Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Examines D.C. Housing

On April 27 Thomas Silverstein of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (https://lawyerscommittee.org/) spoke before the D.C. Autism Society about a report the Committee is working on concerning equity and discrimination in D.C. housing.  The Committee has worked with other public housing authorities in the country to identify key issues and make recommendations on the housing front, but this is the first time they have tuned their attention to Washington, D.C.  Although the report’s focus is broader, there will be a chapter focused on the specific challenges of people with disabilities.  That chapter will look at:  trends in the numbers of people with disabilities in D.C.; issues of accessibility (in the broad sense, not just physical); and finally, broader issues of community integration.  The report is being done under a consultancy to the D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), but will treat issues that go beyond DHCD’s direct responsibility.

After the Silverstein presentation, there was a lively conversation centered on the personal experiences of people in the room, most of whom have family members receiving supported-living services from DDS.  This group is a small subset of the people whose situations the Lawyers’ Committee will be looking at, but the same high rents that are leading DDS to move people to Prince George’s County obviously have an effect across the board of forcing people out of D.C.  In addition, we discussed problems with set-aside units in new developments, including developers’ minimal efforts to advertise these units and difficulties some DDS providers say they have had in accessing such apartments for people they support.  One attendee also called attention to Sedgwick Gardens, the less-than-successful effort at community integration on Connecticut Avenue that has been written about in the Washington Post:  https://tinyurl.com/yy58h4yd.   

The report will be available for public comment in two to three months and the Lawyers’ Committee plans to loop back to all the groups before whom they have presented.  I’m hoping to get the Committee to the next public meeting of the D.C. Developmental Disabilities Council, on May 16, 3-5 p.m. at One Judiciary Square (here’s the flyer:  https://tinyurl.com/y68g77bq).  All are welcome, and I hope some of you also will be there!

Carol Grigsby shares information and advocates on issues affecting her own son and other citizens with developmental disabilities in Washington, D.C.  She is currently chair of D.C.'s State Council on Developmental Disabilities, as well as serving on the board of the Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities and on the Family Support Council of D.C.'s Department on Disability Services.  She retired from the federal government’s senior executive service in 2011 and has lived in D.C. since 1978.  Find her tweets @DDinWDC!

First Annual D.C. Autism Event a Rousing Success!

The first annual celebration of Autism Awareness/Autism Acceptance Month by the Developmental Disabilities Council was a tremendous success.  Numerous organizations were represented, and the turnout of people interested in receiving and sharing information was outstanding.  I even heard about one young person who just happened by to learn what autism is all about, so that was a great teachable moment!  Thank you to everyone who exhibited, everyone who attended (especially the autistic young people who came to advocate for themselves!), and to all of you who work year-round to celebrate the strengths of D.C. residents with disabilities while ensuring the right supports are available to them.

I’d like to thank DD Council executive director Alison Whyte, as well as Sudie Johnson and Denise McCain from the Council staff, for all their effort in putting the logistics together and staffing the event.  I’d also like to give a shout-out to Mat McCollough, director of D.C.’s Office of Disability Rights, and to Andy Reese, director of the D.C. Department on Disability Services, for taking the time to come by and show their support.

We expect to make this an annual event, demonstrating the commitment of your Developmental Disabilities Council to “representing” on behalf of all people with developmental disabilities across the District.  Councilmember Nadeau, other D.C. councilmembers, and Mayor Bowser, please take note: 

D.C. has citizens with autism as well as other developmental disabilities that do not qualify as intellectual disabilities, and they deserve meaningful supports which they are not now getting. The DD Council and its partners are dedicated to remedying this shortfall in the District’s services for its residents with disabilities, so join us!

Carol Grigsby shares information and advocates on issues affecting her own son and other citizens with developmental disabilities in Washington, D.C.  She is currently chair of D.C.'s State Council on Developmental Disabilities, as well as serving on the board of the Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities and on the Family Support Council of D.C.'s Department on Disability Services.  She retired from the federal government’s senior executive service in 2011 and has lived in D.C. since 1978.  Find her tweets @DDinWDC!

