UVM Center on Disability & Community Inclusion (CDCI)

Transportation is a huge issue for people with disabilities in Vermont! When you cast your vote, are you voting for candidates who will support a program similar to this one for Vermonters?

Did you know CDCI is turning 50 this year? It's true! And to celebrate, we're throwing a party the afternoon of Thursday, November 14. You can attend in person at the Alumni House on the UVM campus in Burlington VT, or online. We hope you can make it to our afternoon symposium exploring projects we've led, our history, and our impact. Then in the evening, we'll come together for a celebration of the past 50 years. The celebration will include brief remarks, food, with lots of time to connect and have fun. And you might see some familiar faces from the past... ASL interpretation and live captioning will be available both in-person and online. The event is free but advance registration is required, as in-person space is limited. Register: go.uvm.edu/cdci-turns-50 #Disability #Vermont #Celebration

We are so excited for this upcoming three-day event from the Brain Injury Alliance of Vermont! #Disability #Vermont #TBI

And in news closer to home, the UVM Disabled Students Union (DSU) were on hand for the installation of new benches at bus stops on the UVM campus. The DSU has been instrumental in advising the University on the need to improve campus accessibility, especially with regards to transportation. This is a huge win for people with disabilities at UVM -- students, staff, and faculty! Here's the WCAX-TV story on the installation: https://lnkd.in/e2Xu4_Tq #Disability #Vermont #Transportation

This is a massive win for the rights of people with disabilities all over the country! Airlines must ensure that people with disabilities can travel safely, with care taken for their mobility devices, their service animals, and their carers. Respect for human dignity is the bare minimum required from all airlines. #Disability #DisabilityRights #Travel

This year is an important year for people with disabilities to make sure we can vote! Thank you to Disability Rights Vermont for the 8th edition of their valuable guide: The Voter's Guide for Vermonters with Disabilities (.pdf) Check it out beforehand, ask for what you need, and get out and vote! #Disability #Voting #VotingRights https://lnkd.in/eX25nhFB

Congratulations to Green Mountain Self-Advocates on 30 years of disability advocacy! Join them on Tuesday, October 29th for their 30-year anniversary bash! Get your tickets online: https://lnkd.in/eHXtaF4x #Disability #Vermont #Celebration

Disability Rights are Voting Rights! This morning from the Ford Foundation, a look at some of the accessibility issues with polling places -- and why that matters more than ever. https://lnkd.in/ekAAMNNM "A 2022 survey by the U.S. Election Assistance Committee found disabled voters had difficulty voting or needed assistance at a rate three times higher than able-bodied voters. The survey estimated that if disabled voters had voted at the same rate as non-disabled voters, there would have been 2 million more votes cast in the 2020 election." This year's election is really, really important. Make sure you know where your local polling place is, and make sure you can access it. A "polling place" is the place your town or community provides where you go to cast your vote. The town of Middlesex, Vermont, asked voters to fund accessibility improvements to their polling place when they realized it was really not accessible. Here's a video from Vermont Public, showing what that means: https://lnkd.in/enmCrFwB Is your polling place accessible? Here's a webpage where you can look up your polling place: https://lnkd.in/ezf2MMua Make sure you have access to vote! #Disability #DisabilityRights #Vote

A beautiful and powerful memoir from a traumatic brain injury survivor this morning, on what she learned when a car crash changed her life: "Listen to your speech therapist. Especially when she says things like: You’ll never go back to work again. You highly doubt she sounds like a Disney villain — if Disney ever makes a movie about corporate America — but you’re living in your sort of beat-up head at the moment. Since you told her you produce a science podcast for a living, she makes you read elementary school-level science articles out loud, which goes like this: You: A normal resting heart rate is 60-100 beats per minute. Your therapist: How many beats is a normal resting heart rate? You: Um.  Your therapist (kindly): That’s okay, read it out loud again." https://lnkd.in/eSM7mKc3 #Disability #TBI #TraumaticBrainInjury

Co-signing and signal-boosting: Black autistic people and their families face additional discrimination in getting diagnoses and support with autism and related neurodiversity issues. We know this to be true because Black people in the United States face additional discrimination in all areas of their lives. But this issue absolutely needs more research into both the systems that enable that discrimination as well as solutions to dismantle it. #Neurodiversity #Autism #Disability