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New Global Education Initiative Partners with World Cup 2010

From the Global Partnership for Disability and Development (12.3.09):

This International Day of Persons with Disabilities represents one of many efforts focused on the inclusion of all persons, including those with disabilities, to receive a quality education. Quality inclusive education is a human right, as proclaimed in Article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and international cooperation is necessary to make this a reality.

A global campaign is now underway, coordinated by the Global Campaign for Education and backed by many within the disability movement, promoting a clear message: to provide education for the 75 million children out of school, as well as achieving the other EFA goals. With the partnership of FIFA, 1GOAL will use the platform of the World Cup 2010 in South Africa to promote mass public awareness and political will on EFA. 

To call attention to the need for MDG2 and the EFA goals to be inclusive, the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities, the Global Partnership for Disability and Development, Inclusion International, the International Disability and Development Consortium, and VSA arts have launched INITIATIVE24, a Global Campaign to Promote the Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Education for All. INITIATIVE24 has four elements: Networks, Legal Resource, Policy Engagement/Advocacy and Public Education and Awareness.

 

We invite you today to let your voice be heard and to join us by adding your signature through the 1Goal Campaign website and by working through 1GOAL to promote the call for inclusive education. Please go to www.join1goal.org to sign up now. 

 

By signing on the 1Goal Campaign, you will add your voice along with FIFA, its international football stars, the football world, and countless others – individuals and organizations, educators, political figures, celebrities, artists– who have already given their voices to this awareness campaign. 

 

More information about 1GOAL and Initiative 24 is available outside the conference room 4 or by contacting the partners at initiative24@vsarts.org. 

 

 

ON DECEMBER 3

 

THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

 

DO YOUR PART TO HELP CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES GO TO SCHOOL

 

 

 

1. Today, 75 million children around the world are denied access to school. One-third of these are children with disabilities. Unable to read or write, they face a lifetime of poverty.

 

2. Together, we can change this! Since 2000, with action and cooperation among governments, civil society, and donors, 40 million more children are now in school.

 

3. Education for All (EFA) will only happen if all children receive a quality education, including children with disabilities.

 

4. Delivering quality education needs more resources. Leaders of developing countries must spend 20% on education, abolish fees, provide professional teachers, and ensure children are in school, not at work. Leaders of developed countries must provide their fair share of funding, work together on a global response, invest in teachers, and include countries with the greatest need.

 

5. Respecting the United Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities means that investment in education must include children with disabilities and ensure that they receive the individualized support they need to fully participate.

 

6. The 2010 World Cup is a moment for us to shine – let’s leave a legacy of education. Global football stars, the football world, and its governing body, FIFA, are behind the 1GOAL campaign.

 

 

HOW YOU CAN HELP

 

Join 1Goal at www.join1goal.org

 

Send us a message calling for the inclusion of people with disabilities in education using the arts (picture, video, drawing, writing, etc) at initiative24@vsarts.org. Your artwork will be exhibited on an online gallery and included in future awareness campaigns.

 

 

Together let’s make sure that all children, including the 25 million children with disabilities out-of school, receive a quality education by 2015.

"Special Olympics... a Civil Rights Movement"

From the New York Times (10/24/09):

Work at Eye Level
As told by Tim Shriver to Patricia R. Olsen

WHEN I was growing up, we lived on a farm in Maryland and had dogs, chickens and cattle. In 1962, my mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, started a summer camp in our backyard for children with intellectual disabilities, which was the beginning of Special Olympics...

I joined Special Olympics as C.E.O. in 1996. I’ve tried to shift the conversation here from what Special Olympics does to what it means. It’s often seen as a service organization, but I believe that it’s a civil rights movement. Volunteers might think that they’re only coaching or serving water at a track and field event, for example, but they are doing far more. My mission has been to remind them that they are serving the search for human dignity and acceptance...

...Recently, as I faced the loss of my mother and of my uncle, Edward M. Kennedy, I wanted to be open with my staff and colleagues about our deep sadness. What’s been affirming is that it’s allowed many of the relationships among the people I work with to deepen — not just with me, but with one another. It gave us a shared sense of vulnerability and connection.

>>> For the Full Article

Guest Column: The Disability We Don’t See

Contributed by AAPD's Coalition Partner, the Islamic Society of North America (7/26/09):

The Disability We Don’t See
By Khansa Padri

Confession isn’t Part of Islam, but I reason to make one.  I used to harbor anxious feelings about people with physical and mental disabilities.  That’s why when the prospect of volunteering for the Special Olympics recently came my way I hesitated.

The inner debate was on.  Did I really want to get up on my Saturday morning and bake in the sun for innumerable hours to help with a program for people that made me uncomfortable?  But the social benefits for children in need!  Shouldn’t I help the feeble?

