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Letter from the Executive Director
Dear Members:
Some of you have heard my analogy comparing advocacy to the sea. Keeping people afloat is our individual advocacy. Making waves is our systems advocacy-and can involve changing laws or policies, letting the system know what needs to change and doing what is needed to bring about this change. Yet, the real and lasting change needed for true integration will be turning the tide. This means we are out there enough and have meaningful roles in society to the point where most people without disabilities understand that we have value and care what happens to us—where they see funds used to provide supports as a good social investment and not a charity. We need to be working on all of these—and need to continue as we move through some very bumpy, chaotic and uncharted waters.
As I write this, I am still reeling from the House of Representatives narrowly passing the American Health Care Act in Washington on May 4. We know the Senate will do a different bill, and will continue to work as hard as we can with our Colorado Senators to help them understand how important Medicaid is for life and liberty of so many of us with disabilities. While everyone is exhausted by the roller coaster of emotions that occurs every time we start seeing numerous “URGENT” alerts from various organizations, now is not the time to stop our work, or put our heads under the proverbial covers. We must instead work harder and smarter. We need to figure out how to better communicate with the broader community. We need to understand how people without disabilities view us and if they do not value us, we need to understand why and change those perceptions. We need to be able to work on both sides of the aisle. Despite our hurt at the votes we have to find a way to have meaningful conversation with people that appear to support a bill that we know will hurt us. Some people are not “moveable” and will not change their minds. However, the people who tweet about how people should only get the health care they can afford are not the majority.
We are not saying the health care system we have is perfect, but we must not destroy the Medicaid program nor should we go backwards in terms of private health insurance. Medicaid defense will continue to be our number one priority. But we will not allow these threats to thwart our other goals. We have an ambitious strategic plan that involves increasing disability employment and decreasing poverty rates within our community. CCDC is embarking on an exciting program to do outreach to refugee communities, which will benefit both the disability and refugee communities. We continue to work with 17 other organizations with the Colorado Trust on health equity, with an advocacy cohort of the Colorado Health Foundation on overall health advocacy, and are part of a great collaborative through Mile High Connects focusing on affordable housing, transit and livable communities.
Our legal program continues to avenge our civil rights—and we also are fighting against HR 620 –a VERY BAD federal bill that would make enforcement of the ADA almost impossible by requiring notification prior to litigation. Our Social Enterprise Probate Power legal services is growing by the day! Our individual advocacy team is working hard helping members with a variety of complex problems. We are expanding our reach working in many communities outside of Denver on a variety of projects.
As we navigate between the need to react to real threats to our very lives and liberty and the need to stay focused on our goals for greater fairness and inclusion, we feel the same fears as you do. But we draw strength from the resiliency and kindness we see in our amazing community on a daily basis. Watching some of our members reminds me that in a climate that has become increasingly acrimonious, I must work hard to respond with kindness. History has taught the entire human race that policies based on dislike, distrust, or fear of others never works—for anyone. Being on the receiving end of hatred (and having people wanting to take away your lifeline sure feels like hatred) is incredibly stressful. However, the disability community has a unique role and an incredible responsibility. We are everywhere: Democratic, Republican and Independent; members of every racial and ethnic group; all orientations, backgrounds and family statuses. Disability knows no boundaries and this is a gift. We can and must be leaders in changing the social narrative from one of individualistic rhetoric to one modeling inclusion, diversity and mutual respect. This is really hard, but we are a really tough, smart, and talented community. As we continue to navigate these unchartered waters, we will be asking more of you—more time, more training and yes, more money. We also want you to tell us what you need and how we can better meet those needs. We continue to try improved communication tools and will unveil our disability community Wiki later this year. We always want to hear your feedback. We are honored to represent our members and take that responsibility very seriously. I know I speak for our entire staff and board when I say we have never been more grateful for the support of our members, donors and allies on this voyage. We will do everything possible to keep the ship of disability rights upright and moving towards our destination.