Autism Acceptance in D.C. - this Wednesday!

This is Autism Awareness/Acceptance Month! 

The D.C. Developmental Disabilities Council (DDC) is responsible for “identifying the most pressing needs of people with developmental disabilities in their state or territory…[and] advancing public policy and systems change that help [them] gain more control over their lives.”  This includes autistic residents of the District! So, on Wednesday, April 24 (just two days away!), from 12:30 to 3:30, your DD Council is sponsoring an event at the Cleveland Park library to celebrate this special month and share information about resources and organizations focused on supporting people with autism in the District.  (If your organization has not yet signed up, contact executive director Alison Whyte at alison.whyte@dc.gov or Denice McCain at denice.mccain@dc.gov.)  Here’s the official flyer:  https://tinyurl.com/yxggqeho.

Autistic adults are not eligible for services under the Medicaid waiver administered by D.C.’s Department on Disability Services (DDS) unless they also have an intellectual disability, and this is something we hope to change – a point I made as the new DDC chair in my testimony before the DC council’s human services committee earlier this month.  By holding this event we hope also to keep the light shining on this fact,  and build support to remedy this shortfall in the District’s support system for residents with disabilities.

Spread the word and turn out yourselves, this Wednesday, April 24, 12:30 to 3:30 at the Cleveland Park library, to celebrate together and start shaping a better future for D.C.’s autistic citizens!

The Pressure is ON: D.C. Budget for Disability Supports

Mayor Bowser’s budget for the upcoming year is facing challenges, and that could spell trouble for the budget of the Department on Disability Services (https://dds.dc.gov/).  That’s why I joined a number of others at the hearing April 4 before the D.C. city council’s human services committee to testify that the council should support the entire budget.  You can find the video of that hearing at http://dc.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=4972.  I led off the testimony on DDS, which starts around minute 45:00, and this time I testified in my capacity as chair of the D.C. Developmental Disabilities Council (https://ddc.dc.gov).  I thought that was important because DDS needs strong support in order to ensure the council isn’t tempted to make any cuts.  In addition to pushing for support to this year’s budget, though, I also made a point of urging the council to begin moving to broaden eligibility for the D.C. disability waiver – determining eligibility based on IQ is an outmoded and inappropriate way to determine people’s needs – so that autistic people and those with other developmental disabilities can get the supports they need. 

The housing policies and procedures have been back on the agenda at DDS as well.  There have been some improvements in transparency, specificity and flexibility, but DDS needs to make sure its service coordinators are really prepared to guide people through the process and the issues that are going to arise, and DDS has to do all it can to mitigate the risks over which it has control.  Search “housing” in the box to the right to see my earlier posts on this subject!  These policies are going to happen – that’s clear – because of DDS concerns about unforeseen increases in its past budgets.  The initial rollout wasn’t handled well, and the road is not going to be easy, but it’s true that DDS has to take steps to enable it to serve more people who are currently going without support.

I’m writing this on a break at this year’s national Disability Policy Seminar (https://disabilitypolicyseminar.org/), sponsored by the Arc (https://www.thearc.org/), Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (https://www.sabeusa.org/), and others.  Ricardo and Donna Thornton brought everyone to their feet this morning when they told their story of what community integration has meant to them! Take a look:

 Back to the budget, and now it’s your turn!  I hope you’ll feel moved to send your own testimony in support of the budget and broader waiver eligibility to humanservices@dccouncil.us!  This is important, and getting more so – make it short, but let the committee hear you on this!

Carol Grigsby shares information and advocates on issues affecting her own son and other citizens with developmental disabilities in Washington, D.C.  She is currently chair of D.C.'s State Council on Developmental Disabilities, as well as serving on the board of the Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities and on the Family Support Council of D.C.'s Department on Disability Services.  She retired from the federal government’s senior executive service in 2011 and has lived in D.C. since 1978.  Find her tweets @DDinWDC!