Looking Backward, Looking Forward

As we begin a new year together, it is a time to be reflective. Many of us take time to consider the year just finished, and also consider the year that now begins. There are so many ways in which to reflect at this time of year.

Our EqUUal Access community is a special and dear group of people within the larger Unitarian Universalist community. Many of us deal with challenges that are daunting on a regular basis.

I would like to share some possible questions for reflection as we begin 2014:

• What were your deepest joys during 2013?  
• In what ways did you make a difference in someone else’s life in 2013?
• How did you change in a positive way during 2013?
• How did another person or group offer you help or kindness during 2013?
• What was one important thing that you learned during 2013?
• In what way do you hope to make a difference in someone’s life or in the world in 2014?
• How would you like to change in a positive way during 2014?
• To whom would you like to offer your help or kindness during 2014?

May we work together in peace, love, and hope. I wish each of you the very best—a warm thought, a compassionate moment, a blessing—in 2014.

With peace and hope,

Rev. Marcia Marino, D.Min.

Chair of Right Relations, EqUUal Access

The Passing of a Hero

The passing of Nelson Mandela this week reverberated throughout the world.  Rarely has a human being received such universal acclaim and appreciation for his presence on earth.  Mandela represented the highest ideals of compassion, forgiveness, truth, honesty and love.  

So it is not surprising that he also spoke eloquently of the needs and rights of people with disabilities in our society.  Here is what he said,

"It is not a question of patronizing philanthropy towards disabled people. They do not need the patronage of the non-disabled. It is not for them to adapt to the dominant and dominating world of the so-called non-disabled. It is for us to adapt our understanding of a common humanity; to learn of the richness of how human life is diverse; to recognize the presence of disability in our human midst as an enrichment of our diversity." 

We mourn the passing of this great man.  The world is poorer today because he is not in it.

Mark Bernstein

Growth Consultant, Central East Regional Group and UUA Liaison to Equual Access

Celebrating the Truth

The Today Show ran a short piece recently on Jimmy Jenson, a 48 year old man with Down syndrome.  He ran the New York City Marathon on Sunday and became the first person with Down syndrome to complete this landmark race.  You can see the video by following this link:

http://www.today.com/health/first-runner-down-syndrome-finishes-nyc-marathon-8C11518983

This is no doubt a great achievement, but I wonder....Do we lift up these kinds of stories because we don't expect people with disabilities to succeed in ways like this? Are we celebrating Jimmy's greatness or our own willingness to admit that people are people and that “disability” is an imaginary barrier?

It seems that whenever a person with a disability accomplishes something or otherwise makes a difference in the world, we consider them to be extraordinary.   Not just because what they did was extraordinary but because they did it WITH A DISABILITY.  I came across a website recently that touted the “Top 10 Extraordinary People with Disabilities.”  They included people like Van Gogh, Beethoven, Christy Brown, John Nash, Stephen Hawking, and Helen Keller.  It wasn’t enough that these people created breathtaking music or inspiring artwork or intellectual breakthroughs in science and mathematics.  It’s that they did it WITH A DISABILITY, as if the achievement would be less significant if they hadn’t had a disability.

So maybe, it is important that we lift up stories like the one involving Jimmy Jenson…because no one had ever heard of Jimmy Jenson before.  It’s people like Jimmy who live in anonymity while they fight for their rights; struggle to be accepted in their communities; and persevere in the face of prejudice and doubt.  That is what makes them extraordinary, not the accomplishments they achieve.

Lucy Daniel is the Policy Officer at CBM Australia, an international development agency that works with people with disabilities in the world's poorest countries.  She once wrote, “I no longer focus solely on the problems faced by people with disabilities over the people themselves, because I can now see these problems in the context of everything that people with disabilities have and can achieve…I see a chance to celebrate the truth that each and every person living with disability has the potential to contribute hugely to their family and community.”

So, way to go, Jimmy…and keep on running.

