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movement toward full community inclusion around the world.
Monday, January 26, 2004
Year V, Edition 864
Today's front page features 9 news and information items,
each preceded by a number (#) symbol.
Click on the"Below the Fold"
link at the bottom of this page for 44 more news items.
QUOTES OF THE DAY:
"There is absolutely no substance to the
reports."
--Cambridge University Professor Stephen Hawking, on reports
from family members and friends who suspect that he is being physically abused
(Fourth story)
"Had the state of Tennessee simply taken the money and time to
install an elevator eight years ago, none of this would be happening. How much
of the Tennessee taxpayers' money is being wasted fighting the installation of
an elevator?"
--Columnist Barbara J. McKee, talking about the U.S.
Supreme Court case Tennessee v. Lane (Third story)
-----
# LAWS
United Nations Working Group Drafts International
Treaty On Disability Rights
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily
Express
January 26, 2004
UNITED NATIONS-- A United Nations Working
Group on a Disability Convention has completed its draft of the international
treaty designed to protect the rights of people with disabilities around the
world.
The Working Group met to draft the treaty over a two-week period that ended on January 16.
Representatives from 27 countries worked on the wording of the treaty, which covers equal rights, education, accessibility, independent living, employment, the rights of children with disabilities, and full participation of people with disabilities in society, according to a committee statement.
The General Assembly's Ad Hoc Committee on a Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities established the Working Group last year to examine hundred of pages of recommendations submitted by governments, expert meetings, UN bodies, regional commissions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
The Ad Hoc Committee is expected to negotiate the details this coming June.
Last June, the Bush administration announced that the United States would not sign any international treaty protecting people with disabilities from discrimination.
Ralph Boyd, U.S. assistant attorney general for civil rights, told the Ad Hoc Committee, that the U.S. would support the panel in its work, but would not sign the final document. Boyd said President George Bush believed such rights should be covered by national measures, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act, rather than through international treaty.
The UN reported last month that 600 million people around the world have disabilities and that 25 percent of the global population is affected by disability in one way or another.
Related resource:
UN Enable - The United Nations Focal Point on
Persons with Disabilities
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/
---
# CRIME
Ten Years After Tracy's Death,
Robert Latimer Says It Was Right To Kill Her
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion
Daily Express
January 26, 2004
METCHOSIN, BRITISH COLUMBIA--On
October 24, 1993, Robert Latimer sat in the back of his pickup truck and
watched as the engine pumped exhaust into the cab which held his 12-year-old
daughter Tracy. When he was certain she was dead, he took her body into the
family's Saskatchewan farm house and put her to bed.
Latimer initially denied allegations that he killed Tracy. But two days later he confessed, saying he did it out of love for the girl -- that it was a "mercy killing" motivated by his desire to not see her "continue to suffer" from her developmental disabilities.
Three years ago this month, Latimer started serving a mandatory minimum 10 years of a life sentence for murdering Tracy. He will be eligible for parole in 2007.
In an interview with the Toronto Star, Latimer said Friday that he has no regrets or apologies for his crime.
"It was the right thing to do," Latimer said at the minimum-security William Head Institution where he is now serving his sentence.
"To our opponents, Tracy's pain was a side issue, something they are very capable of ignoring," he said. "But to us, it was a very real situation confronting us every day."
Many disability rights advocates have suggested that Latimer murdered Tracy because he was tired of dealing with his own emotional pain. Some people who knew Tracy said that even though the girl did not speak, she let them know how much she loved people and enjoyed life. Others point to the fact that when Tracy died, she was scheduled to undergo pain-relieving hip surgery a few days later.
The Latimer case has been the focus of attention for disability rights advocates around the world who see it as one of countless examples that society in general does not think the lives of people with disabilities are important -- that killing people who have certain disabilities is not only tolerated, but also justified as "merciful".
Latimer believes most Canadians are on his side, even though he clearly broke the law.
"It's their game and you have to play by their rules," he said of the justice system.
University of Alberta psychology professor Dick Sobsey noted that Canada experienced a marked increase in the incidence of "altruistic filicide" -- the killing of a child out of a belief that death is in the child's best interest -- in the years immediately after Tracy's murder.
Related:
"Latimer 10 years on: No regrets" (Toronto Star)
http://www.InclusionDaily.com/news/04/red/0126b.htm
"Tracy
Latimer's Death: Mercy or Murder?" (Inclusion Daily Express)
http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/crime/latimer.htm
---
# ADVOCACY
Why Fight Accessibility?
