 |
|
|
IN THIS EDITION:
Spring Forward with DRA
Eagle & Turkey Awards Are Back!
Board Spotlight: Lucy Lee Helm
DRA Increases Access for Disabled GGNRA Visitors
The Fight for Juvenile Justice Continues
Spring Cleaning: A Creative Way to Give |
Spring Forward with DRA
Dear Friends,
With spring here, timing could not be better for DRA’s recent settlement with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA). Bay Area residents and visitors with disabilities will soon be better able to enjoy the natural beauty that the GGNRA has to offer.
In other good news, the US Departments of Justice and Education recently filed a statement of interest in a DRA suit which challenges Contra Costa Juvenile Hall’s use of solitary confinement and its failure to educate youth with disabilities. We are thrilled at the national attention focused on this important issue and look forward to keeping you informed of our progress!
DRA is grateful to have such a committed, accomplished group of supporters. Board member Lucy Lee Helm was recently recognized as one of 2014’s Women of Achievement and our long-time partner Nordstrom recently launched a new program that will help raise funds for non-profits such as DRA. Stay tuned for more opportunities to engage with us in 2014 and mark your calendars for our beloved Eagle & Turkey awards on November 19th in San Francisco.
Sincerely,
Larry Paradis
Executive Director & Co-Director of Litigation |
Eagle & Turkey Awards Return This Fall!
|
November 19, 2014
11:30 AM—1:30 PM
Contemporary Jewish Museum
San Francisco, CA
|
|
DRA is thrilled to announce the return of the annual Eagle & Turkey Awards Luncheon! This fun and unique holiday‐themed event will spotlight the year’s disability heroes and expose the villains. DRA extends a special thanks to our first four event sponsors: Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho (GBDH), Starbucks, Janni Lehrer-Stein & Lenny Stein, and Verizon Wireless!
Interested in sponsoring or attending the event? Click here to download a sponsor benefits form and demonstrate your support for DRA’s critical work today. Want to nominate a business or individual for an Eagle or Turkey Award? Contact Kate Hamilton at khamilton@dralegal.org or (510) 665-8644. |
Board Spotlight: Lucy Lee Helm
Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, Starbucks
DRA Board Member Lucy Lee Helm was recently named one of 2014’s Women of Achievement by The Women’s Legal Defense and Education Fund. A DRA Board Member since 2008, Ms. Helm talks about how she first got involved with DRA:
“I have a deep history of involvement in disability rights issues. Before joining Starbucks, I was employed as a disability advocate at an independent living center. At Starbucks, a part of my job was to work on and advise clients on access issues—that’s how I got connected to Disability Rights Advocates. I was extremely impressed with DRA’s work to protect the legal rights of people with disabilities. When asked, I was more than happy to join the Board of this important and impactful organization.”
Her dedication to helping others does not stop at her work with DRA. Ms. Helm currently serves on the board of MercyCorps- an international relief and development organization, and is an active volunteer with Parkview Services- a Seattle based non-profit organization providing housing and other services to persons with disabilities. DRA is honored to have Ms. Helm on our Board of Directors and congratulates her on her recent well-deserved award. |
DRA Increases Access for Disabled GGNRA Visitors
On March 17th DRA and Golden Gate National Recreation Area reached the first comprehensive settlement in the country that will increase the accessibility of the country’s largest urban national park. Under this landmark agreement, park visitors with vision and mobility disabilities will benefit from accommodations suchas beach wheelchairs, audio tours, and signage in braille.
“It is difficult to make every trail accessible, but at least where it is readily achievable, we want access and it’s important,” plaintiff Peter Mendoza told ABC News. “Volunteers will be specially trained to explain different exhibits to people with disabilities who, for example, can’t see or can’t hear.” Each year more than 13 million people visit the park, which includes Alcatraz, the Presidio, the Marin Headlands, Muir Woods, Crissy Field and Forts Point and Mason. More than 13 million people visit the recreation area annually. Some improvements to the 75,000 acre park have already been made and once the court approves the settlement, the National Park Service has until 2019 to complete all of the required changes.
More information on the case is available here
|
The Fight for Juvenile Justice Continues
In August of 2013, DRA, along with Public Counsel and Paul Hastings LLP, filed a suit challenging the solitary confinement policies and practices and failure to educate youth with disabilities in Contra Costa County Juvenile Hall. Six months later, the federal government is taking notice. This past February, the United States Departments of Justice and Education took a rare step and filed a statement of interest in the lawsuit.
Roughly 32% of the students at Contra Costa County Juvenile Hall have disabilities that require some form of special education. Despite their disabilities, these youth are locked for days and weeks at a time in cells that have barely enough room for a bed and a narrow window the width of a hand and length of an arm. “Solitary confinement of youth with mental disabilities exacerbates their disability so when they get out of solitary confinement they have a much harder time reintegrating,” says DRA attorney Mary Lee Smith. “As a result, solitary confinement becomes almost a cycle. Youth come out of [isolation] not feeling like it was an effective deterrent, but sometimes even more agitated than before they went in.”
According to the filing by the Education and Justice Departments, Contra Costa County Office of Education and Contra Costa County “have a legal obligation to avoid placing students with disabilities in restrictive security programs on the basis of their disabilities.” They “cannot abandon their legal responsibilities when the County’s Department of Probation places the youth in restrictive security programs. Nor can they each avoid responsibility by pointing the finger of liability at the other…. They can, and are required by State law to work together to accomplish these requirements. When they fail, the agencies, not the children they are required to serve, must take responsibility.”
Click here for more information on the case. |
Spring Cleaning: A Creative Way To Give
Nordstrom has long supported DRA and we’re happy to announce their newest mechanism for contributing that you can participate in: The Fashion Project
We’ve all heard the saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” but this spring you can recycle those unused items collecting dust in the back of your closet while helping raise treasured funds for DRA!
For a limited time, you can receive a $40 Nordstrom gift card for donating 5+ items from their desired brands list.
How it works: download a FREE pre-paid shipping label (or request a shipping bag) from the Fashion Project website, select DRA as your charity of choice, send in your items, and when it sells DRA gets 55% of the proceeds! |
