“Count Me In! Count My Vote! Count My Community!” Advocates Chant Theme of 12th Annual Disability Day at the Capitol Federal Official, Rights Activist Call for Change, Urge Grassroots Action

Despite temperatures in the 20s, last Thursday over 2,000 people with disabilities, their families and advocates for disability rights gathered in Atlanta from all across Georgia. Kathleen Martinez, from the US Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), and Julie Petty, from SABE (Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered), urged advocates to step up, get involved and raise awareness of disability rights and employment diversity.

One in five Georgians and over 50 million Americans have some type of disability as an occurrence of birth, injury or longevity. The unemployment rate for people with disabilities is nearly 70 percent, yet they are among the most reliable pools of workers in the US.

Georgia DOL Commissioner Michael Thurman introduced Martinez who, along with Petty, was a keynote speaker at the 12th Annual Disability Day at the Capitol. The annual event, sponsored by the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD), is the largest annual public gathering held during the official legislative session in Georgia.

“We have to increase employment for all,” Martinez said. “I’m not just talking about opportunities, but actual positions, promotions and job satisfaction.”

Martinez, blind since birth, is the assistant secretary of the US Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and an internationally recognized disability rights leader specializing in employment, asset building, independent living, international development, diversity, and gender issues. As she addressed the crowd, she shared the Obama administration’s vision for workplace diversity and said, “As we participate in the workforce, we change the stigma. Attitude is caught, not taught.”

Julie Petty, former president of SABE (Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered), is a self-advocate from Arkansas who recently participated in making a joint statement on behalf of the disability community to the White House on the topic of the “R” word. At the Rally, she motivated the crowd and urged them to mobilize for continued action and attitudinal change.

“By being here today, we’re effecting change. We must work together and today, here at the capitol, we are letting our government know what we want and need,” Petty said.

Although the state legislature is on recess, several legislators were present to show support for the disability community. They included Rep. Katie Dempsey, 13th (Floyd), Rep. Barbara Sims, 119th (Columbia and Richmond), Rep. Doug Collins, 27th (Hall, Lumpkin and White), Rep. Billy Mitchell, 88th (DeKalb and Gwinnett) and Rep. Glenn Baker, 78th (Clayton and Henry).

The Rally has become a tradition for constituents statewide, with groups from cities across Georgia including Fitzgerald, Macon, Jackson, Savannah, Augusta, Lithonia, Columbus, Glennville, Bogart and Warm Springs. Impromptu chanting of Count Me In! Count My Vote! Count My Community! was heard throughout the Rally and participants had the opportunity to make signs in various world languages, obtain US Census 2010 information, register to vote, and see demonstrations on accessible voter machines.

Partners’ Club, a GCDD funded youth leadership program, brought 164 students from Hall and Barrow Counties to get first-hand experience about advocacy at Disability Day at the Capitol. Rep. Doug Collins ate lunch with Hall County students from West Hall High School, North Hall High School, Flowery Branch High School, and C.W. Davis Middle School. Rep. Terry England, 108th (Barrow) took a break from budget talks and met with 36 students from Apalachee High School in Barrow County. England answered student questions and explained how Capitol procedures operate, how bills become law, how votes are cast and how budget proceedings work.

The Rally, hosted by GCDD Chair Tom Seegmueller and GCDD Executive Director Eric. E. Jacobson, was also an opportunity to bestow awards as well as recognize fallen soldiers. Rebecca (Becky) Ramage-Tuttle, President and CEO of disABILITY LINK, received the Georgia Outstanding Self-Advocate of the Year Award. Sri Pavan Kumar Kristapati, from the Hindu Temple of Atlanta at Riverdale, led the recognition of fallen soldiers, people with disabilities who passed on in 2009.

Sponsoring organizations for the 2010 Disability Day at the Capitol were: Abilities Expo, All About Developmental Disabilities, AMS Vans, Brain & Spinal Injury Trust Fund, Center for Leadership in Disability, Disability Resource Center, Georgia Advocacy Office, Georgia Building Authority, Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities, Georgia Independent Living Network, State of Georgia ADA Coordinator’s Office, The Capitol Police and US Census 2010.

See event photos at the GCDD Facebook page, click here.

Among GCDD’s list of public policy priorities are:

The Unlock The Waiting Lists! Campaign calling for funding of community based services for nearly 7,000 persons on waiting lists for vital supports and proposals that will help people receive the services they need to live and thrive in their communities.

GCDD is a Federally-funded state agency that promotes independence, inclusion, integration, self-determination and productivity for Georgians with developmental disabilities so they can live, learn, work, play and worship where and how they choose. A Developmental Disability is a chronic mental and/or physical disability that occurs before age 22 and is expected to last a lifetime. It may require supports in three or more of the following life activities: self-care, language, learning, mobility, self-direction, independent living and economic self-sufficiency. Visit www.gcdd.org for more information.