Director, Andrew Reese Highlights The DSP Academy

Thank you Director, Andrew Reese, for highlighting the DSP Academy during the DDS City Council performance oversight hearing today. We appreciate your support and look forward to our continued partnership!

Robin Bakes A Cake!

Check out Robin, she loves to bake and decorate. Looks delicious! 

Video description: Robin puts the measured ingredients into the mixing bowl and whisks. Robin then decorates her cake with white, pink, and red sprinkles.

                                   

                                                   Click arrow twice to start video!                                

COVID-19 Toolkit For DSPs

Resources to help DSPs take care of themselves during the crisis

With the coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic, there is a constant barrage of information being shared. Things are changing almost hourly across the country. The National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals (NADSP) is committed to sharing resources for Direct Support Professionals. We understand that given this global crisis, Direct Support Professionals are still working to provide supports. As Direct Support Professionals are on the front lines, we have created this tool kit with self care information and additional resources for individuals. If you have additional resources that would be beneficial for other Direct Support Professionals, please email ndama@nadsp.org.

To read more on this story, click here: COVID-19 Toolkit For DSPs

Register for the 1st Virtual African American Conference on Disabilities!

It's time to register for this year's first-ever virtual African American Conference on Disabilities (AACD) throughout the month of February.

This conference is a FREE event!

Hosted by The Arizona Center for Disability Law and the Arizona Center for African American Resources (AzCAAR), the AACD is the only comprehensive conference in the U.S. that addresses the intersection between race and disabilities.

You can register for 11 sessions via the links below. The Opening Session will start on February 1st and the Closing Session will be on February 26th.

To learn more about this event, click here: Register for the 1st Virtual African American Conference on Disabilities!

Tom Ridge: It's Time to End Subminimum Wage for Workers with Disabilities

 

There is no excuse for treating an entire class of American workers differently from others based solely on the characteristic of disability.

Among the millions of Americans who watched President Joe Biden’s Super Bowl interview on CBS were families touched by disability. One in five Americans has a disability, so it’s not an insignificant number.

I have to believe many of those families listened with great interest to the president’s comments when it came to the federal minimum wage — and for reasons you might not expect.

To read more on this story, click here: Tom Ridge: It's Time to End Subminimum Wage for Workers with Disabilities

Valentine’s Day Tea Party!

For Valentine’s this year Helen, Tom, Phil and Beth tried their best to show each other how much they care. On Saturday they had a tea party where Helen and Tom wore crowns. Both crowns were decorated and then given to the opposite person to write what they love about the other person. Helen decorated her crown with hearts and people and then handed it off to Tom for him to write many great attributes about Helen with my personal favorite being her “pretty little arms.” They then enjoyed some tea and heart shaped banana bread while wearing their crowns. Then everyone wore their crowns at dinner that night even Phil! On Valentine’s Day everyone got dressed up for dinner and had a date night. Helen and Beth drew roses and placed them in a vase and then everyone sat around just having fun. n Valentine's Day Helen, Tom and Phillipe

CALLING LGBTQ+ with DISABILITIES

 

DC Developmental Disabilities Council

CALLING LGBTQ+ with DISABILITIES 

The District of Columbia Developmental Disabilities Council (DDC) is in the process of developing a new Five-Year State Plan (State Plan) for fiscal years 2022–2026.

The State Plan will guide the future direction and goals of the DDC.

The State Plan will reflect the diverse voices of the community. The DDC will identify the needs, activities, and supports as indicated by District of Columbia residents with developmental disabilities, their families, caregivers, friends, advocates, colleagues and other professionals who support this community.

February 18, 2021, at 12:00 pm:

For more information click here: Virtual Community Forum for the LGBTQ+ People with Developmental Disabilities in DC

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

If you need assistance completing the survey or the registration form, help in your language, or free interpreter assistance, please call Alison Whyte, 202-340-8563.

[Image description: Three Black and disabled folx smiling and displaying mini flags. On the left, a non-binary person holds up both a rainbow pride flag and a transgender pride flag, with her cane resting on the wall behind her. In the middle, a woman waves the rainbow flag while sitting in her power wheelchair. On the right, a woman waves both a rainbow and transgender pride flag. Credit: Disabled and Here]

Meet Leroy F. Moore Jr., Founder of the Krip-Hop Nation

Leroy F. Moore Jr., Founder of the Krip-Hop Nation, one of the founding members of National Black Disability Coalition and activist around police brutality against people with disabilities.