January 26,
2004
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO--In a column entitled "Why should the
disabled have to fight so hard for equal treatment?", the Albuquerque Tribune's
Barbara J. McKee took a brief look at some of the issues behind an
accessibility case heard earlier this month by the U.S. Supreme Court.
"If you are a person with a disability, you're not a real person who deserves the right to vote. You're not worthy of having an elevator that allows you to attend a court session," McKee wrote, referring to the case of Tennessee v. Lane.
In that case, George Lane, who uses a wheelchair, is trying to sue the state of Tennessee because it has not required county courthouses to be accessible to him and other Tennesseans with physical disabilities. The state is arguing that the U.S. Constitution protects state governments from having to pay damages in suits filed by individuals.
"Why do people fight accessibility?" asked McKee. "Why do they believe an elevator or a ramp is an infringement on their rights to an unblemished staircase? Had the state of Tennessee simply taken the money and time to install an elevator eight years ago, none of this would be happening. How much of the Tennessee taxpayers' money is being wasted fighting the installation of an elevator?"
Entire article:
"Why should the disabled have to fight so hard for
equal treatment?" by Barbara J. McKee (Albuquerque Tribune)
http://www.abqtrib.com/archives/opinions04/012004_opinions_mckee.shtml
Related:
"State
of Tennessee v. George Lane and Beverly Jones" (Inclusion Daily
Express)
http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/access/lane.htm
---
# CRIME
Professor Hawking Denies Abuse Claims
By Dave
Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
January 26, 2004
CAMBRIDGE,
ENGLAND--Cambridgeshire Police have confirmed that they are investigating
reports that famed scientist Stephen Hawking has been repeatedly assaulted.
Professor Hawking, however, denies that he is an abuse victim.
"There is absolutely no substance to the reports," Hawking said last week through his computerized voice synthesizer. He is currently being treated for an unrelated bout with pneumonia at Addenbrooke's Hospital.
The tabloid Daily Mirror wrote earlier in the week that Hawking's adult children, his ex-wife, and a former nurse were concerned because the 62-year-old academic has experienced a number of unexplained injuries, including a fractured femur, a cut lip, and gashes to his face. A nursing staff also reported to police that Hawking experienced a severe heat stroke and sunburn this past summer after being left alone in his garden on the hottest day of the year.
In spite of Hawking's denials, suspicion is falling on his current wife, Elaine. In the past, she and Hawking have claimed that his injuries were the results of his fast-paced lifestyle.
The Independent noted that Hawking, who uses a motorized wheelchair, has a reputation as an erratic driver and often travels "at breakneck speed, expecting other people and vehicles to get out of the way." In January 2002, Hawking broke his hip when he accidentally ran his electric wheelchair into a wall.
Hawking has had Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, a form of motor neuron disease also known as 'Lou Gehrig's Disease", for more than 40 years -- longer than anyone else in Britain. When he was first diagnosed, doctors expected him to live just two years.
The Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University, considered by many to be the greatest scientist of his time, is paralyzed except for the use of some fingers.
"He is a proud and stubborn man," a close friend told The Independent. "It is the same obstinacy that has kept him alive."
"But on these injuries, he has steadfastly refused to do anything about it and we just don't dare think about what could come next. When you visit him in hospital he just types out on his screen that it isn't a good time to talk about it."
Three years ago, Hawking's visit to India prompted changes in how many in the country viewed wheelchair accessibility. Officials that had invited the esteemed scientist to speak at several Indian universities were highly embarrassed when their guest had to be carried from place to place because of a lack of wheelchair ramps.
Related articles:
"Is the world's most famous scientist victim of
assaults?" (The Independent)
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/crime/story.jsp?story=483855
"What
I saw in the Hawking home" (The Daily Mirror)
http://www.InclusionDaily.com/news/04/red/0126c.htm
---
# ACCESSIBILITY / LAWS
Denver Arena To Provide More Accessible
Seating
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
January 26,
2004
DENVER, COLORADO--The Colorado Cross Disability Coalition (CCDC)
and Kroenke Sports reached an agreement Thursday that will make the Pepsi
Center more accessible to fans with disabilities.
"CCDC is very pleased that Denver will have an arena with the accessibility and choice of seating for people with disabilities that the Pepsi Center will offer," said Kevin Williams, CCDC Legal Program Director, in a statement released by both sides.
CCDC filed a discrimination complaint against Kroenke Sports in November 2002 claiming that patrons with physical disabilities were not given a choice of admission prices and lines of sight at the arena comparable to those for the general public.
