It has been an action-packed month of advocacy with my
presentation at the Capitol Grand Opening in August and being selected by
Microsoft to participate in their Accessibility Video Series. I hope that what
they filmed is selected for a two-minute film and case study about how I use
technology for writing, studying, and connecting to the world. My favorite feature
right now is Immersive Reader in Word Online. It highlights the word as it’s
being read and I can control text size, spacing, and how many lines are
visible. This helps me so much with my visual tracking difficulties and is
helping me interact with and read my Psychology textbooks!
On August 13, 2017, I gave this speech as part of the
Hotdish Panel: Remembering the Past and Reimagining the Future - Living with a
Disability with former U.S. Senator Dave Durenberger and Dr. Colleen Wieck,
Director of the MN Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities Director. What an honor to be able to share the stage
with such amazing people. Thanks to the people who came to see our panel and to
the MN Department of Administration for the invitation! Check out the great pictures from the event on the MN Governor's Council on Developmental
Disabilities
Facebook page.
Hotdish Panel Speech
Thank you for being here today. I can’t believe that I’m
here presenting with one of the authors of the ADA. Or the woman who has done
so much to improve the lives of people with disabilities from closing institutions
to starting Partners in Policymaking.
Thanks to assistive technologies like CART captioning which
make it easier to hear, communication device that helps me speak, and power
wheelchair that helps me move, I can accomplish so much more and be so much
more independent than if I had been born in an earlier time. Let me tell you
some stories about my experiences living with a disability and my dreams for
the future.
Imagine a small group of high school students, sitting
around a computer in my bedroom. There is laughter, sharing ideas and a lot of
cookies. A young woman is writing up the plan for our history class
presentation. I have my section about Civil rights, disability rights and
sports in the 1960s ready to be added to the PowerPoint.
Another student was creating a jeopardy game and 2 guys were
figuring out what we would wear. For me this was an experience I will always
remember, because we all contributed to the project in meaningful ways to get
that “A.”
I believe that we all learned a lot more about teamwork,
respecting differences, helping others and knowing that each of us has so much
to offer when working together towards a goal. This was inclusion at its best.
Unfortunately, that rich group experience did not happen very often for me.
Except for my church youth group where I was included like any other teenager.
I have had positive examples of accessibility and inclusion
in the real world since graduating high school. My 1st was with my
US History course at Century College. My professor was outstanding. Course
materials, presentations and quizzes were online and accessible. He emailed me
class discussion questions, so that I had time to program responses on my
communication device.
For one of the first times in my life, I could fully contribute
my thoughts and ideas in class. I learned so much, not just about history, but
how one professor can make a positive impact and difference by just taking some
extra time to be organized and think ahead of time about what I needed to be
successful in his class.
As we move on carving out the future, I hope that educators
from preschool through college or other post-secondary options, can keep
finding the opportunities for meaningful inclusion to happen. The teacher in my
10th grade class and professor in my college history course both
thought about how to make learning work for all students, even those of us with
disabilities.
We need more teachers and professors to embrace inclusion
and think ahead of how to make it work for all of their students.
These have been some of my experiences in the educational
system. What’s next though and what do I imagine for my future?
I imagine a future for myself as one where I choose where I
want to live, who I want to hang out with, what I will do each day, and how I
will contribute to making the world a better place. The decisions that many of
you in this room may take for granted. As I move through the halls of our
capitol today, I know that I will be spending a lot of time here as a
disability rights advocate.
I need help from government services to live the life I
imagine. I need 24 hour care to help me with all my basic personal cares.
Imagine that you have to depend on another person to give you a drink of water
if you’re thirsty, feed you if you’re hungry, and help you go to the bathroom
when you need to go.
It is important for people to realize that I can do what I
do because I have special equipment and support staff to help me do these
things. I know that these issues have become very political lately, which makes
it more important than ever for me to make my voice heard and for you to make
your voices heard in our political process.
Legislation that advocates have fought for, like the ADA,
Idea for education, Medicaid, and the Olmstead plan all help me live an
independent life in my community.
When I met and interviewed Dr. Wieck for one of my high
school writing assignments. I remember her telling me what it was like for
people with disabilities living in institutions. Her words made a lasting
impact on me. She said, when you treat people differently, when you treat
someone like an animal, you will get an animal.
To imagine what my future could have been like had I been
born at an earlier time is heartbreaking. I am so thankful for all of the
advocates who have made it possible for me to have more options now. I
graduated from Partners in Policymaking this spring and have learned so much
about becoming an effective advocate to continue creating positive change for
people with disabilities.
John Green writes in the book Paper Towns, it is easy to
forget how full the world is of people, full to bursting, and each of them
imaginable and consistently mis-imagined. We all want to be imagined complexly
as the individuals we are, not held back because we look, move, or speak
differently. I have the same hopes and dreams for my future that many of you
aspire to.
All of us are unique and face difficulties. There are many
times when I feel like an outsider because I do not think people imagine me
complexly, or know what to say to me, or how to talk to someone who uses a
communication device. I expect that there are many of you here, who have felt
the same.
I think we still have a long way to go with inclusion in
school, work and life. I want to have a longer list of examples to choose from
for my positive inclusion experiences. It really should be more than a handful
of positive examples in 19 years.
So, what can we all do? Think and plan ahead to make sure
people are included in meaningful ways.
Go beyond a simple Minnesota nice “hi, how are you?” and
realize that I and others with disabilities have a lot to say and need people
to take the time to listen. Also, what I learned from Partners in Policymaking
is the importance of showing up. Show up here and talk to your legislators.
Show up to volunteer on citizen work groups, like I’m doing with the Olmstead
Community Engagement Work Group. Show up to vote. This capitol belongs to all
of us.
Open your minds to new ideas, new people, and new
experiences. It takes every one of us here today, to choose the infinite
possibilities to create a more inclusive society, where we see value and
dignity in all people.
