22.466 what people can do I come[br]back to, you know 0:21:22.466,0:21:25.418 when people say something and they may 0:21:25.418,0:21:28.004 just not know, they are not familiar 0:21:28.004,0:21:30.953 perhaps with folks with [br]various disabilities 0:21:30.953,0:21:34.183 and we know that contact with people who 0:21:34.183,0:21:36.570 experienced disabilities and differences 0:21:36.570,0:21:39.361 is what makes people less prejudice 0:21:39.361,0:21:41.459 they become much more aware of the 0:21:41.459,0:21:45.148 whole person and our stereotypes are not 0:21:45.148,0:21:48.058 generalize-able and how if they listened 0:21:48.058,0:21:50.329 to the voices of disabled people they can 0:21:50.329,0:21:53.077 hear first hand what is problematic and 0:21:53.077,0:21:56.590 we need to be doing by allowing folks with 0:21:56.590,0:22:01.534 disabilities to speak, to be heard and 0:22:01.534,0:22:03.457 then to support their agendas and not 0:22:03.457,0:22:08.098 necessarily just take over. [br]So, the confrontation 0:22:08.098,0:22:10.762 literature is all about not necessarily 0:22:10.762,0:22:12.488 saying: "Hey, you are a jerk.[br]You just said 0:22:12.488,0:22:15.886 something racist or ableist" and putting 0:22:15.886,0:22:18.969 people on their defensive heels. That we 0:22:18.969,0:22:22.053 can do this in ways that actually open up 0:22:22.053,0:22:24.280 dialogues and that we should be 0:22:24.280,0:22:26.671 encouraging difficult dialogues and brave 0:22:26.671,0:22:30.114 conversations around what we can do 0:22:30.114,0:22:33.110 locally in our houses, in our communities 0:22:33.110,0:22:36.397 in our schools and organizations to make 0:22:36.397,0:22:39.213 one change, to make one difference: to ask 0:22:39.213,0:22:43.099 what is our policy, do we know whether all 0:22:43.099,0:22:46.281 of our employees know what their rights 0:22:46.281,0:22:48.746 are, should we be scheduling regular 0:22:48.746,0:22:52.004 meetings with the ADA coordinator, so that 0:22:52.004,0:22:56.395 folks know how to find information and how 0:22:56.395,0:22:58.425 to request a accommodation. Would it be 0:22:58.425,0:23:01.415 great if parents went into an IEP Meeting 0:23:01.415,0:23:03.841 at their schools, knowing what their kids 0:23:03.841,0:23:06.267 got as accommodations. I think people are 0:23:06.267,0:23:09.701 so non forthcoming at organizations with 0:23:09.701,0:23:13.550 the things that they view as[br]special privileges that are 0:23:13.550,0:23:16.142 only for those who, quote on quote, need 0:23:16.142,0:23:18.891 it or deserve it. And when we look at 0:23:18.891,0:23:22.498 disability rights as special privileges, 0:23:22.498,0:23:25.782 we don't see them as civil rights that are 0:23:25.782,0:23:30.845 required to be met and so we could be much 0:23:30.845,0:23:33.516 more transparent about making sure our 0:23:33.516,0:23:36.512 websites are not only [br]accessible to navigate 0:23:36.512,0:23:41.413 if you have a sensory or other impairments 0:23:41.413,0:23:43.763 but to make explicit what the policy is 0:23:43.763,0:23:46.230 for requesting a accommodations, how you 0:23:46.230,0:23:53.513 not be fired for disclosing for example 0:23:53.513,0:23:58.460 how we can confront things in[br]non-aggressive way. 0:23:58.460,0:24:01.333 To ask people when they say something 0:24:01.333,0:24:04.738 pejorative or maybe just outdated, you 0:24:04.738,0:24:07.981 know, the word "handicap" is still out 0:24:07.981,0:24:12.837 there i call it "handicrap", the word 0:24:12.837,0:24:16.161 "special"' and we can just ask " what do 0:24:16.161,0:24:19.165 you mean by that, what do you mean that 0:24:19.165,0:24:21.998 they can't do that or that you curious 0:24:21.998,0:24:25.490 about that they have sex, can you tell me 0:24:25.490,0:24:27.804 more about why you think that and it can 0:24:27.804,0:24:29.829 start a dialogue and that is something we 0:24:29.829,0:24:33.674 can all do. I am still working hard to 0:24:33.674,0:24:36.712 make my own home accessible to my 24 year 0:24:36.712,0:24:39.470 old. We did construction to modify the 0:24:39.470,0:24:41.537 house when we first bought it is a single 0:24:41.537,0:24:45.548 level so that she feel like she was a part 0:24:45.548,0:24:46.885 of the family and be able to get to all 0:24:46.885,0:24:50.569 parts of the kitchen and her bathroom but 0:24:50.569,0:24:53.199 there you know the laundry room has one 0:24:53.199,0:24:55.546 step that we are still negotiating how to 0:24:55.546,0:24:58.454 make sure that she can get into garage but 0:24:58.454,0:25:00.072 things like where we put things in the 0:25:00.072,0:25:02.098 refrigerator. You know if you have a 0:25:02.098,0:25:04.002 wheelchair user in your family or someone 0:25:04.002,0:25:06.271 who is a little person who may have a 0:25:06.271,0:25:10.446 congenital or an otherwise amputated limb 0:25:10.446,0:25:12.189 and we put things on shelves without even 