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Transcript

Hi everybody! My name is Ollie Cantos and I’m Chairman of the board here at RespectAbility. And I am excited to have this opportunity to join with others in celebrating Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage Month. This is a really wonderful time of year for us to celebrate the accomplishments, in this particular context, of members of the AAPI community who also happen to have disabilities. [continue reading…]

Ariel Simms (they/them or she/her)

Washington, D.C., May 10 – As the disability community continues to feel the transformative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the disability advocacy nonprofit RespectAbility announces that Ariel Simms (they/them or she/her) has been named President and Chief Executive Officer. In this role, Ariel will foster new growth and opportunities, as part of a renewed vision to deepen RespectAbility’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.

“I am incredibly excited to join RespectAbility as its next leader, building on the powerful work of the organization’s co-founders, board, staff, Fellows, and Apprentices. As a diverse, disability-led nonprofit, RespectAbility has advocated to increase opportunity and decrease marginalization of individuals with disabilities and the stigma that persists in every facet of our society. I am eager to renew partnerships and build bridges, ensuring that RespectAbility centers those within and across the disability community who face the most barriers. Coming into RespectAbility at this critical time, we are undergoing transformational change inside and out to become a more just, equitable, and inclusive organization, and one that is deeply trusted by the communities we serve,” Ariel said.

A social justice advocate, leader, and educator, Ariel has worked to promote equity, justice, and meaningful inclusion of marginalized communities throughout their career. Ariel has been a life-long member of the disability community, growing into their first disabilities in childhood, while also supporting disabled family members. As a multiply disabled person, Ariel understands firsthand the challenges faced by those whose disabilities are not always readily apparent. [continue reading…]

Toronto, May 6 – Accessible Media Inc. (AMI), in partnership with the Canadian Media Fund (CMF) and Telefilm Canada, is launching a Disability Screen Office (DSO) in Canada to eliminate accessibility barriers and support and amplify disabled creatives.

“It became apparent that there is currently no single program, incentive, or regulation that can cause the screen industry to be fully inclusive for people with disabilities,” said Andrew Morris, Manager, Independent Production, AMI-tv. “The only way to create meaningful real opportunities for people with disabilities in the media industry is to address the systemic barriers relating to education, industry regulations, insufficient and/or inaccurate representation, public beliefs and attitudes, and full accessibility throughout the media industry.” [continue reading…]

To celebrate Mother’s Day, RespectAbility Communications Apprentice Madison Essig spoke with Dani Izzie, advocate, activist and mother with a disability. Izzie’s journey to motherhood is the subject of the upcoming documentary film Dani’s Twins. [continue reading…]

Hi everyone, I’m Wally Tablit and I’m the Director of State Policy with RespectAbility and I’m a gay Asian man with a disability. Today, I want to share with you some reflections on power, practice, and pride. Now, when I think of myself and all of those intersecting identities, we have to remember that those are all pieces of me and you can’t intersect and break those up in any shape or form. [continue reading…]

Oklahoma City, OK, April 28 – This week, the Governor’s Council for Workforce and Economic Development (GCWED) met to discuss the status of workforce practices in Oklahoma. In response to this meeting, RespectAbility, a national, nonpartisan nonprofit organization, submitted testimony on how to implement best practices, advocate for greater inclusion and improve the standing of people with disabilities in the workforce.

“When it was passed with broad, bipartisan support in 2014, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) invested unprecedented resources into efforts to get people with barriers to employment into the labor force,” said Olegario “Ollie” Cantos VII, RespectAbility’s Chairman. “Now, after the pandemic that has reshaped our economy, it is time to devote significant attention to supporting the economic advancement of students, job-seekers, and entrepreneurs with disabilities.”

There are more than 373,359 working age (18-64) Oklahomans living with some form of disability. Before the pandemic, 37.8 percent of the working age population of people with disabilities were employed. It is critical that Oklahoma’s Workforce Development Board listen to the individuals with disabilities and advocates impacted by these unemployment rates. In order to make the workforce more inclusive, and to find practical ways to make the workforce more accessible for the entire population, RespectAbility collects, summarizes, and publicizes ideas on key workforce solutions. To learn more about RespectAbility’s advocacy work, please visit our Policy website. [continue reading…]

Helena, MT, April 28 – This week, the Montana State Workforce Innovation Board met to discuss the status of workforce practices in Montana. In response to this meeting, RespectAbility, a national, nonpartisan nonprofit organization, submitted testimony on how to implement best practices, advocate for greater inclusion and improve the standing of people with disabilities in the workforce.

“When it was passed with broad, bipartisan support in 2014, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) invested unprecedented resources into efforts to get people with barriers to employment into the labor force,” said Olegario “Ollie” Cantos VII, RespectAbility’s Chairman. “Now, after the pandemic that has reshaped our economy, it is time to devote significant attention to supporting the economic advancement of students, job-seekers, and entrepreneurs with disabilities.”

There are more than 73,328 working age (18-64) Montanans living with some form of disability. Before the pandemic, 41.6 percent of the working age population of people with disabilities were employed. It is critical that Montana’s Workforce Development Board listen to the individuals with disabilities and advocates impacted by these unemployment rates. In order to make the workforce more inclusive, and to find practical ways to make the workforce more accessible for the entire population, RespectAbility collects, summarizes, and publicizes ideas on key workforce solutions. To learn more about RespectAbility’s advocacy work, please visit our Policy website. [continue reading…]

Read the report

Los Angeles, CA, April 26 – On Thursday, April 21, 2022, the Century Foundation and the Ford Foundation hosted the virtual event “Economic Justice is Disability Justice.” The event launched the Disability Economic Justice Collaborative, a first-of-its-kind initiative that brings together more than 28 leading disability organizations with an array of influential researchers and policy experts to drive a disability economic justice agenda.

Speakers from The Century Foundation shared the data that more than 31 years after the Americans with Disabilities Act became law, people with disabilities in the United States still face poverty rates twice as high as non-disabled people. People with disabilities were paid just $0.74 for every dollar compared to nondisabled workers in 2020. This is the result of pervasive discrimination and the litany of structural barriers that continue to stand in the way of economic security and mobility for disabled people in this country. [continue reading…]

David Sharif

New York, NY, April 25 – RespectAbility is saddened to share the shocking news that David Sharif has passed away suddenly at the age of 24. David was a global autism self-advocate, serving the world of neurodiversity as a job coach, community moderator, poet, and author. David was both a motivational speaker active in RespectAbility’s Disability Training and Speakers Bureau, and a frequent contributor to the Jewish Disability Perspectives Newsletter, including just this past week.

Born in Los Angeles, David graduated valedictorian from Village Glen West, a multi-disciplinary school administered by The Help Group, and became their first student to attend a four-year university out of state. In New York City, David spent most of his college life traveling abroad carrying his learning differences to new educational environments. He was a member of the award-winning Model United Nations team participating in global negotiations, delivering impromptu speeches. In his senior year, he received a research grant to conduct a study titled, “The Challenges and Successes of Post-Secondary Education for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders,” which he presented at several conferences. He was awarded the Indelible Mark Student Award for leaving a legacy of outstanding contributions that significantly and positively influenced the Pace student community. A Magna Cum Laude graduate of Pace University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Peace & Justice Studies, David Sharif was an alum of Pace’s Oasis program, a comprehensive support setting for students with learning differences. [continue reading…]