Ugh, but how well I remembered my own uneasiness in being around disabled children.  I could be cozy in bed, sleeping in late after a hectic week.  Then the little voice within spoke up, though I tried repeatedly to shut it out.  It kept asking: “What would Khadijah, the Mother of the Believers do, may God be pleased with her – the woman who gave everything to the budding Muslim community in Makkah, for the sake of Allah?”

At last, with a deep sigh and a quick bismillah, I signed my name on the dotted line.

Saturday morning I found myself decked in a white hijab and tons of sun-block lotion.  I can do this, I kept telling myself.  I tried to psyche up.  I envisioned myself happily and successfully getting through the day.  But most importantly, I renewed my intention to participate in this event solely for the pleasure of my Creator.

When I got to the Special Olympics site, abruptly I beheld a flurry of people-in wheelchairs, on crutches, cast in varied apparatus and motions all mingling with one another.  For a moment, I was taken aback.  My eyes swallowed the un-synched scene, and my heart gave a quick flutter.

I swiftly pulled myself together and registered, got my volunteer badge, and headed off to my event.  My task was mercifully simple:  Keep the relay race lines moving and physically assist anyone in need of a hand here or arm there.

One by one, the unique athletes, some trudging, others hopping, slowly struggled down the 50 yard track, never taking their eyes off the finish line and always surpassing it.  Each time a member made it across the trodden path, the entire team broke out in pride-screams of victory.  With each passing race words of encouragement instinctively spilled out of my mouth and  gentle touches of aide was a simple matter of reflexes.  I soon became a member of not just one team but all three.

The day moved faster than I expected. Even the blazing sun didn’t seem so bothersome anymore.  I was actually enjoying myself.  I ate some scrumptious food and even conversed with a number of participants, listening to their wholesome dreams of growing up and leaving their mark on the world.  Yes I had a bit of difficulty understanding  the speech of a few, but I never failed to see the eagerness and  determination to succeed that illuminated their faces.

The day wound down, only a couple of contests left.  I felt immensely satisfied with how the even unfolded for me.  Little did I know, that my day was just about to begin?

It was a 10-yard baton relay race between two teams.  Things were flowing smoothly as before with the athletes engaged in friendly competition. A small boy of about 7 in a wheel chair, with one full leg and one amputated to the knee, unexpectedly began struggling to stand up.

Naturally, I asked him what he was doing.  He would use his crutches in this final race, he said.  As I looked at him, it was clear that there was going to be on convincing this boy to stay in his wheelchair.  I had to think fast.  So instead of disallowing him, I simply gave him the keys to his independence.

Intently I watched him.  He began to wobble down  the lane.  He moved with laborious determination, stopping every so often to take a breath.  Whether  there was a rock along the way or Allah had just determined to teach me a hard-learned lesson, I don’t’ know. But before I could react, the young boy flipped onto the ground, his crutches lying close by.  Within seconds, I was beside the boy, feeling as if my heart was going to come out of my mouth.  I helped him turn over and checked for any injuries or signs of bleeding.  Except for a few minor scratches on his knees and palm, the boy appeared unhurt, alhamdulilah!

The race was over for him.  He’d turn around and call it a day.

But to my shock, he tightly grabbed hold of his crutches and fiercely stared in to the finish line.  His intent was clear.  So I helped him to his feet and then stood by in disbelief as the boy continued his arduous journey to complete the race.

Every eye was fixed upon him, step after grueling step.  By the time he reached that deeply coveted line, the entire audience was on its feet applauding raucously.  I myself literally jumped for joy and ran to meet him at the other end.

The satisfied look of accomplishment he wore, beads of perspiration on his forehead, is forever etched in my mind.  I congratulated him, exclaiming wildly: “You did it! You did it!”  He just looked at me.  And calmly he said: “No We did it.”

My heart dissolved. My eyes misted.  This 7-year old child, with a physical disability, yet the will and poise of  a hero, helped me more than anything I did that day.  He became my teacher.

For Allah had reminded me through him that the real disabilities in human beings lie not in their forms or intellects, but dwell in their hearts.  And all of them veil a single thing: A spirit imbued with arrogance that proud feeling which hinders us from acceptance of one another because of superficial differences; that prevents us from our native state of happiness for each other and mutual joy in togetherness; that keeps us from hymning our inborn will to express collective thanksgiving to the sole Creator and all His many splendid creatures.

I was humbled.  I was grateful.  By a miracle, I had been cured.

Just In: AAPD Joins Facebook Causes

From the JFA Moderator:

AAPD recently joined Facebook Causes as a way to get the word out about the disability rights movement and to make it easier for YOU, our dedicated activists, to contribute your support.

Take Action TODAY: Join or Donate to AAPD's Cause on Facebook and share these links with your friends.

