Dove asks what it means to be blind and beautiful
In the latest installment of beauty brand Dove’s “Choose Beautiful” campaign, the company released a short film that shows three visually-impaired women talking about their own body image in relation to losing their sight. Read more.
ABC-13’S Melanie Lawson opens up about living with multiple sclerosis
A news anchor for an ABC affiliate station in Houston describes her experience in living with multiple sclerosis for the past 20 years and how she has maintained a positive attitude throughout. Read more.
States Offered $15 Million To Spur Disability Employment
The U.S. Department of Labor said this week that they are putting up $15 million to be used by state workforce agencies to create “flexible and innovative strategies” to grow participation of people with disabilities in federally-funded job training programs. Read more.
AT&T’S Challenge To Developers: Inventive Apps For The Disabled
AT&T’s latest app challenge, done in partnership with NYU’s Assistive Technology and Ability Lab, offers $100,000 to developers who create new apps or devices specifically aimed at aiding those with disabilities. Submissions will be due at the beginning of July, and AT&T will announce the winner on July 26, the 25th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act. Read more.
Supreme Court Rules Against Disability Providers
In a 5-4 decision earlier this week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against a group of Idaho agencies serving people with developmental disabilities, saying that developmental disability service providers cannot sue to force state Medicaid programs to raise their reimbursement rates. Read more.
The Future Looks Bright for Hiring Workers With Disabilities
Health & Disability Advocates senior policy analyst Joe Entwisle argues that 2015 will be the best year yet for job seekers with disabilities, citing new regulations and legislation as being among the reasons why. Read more…
Deaf man says jailers held him incommunicado for six weeks
A deaf man able to communicate only with sign language has alleged in a federal lawsuit that he was held for six weeks in the Arlington County jail last year after jailers failed to provide an interpreter or allow him to call attorneys or a friend by videophone. Read more…
Lawsuit alleges that four D.C. cab companies ignored blind passengers
The Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs has filed a lawsuit accusing four D.C. cab companies of discriminating against blind passengers with service dogs. Read more…
House approves new savings accounts for people with disabilities
The House has passed legislation to create tax-free savings accounts for people with disabilities. Passed by a vote of 404-17, the bill known as the ABLE Act is intended to help Americans with disabilities pay for the associated expenses, including medical costs and finding employment. Read more
Separated From Brother, Left to Toil Far From Home
Leon Jones, 64, has an intellectual disability and a swollen right hand that aches from 40 years of hanging live turkeys on shackles that swing them to their slaughter. He also may be the last working member of the so-called Henry’s Boys — men recruited from Texas institutions decades ago to eviscerate turkeys, only to wind up living in virtual servitude, without many basic rights. Read more
