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Showing posts from 2015

Parenthood & Me

Almost two years ago, I wrote a blog about disability parenthood called "Who Says We Can't Have A Family?"  http://thevoicelssminority.blogspot.com/2013/07/who-says-we-cant-have-family.html  In it, I discuss several issues about being a parent and having a disability. When I wrote the blog, I had just turned 27 and had a different view on life. As I am approaching my 29 th  birthday, my perspective on the world is somewhat the same, but on the disability and parenting issue, I don't know if I still hold the same belief.             In that first blog, I laid out the following arguments: It is natural to want to pass genes to offspring, considering human life is just a blip in the cosmic makeup of things, and all we have are the legacies we leave behind. While I still agree with that argument, I find myself internally struggling with the question. Although I believe disabled people as a group have the right to b...

Good morning Baltimore

Throughout US history, race relations have been a divisive issue. Recently the death of a gentleman by the name of Freddy Graves has sparked the controversy yet again. Graves was a twenty-five year old African American living in Baltimore, Maryland; he encountered police after they stopped him for "for looking at them and then running from them." Graves was arrested and taken to jail. On the way to jail, he received a broken spine and other injuries. As a result of his injuries, he died a week after his arrest while still in police custody. His death would send the city of Baltimore into an uproar. At first, the protest against the police treatment of Mr. Graves was non-violent. Protesters seemed to be peacefully voicing their displeasure over several issues, including the treatment of the minority community by the Baltimore police over decades. However, on the day that Freddy Graves was buried, tensions rose, and the peaceful protesters were overshadowed by violence. The v...

The waiting game

It has been a few days since I've written. I'm just writing this as a quick update. I have been in Florida for almost nine months. For the most part, things are going well. However, there is one issue that has still been a struggle for my family and me. As some of you may know, taking care of a person with a disability often requires that one rely on others' help. People who are forced to rely on support from others usually have two options; they can either pay out-of-pocket or go through a state waiver.             It is impractical for most people to pay out-of-pocket if I used myself as an example. I need 24-hour care. Suppose one was to pay out-of-pocket at the rate of $10 an hour that would equal the following.: $240 a day, $1680 a week, $6700 a month, and $80 640 a year. This is not a practical solution for the long term. The only long-term solution is to go with a state waiver. However, the waiver itself presents probl...

The Disability News Network

           The news in America has become constant recycling of all the same stories. With the advent of cable news, the news is on 24/7 on some channel or another. You have three major providers, Fox News, CNN, and MSMBC. Along with these providers, you have local affiliates of ABC, NBC, and CBS. But all these channels tend to tell the same stories. Now there is a new type of news network out there.                The Disability News Network, or DNN, is a news network run by DST, Developmental Service Trainers, in Ocala, Florida. DST is a personal care company, which uses the radio station to provide a voice for people with disabilities. Currently, they do not broadcast all the time and are in the process of re-vamping their broadcast schedule. Even though they are based in the U.S., now they only have 1200 listeners. Most of their listeners come from China and Switzerland. Although this is a young radio station,...

The Forced Poor No More

s .  If you have a disability, life is generally a struggle. It can be a struggle that can make you healthier or a battle that overwhelms you. In America, since the 1990s, the disabled community has had some form of rights to protect various aspects of life. Those rights have been talked about by me and others extensively. What has not been discussed much is the financial burdens that people with disabilities and their families have to undertake.             To care for a child with a disability is a monumental task. It will consume the lives of people around him/or her. It will strain all parties emotionally and physically, but perhaps most of all, financially. The financial burden can range anywhere from a couple hundred thousand to millions. The financial struggle covers every aspect of life- from transportation to aid care to medical care. When the child grows up, the battle does not end.     ...

"Is it Accessible?": Bubba Raceway Park

  I recently moved back to the south after many years away. Not much has changed; people are still quiet, welcoming, the BBQ is always right, and dirt track racing is still the thing to do on a Friday night. Or at least what all the brochures say.  I was never a fan of dirt tracking racing when I was a kid, but I decided to give it a go since I moved back. One of the "best dirt track racing in the south" is in Ocala, Florida, at Bubba Raceway Park. When I first heard the name, I was skeptical. But then, I did more research. It's a racetrack sponsored and owned by a radio show host known as "Bubba the Love Sponge" although the name may sound different, and his show may not be your typical morning show, the racetrack is what it is advertised to be. Every Friday night beginning in March until the winter months, it is a premier dirt track course and family event. The first time I went, I enjoyed the action-packed show while sitting near the gate while getting co...

"Is it Accessible?" Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood Florida

This year will mark the 25 th  anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. It was signed in July 1990. As a part of that Act, titles II, and III specified building accessibility requirements. The latest notifications for those requirements came in 2010. A small excerpt for those requirements is as follows:  Each facility or part of a facility constructed by, on behalf of, or for the use of a public entity should be designed and built in such manner that the facility or part of the facility is readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities if the construction was commenced after January 26, 1992.  Each facility or part of a facility altered by, on behalf of, or for the use of a public entity in a manner that affects or could affect the usability of the facility or part of the facility shall, to the maximum extent feasible, be altered in such way that the modified portion of the facility is readily accessible to and usable by individuals with d...

A Fresh Start

It has been nearly eight months since there has been anything new posted on this blog. A lot has happened in eight months hiatus. I have finished my master's degree program in Teacher Education. However, due to the trials and struggles that have occurred during that process, which can be read about in earlier entries, my focus has drifted away from teaching and advocacy for persons with disabilities. Most of this blog has been dedicated to advocacy and discussing various issues that people with disabilities encounter. However, the point of view of the author, me, has changed. A lot of the writing in earlier entries came in a time of my life when I was unhappy with the circumstances faced with. I have since re-evaluated The Voiceless Minority. There was a time where I thought about abandoning the project altogether if I'm honest. However, I decided I would resurrect the blog at this time and take it in a slightly new direction. It will still address social issues, but I will als...