The two groups have been meeting for over a year to discuss interpretations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and negotiate a settlement.
"Although the parties disagreed on their interpretation of the ADA, both parties put their efforts into crafting a solution rather than fighting in court," said Lisa Hogan, the attorney representing Kroenke Sports. "We believe this approach best serves the interest of persons with disabilities and the business community."
Under the agreement, Kroenke Sports will provide accessible seating in the center of the arena's lower level. Kroenke Sports will also improve access for patrons with disabilities at the Pepsi Center's box office windows and parking lots.
Additionally, the Pepsi Center will work to educate fans who buy seats intended for individuals with disabilities. Both sides expressed frustration that fans sometimes try to abuse the ticket sales process by falsely representing themselves as needing accessible seats.
"We were pleased with the Pepsi Center’s positive approach to this process and with the results we were able to achieve," said the plaintiffs' attorney, Amy Robertson.
The results of the negotiations are stated in a Consent Decree, which was signed Friday by Judge Robert Blackburn.
Related:
"Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition v. Kroenke Sports
Enterprises, LLC, et al" (Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition)
http://www.ccdclegal.org/pepsicenter.htm
---
# CONTRIBUTION
People With Disabilities Can Volunteer,
Too
January 26, 2004
TORONTO, ONTARIO--The following seven
paragraphs are excerpts from a column by Toronto Star's Helen Henderson:
Picture this:
A volunteer who is blind reading to children to improve their literacy.
A volunteer who uses a wheelchair helping out with disaster relief.
A volunteer with a cognitive disability providing companionship and support to elderly people.
A volunteer who is hard of hearing using sign language to help educate the public about violence against women.
If you have a hard time visualizing any of these scenarios, you are not alone. But you do need a dose of reality.
Yesterday, the Star's Health section looked at ways people can change their lives. Volunteering was featured as one of the keys to opening new doors. But for people with disabilities, many of these doors remain locked, including, ironically, some belonging to not-for-profit groups that publicly champion disability rights.
Entire article:
"A disability does not hamper volunteerism" by
Helen Henderson (Toronto Star)
http://www.InclusionDaily.com/news/04/red/0126a.htm
---
# TODAY'S FEATURED SELF-DETERMINATION WEBSITE
The OHSU Center
on Self-Determination
The Center on Self-Determination identifies, develops and shares approaches that promote the self-determination of people with disabilities and ongoing health conditions.
The Center is staffed by experts in disability and health issues, research and training. We work closely with consumer groups, organizations, schools and agencies to develop model programs and public policies that support self-determination. We also produce materials and conduct training for professionals and community organizations.
http://cdrc.ohsu.edu/selfdetermination/
---
# EXPRESS EXTRA!!! From the Inclusion Daily Express Archives -- Two years ago:
LAWS
Canada's Highest Court Tosses "Wrongful Birth" Suit, In
Part
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
January 25,
2002
OTTAWA, ONTARIO--In a 9-0 decision, the Supreme Court of Canada
ruled Thursday that a couple cannot sue their Vancouver, B.C. doctor to cover
his adult services, even though the doctor failed to detect that their son
might be born with Down syndrome 10 years ago.
Pam Krangle was 36 when she was pregnant with her son Mervyn Dudley. Pam's general practitioner, Dr. Stanley Morrill, did not tell her that women over 35 are more likely to have children with Down syndrome, and did not offer an amniocentesis -- a kind of genetic test. The Krangles said they would have had an abortion had they known.
Dr. Morrill was later found negligent.
The court ruled this week that the parents were not entitled to damages to pay for Mervyn's care when he becomes an adult, because the provincial government picks up those costs after a person with a developmental disability turns 19. The doctor's liability and the parents' responsibility end when the state takes over with adult services, the court said.
The court did not change a 1997 B.C. Supreme Court decision that ordered Morrill to pay the Krangles nearly $600,000 in damages, interest and costs for Mervyn's care to the age of 19.
Related resource:
"Wrongful Births" (Inclusion Daily
Express)
http://www.InclusionDaily.com/news/advocacy/wrongfulbirths.htm
---
# DISCUSSION BOARD
Check in with other Inclusion Daily Express
readers:
http://members5.boardhost.com/InclusionDaily
---
# BELOW THE FOLD
Click here for the rest of today's
disability-related news:
http://www.InclusionDaily.com/news/04/btf/01260451.htm
------
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