Integrity Recovery Connected reposted this
Disability Rights Advocate and Nonprofit Leader, Change Agent, Activator, Military Wife and Daughter, and Mom to Three Strong Young Women
81 million Americans who identify as disabled, make up America’s largest minority population. Accessibility protections enable millions of them to work. Removing accessibility regulations that allow so many people to be productive, contributing members of our society is simply bad for business. More than 8 million people with disabilities go to work in America every day and some estimates put that figure much higher. Yet, the Justice Department has announced that it will begin penalizing government programs that promote accessibility. That will make it more difficult for many people with disabilities to get to work and may make it impossible for them to keep their jobs. What’s more, the federal government is one of the largest employers of people with disabilities. The lack of accessibility that is being recreated with these edicts along with return-to-office mandates being issued by many government agencies will result in many people with disabilities losing or having to leave their jobs. Not only does this make us less efficient, it will drive unemployment up, decrease individual independence and potentially increase dependence on the government. These actions prompt questions about their legality and compliance with laws outlined in the Americans with Disabilities Act, which protect the right of people with disabilities to work and require employers to make necessary accommodations for these workers. While we ponder that dilemma, I urge decision makers to keep in mind that disability knows no political affiliation, race, or class – all of us are impacted by disability at some point in our lives. Making it harder for ¼ of our citizens to work will do nothing to strengthen our country but in fact, will have a negative impact on our economy and a far more serious impact on our humanity.