Leroy F. Moore Jr., Founder of the Krip-Hop Nation. Since the 1990s, has written the column “Illin-N-Chillin” for POOR Magazine. Moore is one of the founding members of National Black Disability Coalition and activist around police brutality against people with disabilities. 

Leroy has started and helped start organizations like Disability Advocates of Minorities Organization to Sins Invalid to Krip-Hop Nation. His cultural work includes film documentary, Where Is Hope, Police Brutality Against People with Disabilities, spoken-word CDs, poetry books and children’s book, Black Disabled Art History 101 published by Xochitl Justice Press.

To read more on this story, click here: Leroy Moore

Sylvia Walker: A Champion for Disability Rights

Sylvia Walker: A Champion for Disability Rights- She founded the Center for the Study of Handicapped Children and Youth at Howard University in 1975; this has been renamed to the Howard University Center for Disability and Socioeconomic Policy Studies. 

If the name DR. Sylvia Walker does not sound familiar to you, you are not alone. I was not familiar with Dr. Walker myself when I received this blog assignment. I knew the names of many disability advocates such as Judith Heumann and Justin Whitlock Dart Jr., and their role in paving the way for the equal rights and accessible world I now live in. Thanks to some research, Dr. Sylvia Walker will be another name I always remember and affiliate with greater accessibility for all.

To read more on this story, click here: Sylvia Walker: A Champion for Disability Rights

The Virtual Polar Plunge Is On!

DC POLAR PLUNGE - January & February 2021

Virtual Event

About the Campaign

The Polar Plunge is going virtual, with socially distanced in person options to show your support for Special Olympics DC.  In January and February 2021, decide how you will "take the plunge" and submit your video for the chance to win prizes!   

 To participate, raise at least $100 and receive the commemorative 2020- Polar Plunge t-shirt, or mask and hand sanitizer! Raise even more to receive other cool prizes!

Celebration Event – February 26, 2021 at 6:30 p.m.

To learn more about this event, click here: Polar Plunge

Black History Month: Lois Curtis Artist And Disability Advocate Paved The Way

February is Black History Month. Lois Curtis is an African American artist with intellectual and developmental disabilities and schizophrenia. Curtis paved the way for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities to get out of institutional settings and live within communities.

By Angela Weddle

Lois Curtis was placed in Georgia Regional Hospital when she was only 11 years old. She would spend her teenage years and early twenties in and out of various institutions for people with developmental disabilities. She would regularly call the Atlanta Legal Aid Society asking for help getting out. She talks about her desire to leave the institution.

To read more on this story, click here: Black History Month: Lois Curtis Artist And Disability Advocate Paved The Way

Mr. Clark, AKA, Sonny Working on His Art at Home

Sharing from Art Enables 

Mr. Clark, AKA, Sonny working on his art at home, passing the time during the pandemic. Check out his art work he has for sale at Art Enables: Sonny

Curtis John Pride is a Former Major League Baseball Outfielder Who is Deaf, Served as the Head Baseball Coach at Gallaudet University

Curtis Pride, Disability: Deaf Achievement: He played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball & is the head baseball coach at Gallaudet University. The image also features a photo of Curtis 

In the photo, Curtis is a Black man with medium-deep skin. He is wearing his Los Angeles Angels uniform and baseball hat. He is throwing a baseball.

To learn more about Curtis Pride, click here: Gallaudet Athletics 

#BlackHistoryMonth #DisabledBlackHistory #BlackDisabledHistory

Nike’s New Hands-Free Sneaker Is Being Called a Win for Disability Design

"I believe everyone, no matter what their physical, economic, or social circumstances may be, deserves to call themselves an athlete, and deserves to have a sense of freedom and independence."

Nike introduced its first-ever hands-free sneaker, the Nike GO FlyEase, on February 1, and its origin can be traced back nearly a decade to when a boy with cerebral palsy wrote a letter to the company.

