Each month, the 10 ADA Centers receive hundreds of calls and emails asking for disability-related information and guidance on their legal rights and responsibilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Many people ask about their employment rights or about an employer’s duty to an employee with a disability. Continue Reading
News
BBI awarded MetLife Foundation-Lender Center Racial Wealth Gap Grant
“Disability as a Critical Element in Exploring the Racial Wealth Gap” Led by BBI Research Director Nanette Goodman and BBI Chairman Peter Blanck, researchers will identify challenges faced by Black, Indigenous and People of Color individuals with disabilities and will examine the role of disability in the racial wealth gap. They plan to develop recommendations regarding policies and practices that limit economic inclusion and trap people with disabilities into poverty.
Read the entire announcement.
Episode ADA Live! Episode 128: Helping Youth and Adults with Autism Build Independent Lives
It’s April and in recognition of Autism Acceptance Month, we will talk about the rights autistic people have under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Many people who are autistic or are neurodivergent have difficulty with social situations and personal interactions. We will also offer strategies for coping with workplace and community barriers. Our guest for this episode is Stacey Hoaglund, the President of the Board of Directors for the Autism Society of Florida.
New Episode ADA Live! Episode 127: What Are Developmental Disabilities Councils?
Description
March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, when we raise awareness and promote acceptance of people with developmental disabilities. In thinking about the barriers faced by people with developmental disabilities and their families, it can be hard to find up-to-date information on the quality services and programs you need to live independently in the community. One important resource for this information is the state Developmental Disabilities Councils, often called “DD Councils.” Our guest for this episode of ADA Live! is Johnny Callebs, the Executive Director of the Kentucky Commonwealth Council on Developmental Disabilities.
Nare Galstyan, BBI Senior Research Associate, publishes book chapter Diaspora–Homeland Relations Re-examined: The case of Syrian Armenians in the Netherlands
What happened to the ethnic Armenians fleeing the Syrian Civil War? Did they opt to return to their ancestral homeland or seek refuge in a new country? This chapter explores the often neglected migration experiences of ethnic minorities in the Syrian refugee crisis. It highlights the multidimensionality and historical complexity of diasporas and situates them within contemporary migration studies. Continue Reading
New Publication by Southeast ADA team – The Americans with Disabilities Act and Medication Assisted Treatment in Correctional Settings.
Studies estimate that least 65% of people incarcerated in the United States have Substance Use Disorder (SUD). Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) is a proven effective treatment for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD). MAT reduces the number of people who die each year from OUD by fifty percent and ninety percent of individuals in recovery maintain sobriety after two years. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) covers the programs and services provided by state and local governments including correctional facilities. Under the ADA, correctional facilities must make reasonable modification to policies and practice to allow inmates in recovery to have access to MAT. In this article, we discuss how the ADA applies to correctional facilities and the impact that MAT has for people who have OUD.
Authors: Pamela Williamson and Barry Whaley
Keywords: Americans with Disabilities Act; ADA; Addiction; Substance use; Opioid use; Recovery;
Medication-Assisted Treatment; Medications for Opioid Use Disorder; Jails; Prisons; Correctional facilities
Read Full article: The Americans with Disabilities Act and Medication Assisted Treatment in Correctional Settings.
New Episode ADA Live! Episode 126: Synergies Work: Growing Disability-Owned Small Businesses
Description
Synergies Work is the largest non-profit in the United States that enables entrepreneurs with disabilities to build sustainable micro-enterprises. They provide end-to-end business solutions and bridge the opportunity gaps between the disability and the business communities. Synergies Work believes that empowering entrepreneurs with disabilities can create a more inclusive society and a better world for all. Continue Reading
New Publication – The Americans with Disabilities Act and Equal Access to Public Spaces by Burton Blatt Institute Leeds Team
Since the passage of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the United States federal government, states, and localities have passed laws and created policies intended to ensure that people with disabilities had full and equal access to public spaces. Nevertheless, more than three decades after the ADA, people with disabilities continue to face architectural and other barriers to community inclusion and participation. Continue Reading
ADA Live! Episode 125: Applying the ADA’s Integration Mandate and Olmstead v. L.C. to Sheltered Employment and Day Services for People with Disabilities
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), a significant number of individuals with disabilities spend their day receiving public services in sheltered workshops and facility-based day programs. In a report titled, Beyond Segregated and Exploited, the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN) estimates that over 400,000 people are sent to sheltered workshops where they earn less than the federal minimum wage. This environment results in stigmatization and a lack of economic independence. These settings segregate individuals from the community and provide little or no opportunity to interact with people without disabilities, other than paid staff. Continue Reading
ADA Live! Episode 124: Global Disability Rights and the International Day of Persons with Disabilities
Each year the United Nations recognizes December 3 as International Day of Persons with Disabilities. This year’s theme is “United in action to rescue and achieve the sustainable development goals for with and by people with disabilities.” In this episode we discuss the work and mission of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and highlight some of the important issues facing people with disabilities around the world. Continue Reading