>>> To Join the Movement

>>> To Support our Work

Legally blind runner is a sight to behold

From the Chicago Sun Times (8/28/09):

Legally blind runner is a sight to behold
By Dale Bowman

'I only bit the dust once,'' Kim Borowicz said.

That's remarkable for any long-distance runner, let alone a triathlete with a vision impairment.

The fall came on an extended training run. When runners in a 5K intersected their run, her guide, one of several she has, had to track them off the path. There were ''multiple obstacles at once,'' and Borowicz took a tumble. But she got up with her knee ''totally bleeding'' and finished the final two miles.

That toughness explains why the 27-year-old trains for marathons and triathlons. With guide Krysten Rose-McCully, Borowicz will participate in the new Accenture ParaTriathlon Challenge at the 27th Chicago Triathlon on Sunday. It will be Borowicz's fifth triathlon, and she plans to do the Chicago Marathon again.

The ParaTriathlon has six recognized physically challenged categories of competition. Paratriathlon is expected to be part of the 2016 Olympics. This Chicago Triathlon, the world's largest, is expected to showcase the city's bid for the 2016 Games...

>>> For the Full Article

NPR: Kennedy Shriver's Death Sparks National Conversation about Disability Rights and the R-Word

From the JFA Moderator:

Tuesday, August 11, in the wake of Eunice Kennedy Shriver's death NPR's Talk of the Nation interviewed

Ann Turnbull of the Beach Center and Paul Marchand of The Arc and UCP to discuss the use of the R-Word, the current state of the Disability Community, how far we've come and how far we have to go.  Host Lynn Neary, Turnbull and Marchand responded to diverse caller's questions, comments and stories as they reflected on issues including community choice and independent living, self-advocacy, and inclusion.

>>>To Listen to the program or read the transcript

Excerpts form the NPR Transcript:

Attitudes Toward The Intellectually Disabled

Prof. TURNBULL: Jay's greatest social security was not the government money, but it was his authentic relationships with so many people who cared about him...

NEARY: And here's an email from a mother, a parent, a listener from Highland, Illinois. I am the parent of a child with Down Syndrome. I'm glad things are so much better than they were even one generation ago, but I will not believe that we have made any real progress until I hear the R-word, retard, bleeped out on primetime television like other hate speech...

Dr. TURNBULL:... I believe that one of our greatest future directions is to provide as much choice and control as possible for people with intellectual disabilities. And when those people, similar to Jay, need support in making that happen, then they are surrounded by family and friends who can enable them to have the life that all of us want for ourselves, an opportunity to control our front door and opportunity to have a job where we can contribute and to have valued friends.

NEARY: And Paul, we were starting to get into it a little bit early about the fact that a number of people with intellectual disabilities have the ability to lead some of this movement for their rights.

Mr. MARCHAND: We have a new, relatively new national organization called SABE, Self Advocates Becoming Empowered, and it is totally controlled by people with intellectual disabilities. They are a moving force. They are a growing force...

Comment Below: What are the indicators for you for how far we have come? and what new directions are most exciting for you? 

AAPD President and CEO Remembers Shriver

From the JFA Moderator:

Just in case you missed it, AAPD's President and CEO, Andy Imparato, was interviewed by Judy Woodruff on the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on Tuesday evening.  In his interview, he remembered his personal interactions with Eunice Kennedy Shriver and described her far reaching impact on our community and our nation's history.  He remembered her as a "pioneer" with an "indomitable spirit."  

The interview followed a tribute to Mrs. Shriver and can be found on the NewsHour's website under
"Remembering Kennedy Shriver, Advocate for People With Disabilities."

Take a look!

Also check out the AAPD Website for other reactions to the passing of Eunice Kennedy Shriver including:

AAPD’s Statement on the Passing of Eunice Kennedy Shriver

Special Olympics Statement

Best Buddies Statement

Special Olympics Tribute Page to Eunice Kennedy Shriver

Senator Ted Kennedy’s Statement

Statement from Shriver Family (via California First Lady Maria Shriver’s Web site)

President Barack Obama’s Statement

Can We Stop Saying Retarded Yet?

From Slate Online Magazine (Aug. 12, 2009):

Can We Stop Saying Retarded Yet?
Yes, it's "intellectually disabled."
By Adrian Chen

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder of the Special Olympics, died Tuesday morning at the age of 88. A number of articles made note of her work on behalf of the "mentally retarded" or in preventing "mental retardation." Is it still OK to use the word retarded?

Not really. The current version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders—which is used by psychiatrists to make clinical diagnoses—still employs the phrase mental retardation to describe people who score below about a 70 on IQ tests. However, most who work in the field—including psychologists, activists, and bureaucrats—prefer the term intellectual disability. (The next revision of the diagnostic manual, due out in 2012, may update its language accordingly.)