Respectfully,
Julie Reiskin
Executive Director
P.S. Save the date of October 5th for our annual ADA Access Awards Luncheon. If you know anyone that wants to sponsor us, please let Laura Gabbay know. Laura can be reached via phone at 720-249-2208 or via email at lgabbay@ccdconline.org She has a Sponsorship Levels Fact Sheet she can send along or ask the company or organization directly for their philanthropic support. The proceeds of our annual luncheon help support our programs all year-long. So we hope to see you at the event this fall at DU’s Maglione Hall in the Korbel School of International Studies.
Board Member Spotlight
Kimberley Jackson, D.O.
(Picture of Dr. Kimberley Jackson, CCDC Board Member.)
Dr. Kimberley Jackson grew up in New Jersey and went to college at Rutgers University, where she graduated with a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering. She attended medical school at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, School of Osteopathic Medicine, from which she graduated a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in 2008.
After medical school, Dr. Jackson specialized in family medicine and practiced in Pueblo until 2012,when symptoms of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome forced her to leave practice. She moved to Denver in 2013, and took CCDC’s basic advocacy course in 2014. Using her experience as a physician and a person with a disability, Dr. Jackson helped to create a training on disability for medical providers, and has been to over a dozen clinics around the state to facilitate trainings.
Dr. Jackson has testified at the State Capitol on some bills important to the disability community. She serves on two committees for Colorado Medicaid, and joined the Pharmacy and Therapeutics committee in 2014, for which she is now vice chair. She was also appointed by Governor Hickenlooper in 2015 to the State Medical Assistance and Services Advisory Council. Dr. Jackson is also a board member of the Phamaly theater company for people with disabilities, and has been on stage as an actress with them as well. In her spare time, Dr. Jackson enjoys writing and teaching religious education at her church.
"I am grateful for the opportunities CCDC has given me to help other people with disabilities using my unique skill set," says Dr. Jackson. "I am hoping by being on the board I can help prepare CCDC for the next 25 years."
Please join us in once again welcoming Dr. Jackson to our board of directors and expressing our appreciation to her for her volunteerism and activism.
Are we friends yet (on Facebook)?
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CCDC would love to connect with you via Facebook! Our page is frequently updated with the latest news, great resource articles and legislative alerts. Don't miss hearing about our last minute Calls to Action.
Our Facebook page is where you will find all of the day-to-day happenings here at CCDC, plus terrific nearly weekly photos of our advocates and members working on both the state-level and national legislation impacting the Colorado disability community.
Click here (or on the graphic image above) today and make sure to Like us on Facebook by clicking the "Like" button next to our name on our Facebook page!
Colorado Trust Health Equity Learning Series events from CCDC
Great news, CCDC is fortunate to have received a grant in 2016 from The Colorado Trust to support health equity learning in Prowers County through the Trust’s Health Equity Learning Series! The final in this four-part series is coming up and we hope you will join CCDC and other leaders in health care, education, human services, and government from across Prowers County to view a provocative presentation followed by a facilitated discussion about health equity in our communities on June 1 in Lamar. An educational program of The Colorado Trust, the Health Equity Learning Series aims to increase knowledge and awareness of health equity through presentations from experts discussing factors that increase disparities and solutions that advance health equity. The learning series brings experts from across different disciplines to discuss factors that increase disparities and solutions that advance health equity.
For the June 1 event, the recorded presentation, with closed captioning, will be Dog Whistle Politics: Race, Politics and Economic Inequality. Ian Haney López, JD, the Earl Warren Professor of Public Law at University of California, Berkeley, spoke in Denver on May 4 on how coded language and racial pandering among politicians has led to public policies that reinforce racism and inequities in the United States.
June 1, 2017
6:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Dinner and child care will be provided courtesy of the Colorado Trust!
Location: The Cultural Events Center at Lamar Public Library
FREE, but space is limited! Email CCDC Advocate Kenny Maestas at kmaestas@ccdconline.org to reserve your spot.
 Picture of (from left to right), CCDC Advocate, Kenny Maestas, CCDC Director of Evaluation & Development Laura Gabbay, CCDC volunteer Kevin Hernandez and Assistive Power Technology Group co-founder Don Yoxsimer at the Colorado Trust Health Equity Learning Series event in Lamar on May 4, 2017.
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