If you have attended any of the national Independent Living events — and hopefully state and local ones as well — you have heard the term “accessible formats” as in, “you must request accessible formats in advance”. If you are
Affirmative Action — a twist on Consumer Control
Embed from Getty Images You already know that your center is required to be consumer controlled. This means that a majority of staff AND management staff must be persons with disabilities, and that a majority of board members must be
Disability Rights — Have we achieved equal access and protection?
When I teach about the history and philosophy of Independent Living, I go back to the 1960s and describe the times. I lived in the St. Louis area then, and I remember the race riots in East St. Louis on
Systems change advocacy – six effective strategies
I was readying an article in Non-Profit Quarterly recently, an article about how to change an established system. I was reminded of a few important principles around system change. We are not the only group in the world working for
Philosophy of Independent Living – the Basic Fundamentals
Section 701 of Title VII of the Rehabilitation Act starts out with the purpose of Independent Living. “The purpose of this chapter is to promote a philosophy of independent living, including a philosophy of consumer control, peer support, self-help, self-determination,
Six Things Every Housing Specialist Needs to Know
Accessible housing is required by the Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. According to HUD guidelines, housing that is accessible facilitates the ability of persons with disabilities to enjoy full use
Create, FUND and Implement Local Advocacy and Leadership Training
As a movement we are all about Advocacy. We show up at important meetings — to testify, to challenge assumptions, to get the word out about what the disability community wants, needs, and has a right to. Our staff are
Five tips for making your website accessible.
Wouldn’t it be great if all websites of Centers for Independent Living, Statewide Independent Living Councils, and Associations for Centers were accessible? Sadly, that is not always the case. Sometimes the center hasn’t thought about this aspect of accessibility, but