Miss-Delectable
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IN RESPONSE: Indiana's 'C' grade not a surprise Evansville Courier & Press Mobile
I read with interest Eric Bradner's article on July 27 focusing on Indiana's C grade for inclusiveness of persons with disabilities. I am not surprised.
I am a deaf person who was born and raised in Evansville. After graduating from Harrison High School, I attended college in Washington, D.C. and then went on to work in a number of different positions at organizations around the country.
I've been an advocate for people with disabilities for over 30 years, and served on an advisory committee for Sen. Dave Deurenbergr of Minnesota, one of the original sponsors of the bill which became the Americans with Disabilities Act.
I recently returned to Evansville to be closer to family and particularly my mother, who passed away in May.
While caring for her, I attempted to find employment in the Evansville area with no success — despite the fact that I have a college degree and plenty of professional experience, including having been an executive director, a transportation analyst overseeing a multimillion dollar public transit program, and a program administrator.
I've applied for a number of positions for which I felt I was well qualified; even positions at agencies which serve persons with disabilities. I never received a response.
I've been told by more than one person that I would be better off leaving Evansville (and Indiana) to find work. This area is not progressive when it comes to its perspectives of persons with disabilities, and particularly college-educated professionals. The prevalent attitude here is that persons with disabilities need to be taken care of, and that one should do things for them, rather than with them.
The concept of self-empowerment and independence is not well understood or well practiced. There are times when I have attempted to educate and advocate for myself, and on behalf of deaf individuals or persons with disabilities, only to be met with criticism and resistance.
If Indiana is going to pull up that grade, it is going to have to undergo an attitude adjustment and demonstrate a willingness and commitment to improving inclusion.
That is easier said than done. Part of the problem is that you can write as much legislation as you want, finesse the wording and penalize folks for noncompliance, but you can't change human behavior.
Earlier this year, a local social service agency attempted to team up with one of the area technical schools to offer an all-day seminar on the Americans with Disabilities Act. They scheduled an ADA expert from Chicago to do a presentation.
The training was intended to give participants a good overall understanding of the law, its mandates and its practical application.
The seminar was canceled twice due to low registration.
And we wonder why Indiana got a C grade?
It can't all be blamed on Indiana. The ADA promised that discrimination is not permitted and that equal access to housing, employment, and other vital aspects of life is guaranteed.
The reality has been far from perfect. The ADA has been put to the test and the first few years were uncertain, especially as the first cases made their way through the courts.
Even now, cases continue to be filed and the decisions handed down by the judges have shaped the ADA, either broadening or narrowing the scope of the law. What was promised in theory hasn't translated into true equality for disabled people.
As I said, I get frustrated with employment. Yes, theoretically we are supposed to have equal access for consideration when applying for jobs, we are supposed to be provided interpreting services at all steps in the employment process, and in the jobs thereafter, and we are supposed to have equal opportunities for job mobility.
Unemployment and underemployment continue to be high within the disabled community and those who do get hired often don't advance.
It's especially problematic among the deaf, who must deal with employers who balk at providing interpreters. Even when the hiring manager or actual on-site manager is receptive, their supervisors decline the opportunity to interview and hire us.
And when we protest, the odds are against us. The U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor reported that in 2004, plaintiffs lost 97 percent of ADA employment discrimination claims that went to trial. "People who are not hired or are fired because an employer mistakenly believes they cannot perform the job — or because the employer does not want 'people like that' — have been denied protection from employment discrimination due to these court decisions," the committee stated.
With such statistics, and an economy that is seeing high unemployment rates, is it little wonder that I'm cynical? I wish I could sit here and feel more optimistic about the future for myself and others with disabilities.
But if my home state is going to improve that grade, it's going to have to do more than just sit around paying lip service.
To read of the chairman of ADA-Indiana saying how the state has gone from zero to a C in the last 20 years is small comfort. Are we going to have to wait another 20 years?
Judging from the fact that the current rating is only a slight improvement from past surveys, one has to wonder.