Matthew Walzer, now 25, was born two months premature, weighing only two pounds, 14 ounces. His lungs were not fully developed, and so his brain did not receive enough oxygen. This lack of oxygen led to brain injury that resulted in cerebral palsy, a group of disorders that affect a person's movement, balance, and posture, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

To read more on this story, click here: Nike’s New Hands-Free Sneaker Is Being Called a Win for Disability Design

The Facts About COVID-19 Vaccines for Direct Support Professionals

Direct support professionals have been on the frontlines of supporting people with disabilities during the COVID-19 Pandemic. The COVID-19 vaccines are now here and becoming widely available. As this is good news, we also know there is some confusion and worry among people about the efficacy and safety of the vaccine. In this webinar, NADSP in partnership with the American Academy of Developmental Medicine & Dentistry (AADMD) will address vaccine concerns. Please join Rick Rader, MD as he shares up to date and research-based information on the COVID-19 vaccines.

To see the video, click here: The Facts About COVID-19 Vaccines for Direct Support Professionals

Hope Rises

Inclusion and representation matter 👏🏼🙌🏽

"Thank you Target! 🎯 Today Oliver stopped me dead in his tracks and turned back around to see this picture that he spotted! He just stared at it in awe! He recognized another boy like him, smiling and laughing on a display at Target. Oliver sees kids every day, but he never gets to see kids like him. This was amazing! I am so happy that other kids that pass through here with their parents, will see this! There is a lot of focus on representing diversity, but representing people with disabilities is just as important! ❤"

Via Ollie's World

Hope Rises

Cats May Improve Social Skills In Kids With Autism

 

Adopting a cat can make a big difference for kids with autism, new research suggests.

Children with the developmental disorder showed increased empathy and experienced fewer problem behaviors after welcoming a pet cat into their homes. They also displayed less separation anxiety, externalizing, bullying and hyperactivity or inattention.

To read more on this story, click here: Cats May Improve Social Skills In Kids With Autism

Art Enables

Helen's DSP, Beth, says, "Helen loves to think outside the box to make the best decorations!" She spent her Saturday constructing and painting the moon and solar system to decorate the house for herself and her housemates 

Join Us Along With Kaiser Permanente Center For Total Health

DC Health Link

Appointments to receive COVID-19 vaccines continue to fill quickly.  

Join us along with Kaiser Permanente Center For Total Health  

 Mary's Center DC Health for a virtual town hall conversation with medical experts to get your questions answered on Tuesday, January 26 at 12:30 pm. 

To register, visit https://bit.ly/C-VaxTownHall 

REMINDER: Open enrollment ends January 31. So, #GetCoveredDC 

White House Commits to Sign Language Interpreter at Every Press Briefing

White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced Monday that an American Sign Language interpreter will be a regular fixture at daily press briefings during the Biden administration.

“As a part of this administration's accessibility and inclusion efforts, starting today, we will have an ASL — an American Sign Language interpreter — for our daily press briefings," she announced.

"The president is committed to building an America that is more inclusive, more just and more accessible for every American, including Americans with disabilities and their families,” she added.

To read more on this story, click here: White House Commits to Sign Language Interpreter at Every Press Briefing

Disability Representation On TV Breaks Record

A good milestone, now let's ensure the people who are playing these characters are people with disabilities! #Inclusion

Characters with disabilities are set to account for a larger percentage of those on prime-time television shows this season than ever before, according to an analysis.

Of the 773 regularly-appearing characters expected on broadcast scripted series during the 2020-2021 season, 3.5% have disabilities. That marks a new high, exceeding last year’s record of 3.1%.

To read more on this story, click here: Disability Representation On TV Breaks Record

Pledge of Allegiance in Sign Language by Female Black Fire Captain is Praised

 Inclusion Matters

The Pledge of Allegiance was created in sign language during the inauguration of Joe Biden . 

Andrea M Hall, the first black woman to become a Fire Captain in the City of South Fulton Fire Rescue Department, in Georgia, recited the pledge while also signing it with her hands. She is also president of the International Association of Firefighters Local 3920, which endorsed Biden early in his presidential campaign. 

She took to the stage shortly after Lady Gaga performed the US national anthem wearing a black and red ballgown decorated with a large gold dove of peace. Speaking about her involvement in Biden’s inauguration, Captain Hall previously said: ‘I just am intending to represent, my family, the city of South Fulton, women, African-American women, firefighters, and everyone in the nation, well.’

To read more on this story, click here: Pledge of Allegiance in Sign Language by Female Black Fire Captain is Praised