Inclusion Daily Express -- February 11, 2002

INCLUSION DAILY EXPRESS

http://www.InclusionDaily.com

Your quick, once-a-day look at disability rights, self-determination
and the movement toward full community inclusion around the world.

Monday, February 11, 2002
Year III, Edition 038

This edition includes 7 news items, each preceded by a number (#) symbol.

QUOTES OF THE DAY:
"Their plea is our plea, their struggle is our struggle, a struggle for their dignity, our dignity, and the dignity of the State of Israel."
--From a petition endorsed by 50,000 people asking the government of Israel to increase benefits for people with disabilities (First story)

"Now, I don't think there's anything they couldn't do."
--Terri Crowell, commenting on the experiences her two sons have had on the ski slopes of Washington's Cascade Mountains (Fifth story)

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# ADVOCACY

Protesters Need To Gain Power, Not Compassion
February 11, 2002

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL--A group of disability rights activists have been protesting for the last seven weeks, demanding that the government increase disability benefits to the level of the country's minimum wage.

In spite of support voiced from rock bands and labor unions, the demonstrators have made little progress.

Some outside the group say the protesters have failed because they are depending on public compassion.

"The disabled are entitled to support because they are disabled, not because the public is compassionate," says Ran Melamed, assistant director of a non-profit social rights organization.

"They aren't entitled to support because they are downtrodden or miserable or forlorn."

This link should take you to the entire Jerusalem Post article:
http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2002/02/03/Features/Features.42758.html

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# FAMILIES

Feds Release $128 Million For Family Caregivers
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
February 11, 2002

WASHINGTON, DC--Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson approved $128 million in grants for family caregivers Thursday.

Thompson said the grants will go to states to fund community services including respite, counseling, support groups and training to people who provide care to family members who have disabilities.

The money will be released through the National Family Caregiver Support Program which also assists grandparents raising grandchildren and older individuals providing care to children who have mental retardation and other developmental disabilities.

More details are available from the National Family Caregiver Support Program website:
http://www.aoa.gov/carenetwork

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# ADVOCACY

"South Africa Slowly Shifts Mindset Toward Disabled"
February 11, 2002

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA -- The following excerpts are from the February 6 Christian Science Monitor:
"Twenty-five years ago, when polio left young Sam Mashilane partially crippled, disabilities in this part of the world were considered some sort of punishment. People such as Mr. Mashilane were often hidden away as shameful and almost always denied education. In the eyes of state and family, they were welfare burdens who would always depend on others."

"Today, as the switchboard operator saves money for his upcoming marriage, Mashilane represents a new reality for many South Africans with disabilities. The end of apartheid ushered in a slew of policies designed to reintegrate blacks into the economy, and the major beneficiaries include the disabled."

"'We've been trying to introduce a mindset that saw disabilities as a human-rights and development issue, and away from it being a health and social-welfare issue,' says Patrick Molala, development director for the South African National Council for the Blind. 'We said, if there's going to be a settlement in this country that empowers previously disadvantaged groups, that settlement couldn't leave out the disabled.'"

The entire article is available at this web address:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0206/p06s01-woaf.html

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# LAWS

Washington Doing Well One Year After Release
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
February 11, 2002

VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA--Earl Washington Jr. is studying for his GED, the equivalent of a high school diploma. He is also working to get a driver's license to he can be a truck driver.

Best of all, the 41-year-old plans to get married this coming May.

It's quite a change for the former death row inmate who came within a few days of the electric chair just a few years ago.

Washington was released from prison one year ago after DNA tests cleared him of the rape and murder to which he had confessed nearly 20 years ago.

But Washington, who reportedly has mental retardation, says he is not bitter about his 18 years behind bars.

"With me I guess, being bitter means you stay mad all the time. That's something I don't try to do," he told the Associated Press.

Here is the AP story:
http://www.oweb.com/newslink/national/YearofFreedomP0230.html

Background and previous stories on Earl Washington Jr. are available on this Inclusion Daily Express webpage:
http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/laws/earlwashington.htm

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# PARTICIPATION

Kids Enjoy Freedom Of The Slopes
February 11, 2002

THE SUMMIT AT SNOQUALMIE PASS, WASHINGTON--"I never thought it would be possible to get her skiing," Noelle Foster said of her 5-year-old daughter, Kendall last Wednesday.

The Eastside Journal got this quote from Foster while she and her daughter got themselves ready to go on another chairlift ride to the summit.

"This is the first time my daughter's doing something her friends are doing."

This story highlights a 23-year-old program known as the Skiforall Foundation. The non-profit's mission is "to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities by providing opportunities to participate in year round outdoor recreational activities through education and training."

Here is the story that ran in Sunday's Eastside Journal:
http://www.eastsidejournal.com/sited/story/html/82370

Here is the Skiforall webpage:
http://www.skiforall.org

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# TODAY'S FEATURED TECHNOLOGY WEBSITE

Assistive Technology Training Online Project

"The Assistive Technology Training Online Project provides information on AT tools that can help students with disabilities learn and participate in daily classroom activities."

"Creating online instruction is an exciting challenge for today's educators. Our efforts are based on the assumption that a web site, which is accessible any time, from any place, can reach a wider number of interested participants than the traditional workshop format. As we develop this site, we are taking pains to ensure that the quality of information and how it is presented addresses the interactive learning styles of these users."
http://at-training.com

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# ONE YEAR AGO (From the February 9, 2001 Inclusion Daily Express)

FAMILIES:
Happy Trails To You, Dale Evans
February 9, 2001

APPLE VALLEY, CALIFORNIA--Dale Evans, the woman who Roy Rogers' dubbed his "Queen of the West", died in her home from congestive heart failure on Wednesday. The wife of the late cowboy singing star was 88.

Evans appeared in 35 movies, wrote 400 songs, and 20 books. One of those books, the 1953 best-seller "Angel Unaware", was about Robin Elizabeth, the only child born to the couple. Robin, who had Down syndrome, died from complications associated with the mumps when she was just two years old.

Through her book, Evans helped remove the stigma associated with having a family member with a disability, according to Dick Sobsey, Director of the JP Das Developmental Disabilities Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. "When Dale Evans had the strength of character to speak proudly of having a child with a developmental disability, she blazed a trail through a frightening wilderness for other parents."

Sobsey paid tribute to "The Other Dale Evans" in the following essay, which is posted with his permission on the Inclusion Daily Express website:
http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/daleevans.htm

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