0:25:12.189,0:25:14.978 thinking about who can access the shelf 0:25:14.978,0:25:18.097 and my other child who happens to be abled 0:25:18.097,0:25:20.248 bodied would before dinner, you know, try 0:25:20.248,0:25:23.527 to get a snack and before we could even 0:25:23.527,0:25:25.269 say "no" he was out the door with the 0:25:25.269,0:25:27.494 snack. My daughter would have to come in 0:25:27.494,0:25:30.813 and say can I , can you get something of 0:25:30.813,0:25:33.081 the top shelf from me and then we would 0:25:33.081,0:25:35.106 say, you know, why don't you wait until 0:25:35.106,0:25:37.422 dinner time and we have to be mindful 0:25:37.422,0:25:39.290 about which drawers we want to put her 0:25:39.290,0:25:43.217 things into. She can't feel like a second 0:25:43.217,0:25:48.324 class citizen in her own family space and 0:25:48.324,0:25:50.953 those are some things that we can remind 0:25:50.953,0:25:54.072 our peers who have kids with disabilities 0:25:54.072,0:25:56.177 as we try to go on and educated another 0:25:56.177,0:25:58.929 parents in our parenting roles and our 0:25:58.929,0:26:02.209 roles as educators and who are diversity 0:26:02.209,0:26:04.762 committees. Our diversity committee now is 0:26:04.762,0:26:07.558 taking on accessibility as part of our 0:26:07.558,0:26:11.492 mental trying to convince others that we 0:26:11.492,0:26:14.491 need to be doing ongoing data collection 0:26:14.491,0:26:16.071 to benchmark, I think a lot of people are 0:26:16.071,0:26:21.296 afraid of data that might say "your campus 0:26:21.296,0:26:22.754 climate isn't the most accessible" but 0:26:22.754,0:26:26.076 unless you name the thing, [br]unless you document the thing 0:26:26.076,0:26:29.031 that is perhaps of concern of a less then 0:26:29.031,0:26:31.666 fully inclusive or accessible, you can't 0:26:31.666,0:26:33.853 make progress. And, I think people 0:26:33.853,0:26:36.364 appreciate, you know, the one in four 0:26:36.364,0:26:38.143 or five people with disabilities and 0:26:38.143,0:26:40.535 their families appreciate when people say 0:26:40.535,0:26:42.885 "we are not there yet, but this is what we 0:26:42.885,0:26:45.998 are doing and in a short term we will have 0:26:45.998,0:26:49.321 reviewed our handbooks so that at least 0:26:49.321,0:26:53.447 this is done by this year and next year we 0:26:53.447,0:26:55.674 are going to advertise for positions in 0:26:55.674,0:26:58.549 places to increase the number of disabled 0:26:58.549,0:27:01.097 people on our staff, because students need 0:27:01.097,0:27:03.405 mentors. They need to see people that look 0:27:03.405,0:27:05.102 like them and then have similar challenges 0:27:05.102,0:27:09.189 so that they know what is possible, so I 0:27:09.189,0:27:11.581 just sort of conclude by [br]saying my daughter, 0:27:11.581,0:27:14.173 you know, made it through preschool and 0:27:14.173,0:27:16.035 has been in several different kinds of 0:27:16.035,0:27:18.991 spaces on college campuses that aren't so 0:27:18.991,0:27:24.576 accessilble and that are. She is working 0:27:24.576,0:27:29.477 in the education as a preschool teacher 0:27:29.477,0:27:32.967 herself. But now since[br]the covid-19 outbreak 0:27:32.967,0:27:36.852 she was laid off, she was furloughed from 0:27:36.852,0:27:40.694 her brand new job. And, of late she is 0:27:40.694,0:27:43.414 putting resumes back out and there must be 0:27:43.414,0:27:45.970 something about the pandemic now where not 0:27:45.970,0:27:50.386 many people are wanting to go back to work 0:27:50.386,0:27:53.824 in close encounters with kids. She is 0:27:53.824,0:27:54.515 getting one interview after another and so 0:27:54.515,0:27:58.360 she may end up with multiple offers now 0:27:58.360,9:59:59.000 and I remind her to tell the folks that 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 preschools when they get someone like her 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 on their staff so many students gravited 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 toward her because [br]she has this visible signs 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 of her disability, her wheelchair and if 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 you can educate the youngs,[br]the preschoolers and show them 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 people of all abilities can be teachers 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and parents and ongoing learners, you know 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 they tend to even those kids with behavior 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 problems com to her. They see as this 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 beacon of hope, I think, that is a real 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 cue for employers who ever gets my 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 daughter as a teacher is going to be lucky.