Virginia L. Beach is a resident of Evansville.
I read with interest Eric Bradner's article on July 27 focusing on Indiana's C grade for inclusiveness of persons with disabilities. I am not surprised.
I am a deaf person who was born and raised in Evansville. After graduating from Harrison High School, I attended college in Washington, D.C. and then went on to work in a number of different positions at organizations around the country.
I've been an advocate for people with disabilities for over 30 years, and served on an advisory committee for Sen. Dave Deurenbergr of Minnesota, one of the original sponsors of the bill which became the Americans with Disabilities Act.
I recently returned to Evansville to be closer to family and particularly my mother, who passed away in May.
While caring for her, I attempted to find employment in the Evansville area with no success — despite the fact that I have a college degree and plenty of professional experience, including having been an executive director, a transportation analyst overseeing a multimillion dollar public transit program, and a program administrator.
I've applied for a number of positions for which I felt I was well qualified; even positions at agencies which serve persons with disabilities. I never received a response.
I've been told by more than one person that I would be better off leaving Evansville (and Indiana) to find work. This area is not progressive when it comes to its perspectives of persons with disabilities, and particularly college-educated professionals. The prevalent attitude here is that persons with disabilities need to be taken care of, and that one should do things for them, rather than with them.
The concept of self-empowerment and independence is not well understood or well practiced. There are times when I have attempted to educate and advocate for myself, and on behalf of deaf individuals or persons with disabilities, only to be met with criticism and resistance.
If Indiana is going to pull up that grade, it is going to have to undergo an attitude adjustment and demonstrate a willingness and commitment to improving inclusion.
That is easier said than done. Part of the problem is that you can write as much legislation as you want, finesse the wording and penalize folks for noncompliance, but you can't change human behavior.
Earlier this year, a local social service agency attempted to team up with one of the area technical schools to offer an all-day seminar on the Americans with Disabilities Act. They scheduled an ADA expert from Chicago to do a presentation.
The training was intended to give participants a good overall understanding of the law, its mandates and its practical application.
The seminar was canceled twice due to low registration.
And we wonder why Indiana got a C grade?
It can't all be blamed on Indiana. The ADA promised that discrimination is not permitted and that equal access to housing, employment, and other vital aspects of life is guaranteed.
The reality has been far from perfect. The ADA has been put to the test and the first few years were uncertain, especially as the first cases made their way through the courts.
Even now, cases continue to be filed and the decisions handed down by the judges have shaped the ADA, either broadening or narrowing the scope of the law. What was promised in theory hasn't translated into true equality for disabled people.
As I said, I get frustrated with employment. Yes, theoretically we are supposed to have equal access for consideration when applying for jobs, we are supposed to be provided interpreting services at all steps in the employment process, and in the jobs thereafter, and we are supposed to have equal opportunities for job mobility.
Unemployment and underemployment continue to be high within the disabled community and those who do get hired often don't advance.
It's especially problematic among the deaf, who must deal with employers who balk at providing interpreters. Even when the hiring manager or actual on-site manager is receptive, their supervisors decline the opportunity to interview and hire us.
And when we protest, the odds are against us. The U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor reported that in 2004, plaintiffs lost 97 percent of ADA employment discrimination claims that went to trial. "People who are not hired or are fired because an employer mistakenly believes they cannot perform the job — or because the employer does not want 'people like that' — have been denied protection from employment discrimination due to these court decisions," the committee stated.
With such statistics, and an economy that is seeing high unemployment rates, is it little wonder that I'm cynical? I wish I could sit here and feel more optimistic about the future for myself and others with disabilities.
But if my home state is going to improve that grade, it's going to have to do more than just sit around paying lip service.
To read of the chairman of ADA-Indiana saying how the state has gone from zero to a C in the last 20 years is small comfort. Are we going to have to wait another 20 years?
Judging from the fact that the current rating is only a slight improvement from past surveys, one has to wonder.
Virginia L. Beach is a resident of Evansville.