Our Mission
With offices in California and New York, Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) is one of the leading nonprofit disability rights legal centers in the nation. Its mission is to advance equal rights and opportunity for people with all types of disabilities nationwide.
Contact for Press Inquiries
Email: communications@dralegal.org
Phone: (510) 665-8644
Links
DRA General Information Brochure (PDF)
Federal Judge Rules New York City’s Inadequate Disaster Plans Discriminate Against Hundreds of Thousands of New Yorkers with Disabilities New York, NY – A Federal Court ruled today that New York City discriminated against people with disabilities in its failure to plan for their needs in large scale disasters such as Hurricane Sandy. This major … Continue reading “Federal Judge Rules New York City’s Inadequate Disaster Plans Discriminate Against Hundreds of Thousands of New Yorkers with Disabilities”
San Francisco, CA – October 16 – In a major victory for voters with disabilities who are blind and visually impaired, a federal court ruled today that Alameda County must ensure that blind and visually impaired voters are able to vote privately and independently during elections. The secret ballot is one of the most fundamental … Continue reading “Landmark Decision: Blind and visually impaired voters must be ensured the right to a private and independent vote”
Oct. 10, 2013, New York, NY. – The Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) and Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) announced today that they have reached an agreement with AMC Theatres® (AMC) to improve access to its movies for patrons who are deaf or have hearing loss. Under the agreement, AMC will make available personal closed … Continue reading “Hearing Loss Association of America and AMC Theatres® Reach Landmark Agreement to Dramatically Improve Access to Movies for Millions of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Patrons in New York State”
New York, New York. Aug 28 2013– In a pending federal lawsuit likely to have major implications for the City’s future taxi fleet and the Bloomberg administration’s “Taxi of Tomorrow” initiative, a coalition of disability groups today filed a motion for Summary Judgment, arguing that forcing medallion owners to purchase the Nissan NV200 van and … Continue reading “New Yorkers With Disabilities File Major Challenge To Bloomberg’s Taxi Of Tomorrow Initiative And Inaccessible Taxi Fleet”
New York, NY – August 14, 2013 – The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, on behalf of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), filed an amicus brief today that supports over 300,000 New Yorkers with vision and mobility impairments who seek to vote in-person at New York City poll sites. … Continue reading “United States Department of Justice Supports New Yorkers with Disabilities who Seek to Vote at Poll Sites on Election Day”
Berkeley, CA – August 8, 2013 – Contra Costa County Juvenile Hall locks young people with disabilities in solitary confinement for up to 23 hours a day and deprives them of education, according to a federal class action lawsuit filed today by Disability Rights Advocates, Public Counsel and Paul Hastings LLP. Contra Costa County Juvenile … Continue reading “Lawsuit Details Solitary Confinement and Failure to Educate Young People with Disabilities in Contra Costa County Juvenile Hall”
San Francisco, CA – July 25, 2013 – A class action lawsuit filed today in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California alleges that the County of Alameda discriminates against voters who are blind and visually impaired. Voting privately and independently is one of the most fundamental and cherished American rights. … Continue reading “Blind and Visually Impaired Voters Face Barriers to Voting on Election Day”
New York, NY – July 24, 2013 – A federal class action lawsuit filed today in the Southern District of New York alleges that Beth Israel Medical Center, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center and the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, discriminate against patients with disabilities. The lawsuit, which is being brought by United Spinal, Inc. … Continue reading “Beth Israel, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt, and New York Eye and Ear Infirmary Provide Substandard Care to New Yorkers with Disabilities”
New York, NY – May 10, 2013 – The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, on behalf of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), filed a statement of interest today that supports Plaintiffs’ position in the federal class action, BCID v. Bloomberg, Case No. 11-cv-6690 (JMF) . Plaintiffs in that matter … Continue reading “United States Department of Justice Supports Plaintiffs Seeking Effective Large Scale Disaster Planning for New Yorkers with Disabilities”
Berkeley, CA – May 7, 2013 – Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) and the University of California, Berkeley announced a settlement agreement today that will significantly improve information access for students with print related disabilities. The settlement puts in place a range of new policies and procedures to ensure that print disabled students have access to … Continue reading “Landmark Agreement Big Step Forward for Students with Print Disabilities”