Intellectual disability has become the preferred nomenclature only in the past few years, so it's understandable that some newspapers are still using mental retardation...

>>> For the Full Article

Comment Below: Not ok, but understandable: Agree or Disagree?  To what extend do you think the improving trends in official vocabulary reflect popular lingo? What do you think our greatest obstacles are in once-and-for-all putting the R-word to rest: sensitivity, education, time...?

Disability Community Mourns Eunice Kennedy Shriver's Passing

Just in:

Andy Imparato, AAPD's President and CEO, is scheduled to be on PBS’s The News Hour with Jim Lehrer between 6:30 and 6:50 p.m. tonight (live) discussing Eunice Kennedy Shriver. He’s scheduled to be preceded by a tribute to her, and then he will be interviewed by Judy Woodruff. Please tune in and tell others to watch!

AAPD’s Statement on the Passing of Disability Leader Eunice Kennedy Shriver

WASHINGTON, DC – August 11, 2009 – The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the country's largest cross-disability membership organization, released a statement following the passing of disability community leader Eunice Kennedy Shriver today:

"Eunice Kennedy Shriver was an advocate, leader, family member and champion in the disability community. Her belief in the potential of all people with disabilities was unwavering, and her life’s work will live on in the millions of people in the disability community who were affected by her advocacy,” said Tony Coelho, AAPD’s Board Chair.

“Eunice Kennedy Shiver worked tirelessly for the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities not only in sports, but in all society, and sped up the process whereby generations of people with mental disabilities realized their potential and self-worth,” said Andrew Imparato, AAPD’s President and CEO. “AAPD and the disability community as a whole lost a family member and torch bearer with her passing."

For more on the disability community’s reaction to the passing of Eunice Kennedy Shiver, please visit www.aapd.com.

Special Olympics Mourns Founder's Passing

From the Special Olympics (8/11/09):

Dear Special Olympics family,

It is with a heavy heart that I write to let you know that my mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, passed away early this morning.

At the time of her death -- as it was throughout her long and full life -- she was surrounded by her family, her husband, her children, her grandchildren and those who loved her.

Though at the end her body had become weak, her heart was strong and it was abundantly full. It was overflowing with faith in God’s will. It was replete with a sense of contentment about the past and a deep hope for the future. It was full of love and gratitude for those to whom she had dedicated her life’s work and who had in return given her life the gifts of clarity, aspiration and friendship.
Her heart was full indeed of faith, hope and love. She was very much at peace.

As I write to you, her extended family of the Special Olympics movement that she loved so deeply, it is hard not to recognize that these same traits that sustained her at the time of her death had fulfilled and motivated her throughout her lifetime of advocacy for people with intellectual disabilities -- or as she always said, her “special friends.”

Her faith in the athletes of Special Olympics was unfailing, even from the very start. When she was young and Special Olympics was still just an idea, few people particularly cared or knew about people with intellectual disabilities. Fewer still shared or understood her dream to awaken the spirit and denied potential of this forgotten population. And yet, though others could not see, she still believed, conceiving Special Olympics in her heart before she could unveil it on the field of play.

She believed that people with intellectual disabilities could – individually and collectively – achieve more than anyone thought possible. This much she knew with unbridled faith and certainty. And this faith in turn gave her hope that their future might be radically different.

Her faith in them allowed her to hope for an army of supporters – coaches, volunteers, donors, fans – that would emerge and grow and become the foundation upon which a worldwide
human rights movement would be built. It allowed her to envision a world of formerly skeptical
people who would witness the accomplishments of our athletes and say “Yes! I understand!” Hope allowed her to see the invisible, fight for the isolated and achieve the impossible.

But mostly, it was her unconditional love for the athletes of Special Olympics that so fulfilled her life. As Thomas Merton, the Trappist monk and social activist reminded us: “the beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image, lest we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them.”

Her love for the athletes of Special Olympics was always just like that. She never hoped that people with intellectual disabilities should be somehow changed into something they were not. Rather, she fought throughout her life to ensure that they would be allowed to reach their full potential so that we might in turn be changed by them, forced to recognize our own false assumptions and their inherent gifts.

She fought the good fight, she kept the faith, and though she knew the race for equality was not finished, she knew that the army of supporters she had hoped for long ago had become a reality that would carry and someday complete her vision. On her behalf, as we prepare to say our last goodbyes, my family and I thank you for your shared commitment to that dream.

My family and I would be proud and honored if you would take some time to learn more about her life, share your own remembrances about her, and read the remembrances of others at a website that was recently established to honor her legacy, www.eunicekennedyshriver.org. In the spirit of her hope that everyone would share in the power of Special Olympics, I hope you’ll not only read and contribute to the site, but share it with friends.

With great appreciation,
Timothy P. Shriver
Chairman and CEO
Special Olympics