With respect,

Mark Bernstein

Consultant, Central East Regional Group and UUA Liaison to Equual Access

The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship

The Disability/Ability Action Program is under way and so Unitarian Universalism begins a new chapter in its commitment to inclusion of people who historically have been on the margins of society.  A collaboration of Equual Access and the UUA, this groundbreaking program challenges congregations to welcome, embrace, support and integrate people with disabilities and their families into congregational life. 

Congregations seeking certification will conduct an assessment of accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities, create an action plan of worship, workshops and projects, have that plan approved by the Disability/Ability Certification Committee and then implement the plan. When the plan has been fully implemented, the congregation can vote to be recognized as a congregation with a Disability/Ability Action Program certificate.  The program is designed to meet the needs of the entire congregation and includes workshops and activities for children and youth as well as adults.

Ten congregations are currently participating in the two year pilot project:

First Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Ann Arbor, MI
First Parish in Bedford, MA
The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Buffalo, NY
First Parish Cambridge, MA
First Parish Kingston, MA
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Las Cruses, NM
The Unitarian Universalist Congregation in McHenry, IL
The Congregational Society, Unitarian Universalist Peterborough, NH 
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Raleigh, NC
First Unitarian Universalist Church of Rochester, MN

The plan is for the project to be offered to congregations around the country in 2015 to coincide with the 25^th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Beautiful friendship, indeed.

For more information about the Disability/Ability Action Program, contact me at mbernstein@uua.org or Reverend Barbara Meyers at bfkmeyers@prodigy.net.

With respect,

Mark Bernstein

Consultant, Central East Regional Group and UUA Liaison to Equual Access

The (Star)Bucks Stops Here

In early March of this year, a group of deaf people were holding their monthly meeting at a Starbucks in lower Manhattan.  Part of a national effort called Deaf Chat Coffee, they were gathered together to socialize over coffee and pastries purchased at the coffee outlet.  Suddenly, their meeting was interrupted by police officers who had been summoned to the store by Starbucks workers.  The workers claimed that the group was creating a disturbance, conducting a meeting without a permit, and were not purchasing items from the store.  None of these allegations were true and the police officers apologized to the group, finding no illegal conduct.  In addition to harassing the group by calling the police, one Starbucks employee allegedly laughed hysterically at the speech of one member of the group and other deaf customers claimed that they were refused service.  In one case, a Starbucks employee who knew some sign language tried to assist the deaf customers and was reprimanded by another employee.

When a complaint was filed with Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and other upper management staff, an executive apologized and tried to assuage the group by offering them a preloaded Starbucks gift card.    That wasn’t enough for these customers and they promptly filed a lawsuit, now pending in Federal Court.  (To their credit, Starbucks subsequently published a post on their website decrying discrimination in any form and outlining the ways in which they intentionally support Deaf partners and customers.)  http://www.starbucks.com/blog/starbucks-on-inclusion-of-deaf-community/1262

For those Unitarian Universalists who don’t think that matters related to inclusion of people with disabilities is a social justice issue, think again.  If this action had been perpetrated against a group of LGBT persons or persons of color, the uproar would have been deafening (no pun intended).  But because it happens to a group of people whose rights are not nearly trumpeted as much as those of other marginalized groups, it gets a 10 second spot on the local news right before sports and weather.

There are a group of UU congregations who are planning a joint worship event in the fall.  The idea was raised to hire a sign language interpreter for attendees who are deaf.  I was told that there was resistance to the idea since some members of the planning committee felt that it wasn’t necessary.  Thanks to the persistence of one member of the committee, the idea was adopted and the interpreter was hired.

We have a long way to go in recognizing and acknowledging the rights of people with disabilities, both in the outside world and within our Unitarian Universalist communities.  Let’s start talking about it in our congregations.  I’ll be happy to discuss it with you anytime, perhaps over a cup of coffee?

  

With respect,

Mark Bernstein, CERG  Consultant and UUA Liaison to Equual Access

Getting There

As it pertains to issues around disability and accessibility, General Assembly 2013 in Louisville went, from my perspective, pretty well.  The workshop on creating inclusive worship services with Suzanne Fast, Sarah Dan Jones and Amy Carol Webb was well conducted and very well attended.  The Equual Access booth was busy with many ribbons, business cards and literature being handed out, many questions being answered, and many new relationships being formed.  The convention center was, as far as I knew, physically accessible. And the language during group worship and plenary sessions was generally appropriate and respectful.

