32 of federal prisoners report having at least one disability. 40% of jail inmate report having at least one disability. Source: http://www.bjs.gov

Event: Disability and Criminal Justice Reform: Keys to Success

New Report Brings to Light the Importance of Including People with Disabilities in Justice Reform Process

Today, there are more than 750,000 Americans with disabilities behind bars.

A new report released June 20, showed, for the first time, that a shocking number of America’s jail and prison inmates have disabilities. The report, released by the advocacy group RespectAbility, used public data previously available but never before assembled and details the large percentages of inmates who have a cognitive, vision, hearing, ambulatory or other type of disability.

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Criminal Justice Reform

Headshots of Born This Way cast members Rachel, Sean and Elena

Invite to A&E Network TV Screening: RSVP Required

A&E® Network and Bunim/Murray Productions
Invite you to a Special Screening Event

BORN THIS WAY

DATE: Tuesday, December 1
TIME: 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM
LOCATION:
Rayburn House Office Building, Room B-340
Independence Avenue between First Street SW and South Capitol Street

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Born This Way

Nalaga’at Theater at the Kennedy Center

Israel’s Nalaga’at Theater Deaf-Blind Acting Ensemble, RespectAbility and White House’s Claudia Gordon join for magic night of culture at the Kennedy Center

Washington, D.C. – In a moving night of theater and exchange, Israel’s famous Nalaga’at Theater Deaf-Blind Acting Ensemble, RespectAbilityUSA, and the White House’s Claudia Gordon joined together for a night of magic. Nalaga’at is a world famous acting group whose cast consists of a dozen talented deaf-blind actors. RespectAbility is an American non-profit organization devoted to empowering people with disabilities to be valued and respected for the abilities that they do have. Claudia Gordon works at the White House Office of Public Engagement where she serves as the Public Engagement Advisor to the Disability Community. Fully 56 million Americans have disabilities, roughly one in five Americans.

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A Better Bottom Line: Employing People with Disabilities

Gov. Jack Markell

Rep. Pete Sessions

TJ Lavin

TJ Lavin, host of MTV’s “The Challenge,” recovered from a near fatal accident and is a supporter of people with disabilities.
Gov. Jack Markell (DE) is the immediate past chair of the National Governors Association and is the leading state advocate for employing people with disabilities. See the NGA’s Report here: NGA.org
Rep. Pete Sessions, U.S. Congressman (R-TX) and chairman of the House Rules Committee, is one of the strongest advocates in Congress for people with disabilities. His son has Down syndrome and is an Eagle Scout.
With special guest 23 time Paralympian medalist Matt Cowdrey

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Poll release at 1:30 ET!

New Poll of 3839 People in Disability Community Shows:

3 out of 4 people with disabilities surveyed value a job and independence over government benefits (no partisan split)
Disability community sites employer perceptions that they will be “less successful than someone without a disability” as primary barrier to jobs
Disability community names top ways to impact work environment as change in employer attitudes, employer training, and change in structure of benefits system
Younger PwDs (Post IDEA/ADA Generations) More Interested in Self-advocacy
Less than half of PwDs looking for work have access to quality training programs, career counseling, and professional resources (e.g., job coach) needed to help with a job search. [continue reading…]