So, all in all, I think it went okay.  However, there were a few times during the week when people were not as sensitive as they should have been.  We still have a long way to go in raising the consciousness of people around hurtful words and phrases and the suggestion of concepts that demean an entire group of individuals.

The most grievous example of this came during the Sunday Morning Worship and the sermon delivered by the Rev. Dr. William Schulz, President and CEO of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee and former President of the Unitarian Universalist Association.  In his opening remarks, Rev. Schulz said, “I have been preaching to Unitarian Universalists now for more than forty-four years. One of the definitions of mental illness is doing the same thing over and over again without appreciable effect. Thank you, Peter, for giving me one more opportunity to prove my sanity.”  This was followed by uproarious laughter in the hall, including the dignitaries on the stage behind him.

First of all, Rev. Schulz, that is not one of the definitions of mental illness.  Secondly, it is not true that all people with mental illness do the same thing over and over again without appreciable effect.  Thirdly, I know many people who do not have a diagnosis of mental illness who do the same thing over and over again without appreciable effect.  Witness my New York Mets.

But the worst thing about these remarks was the effort to squeeze some laughs out of a blatantly stereotypical and negative profile of a particular class of persons.  Imagine what would have happened if, for example, Rev. Schulz had begun his sermon with, “One of the definitions of a lesbian is…”; or  “One of the definitions of an Hispanic is …”  At the least, it would have been met with stunned silence.  At most, it would have resulted in cries of protest and people leaving Plenary Hall.

Yeah, we still have a ways to go.  But I’m hopeful.  I truly believe that while words may sometimes divide us and preconceived ideas, judgments and assumptions may sometimes hurt us, if we pay attention to these things; if we give voice to it and speak out against it; if we strive to understand others with compassion and empathy, we will prevail.  And General Assembly will truly become the beloved community.

As the author Jose N. Harris said, “I may not be there yet, but I’m closer than I was yesterday.”

With respect,

 Mark Bernstein, CERG  Consultant and UUA Liaison to Equual Access

Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act July 26

This year is the 23rd anniversary of theAmericans with Disabilities Act. The law was intended to guarantee equal opportunity for people with disabilities in public accommodations, commercial facilities, employment, transportation, state and local government services and telecommunications. The requirements specified in the standards are the minimum.

Religious organizations and other agencies are not required to meet these standards, however, Unitarian Universalist congregations that strive to live in keeping with the 7 Principals seek to improve the engagement of people with disabilities sometimes well exceeding from minimum federal or state requirements.

In celebrating the 23rd anniversary of the ADA, EqUUal Access offers some information for you to consider.

In 2010 U.S. Census, 56.7 million people living in the United States self identified as a person with a disability.

8 percent of children under 15 had disabilities.

21 percent of people 15 and older had disabilities.

17 percent of people 21 to 64 had disabilities.

50 percent of adults 65 and older had disabilities.

Of the people 15 years of age or older

7.6 million people reported having a hearing difficulty. Among people 65 and older, 4 million had difficulty hearing.

8.1 million people reported having vision difficulty.

30.6 million people had difficulty walking or climbing stairs.

3.6 million people used a wheelchair to assist with mobility. This compares with 11.6 million people who used a cane, crutches or walker.

2.4 million people had Alzheimer's disease, senility or dementia.

12.0 million people required the assistance of others in order to perform one or more activities of daily living or instrumental activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing, doing housework, and preparing meals.

33% of the civilian non-institutionalized population 18 to 64 with a disability were employed.

315,000 janitors and building cleaners are people with a disability ─ the most common occupation for people with disabilities. Among occupations with 100,000 or more people, dishwashers had the highest disability rate, with 14.3 percent.

$19,735 was the median earnings in the past 12 months for people with a disability. This compares with $30,285 for those without a disability.

23% of people with a disability were living in poverty. By comparison, those without a disability had a poverty rate of 15 percent.