National Disability Employment Awareness Month

With the passage of the new ADA Ammendments and October being National Disability Employment Awareness month this is an interesting time in American history! ( Not to mention the economic crisis that is breathing down our neck) As we as a nation bthink about how to deal with this overall crisis we must also think about the nature of work and the value of our workers. As the columnist Thomas Freidman so aptly puts it, we are at a crossroads in the sense that we need to rethink the future of our economy and look at "Green Jobs" as a viable future that can help create a major economic rebound. That being said, we must also consider the future of the American workforce and the future of how we work. With a shifting demographic, larger numbers of veterans returning from the middle east dealing with disabilities and a greater number of aging baby boomers who will be dealing with there own disability due to age and needing to work it is vital that we as a nation think about the workplace issues and disability as critical to the health of our future economy.

I am a firm believer in creating public/private partnerships that will focus on educating the 21st Century workforce and developing new ways to work that leverage and retain the valuable talents of the current and future workers with disabilities.

Universal Design: An Ethical Question

This past week I was fortunate enough to speak and attend The International Federation on Ageing 9th Annual Conference on Ageing and Design in Montreal. I was one of the few people there who were not a designer, architect, engineer or technologist. What astounded me about the event that while everyone there was praising how technology and particularly Universal Design was this great panacea that will solve many of the world’s issue when it came to how older adults and those with disabilities will be equipped by having greater ease of getting around to further participation in society it seemed to me that the focus was so much on the actual object that provided the assistance or bridge rather than focusing on the social repercussions of Universal Design and adaptive technology. These concepts are essentially just tools that provide human beings the ability to participate in a variety of ways giving one greater access to work, social connections to a host of other areas. The one critical issue that needs to be discussed is that Universal Design as a concept needs to expand its definition to inclusive social issues such as healthcare, employment and education. Universal Design as a social concept is vital for the future of both the global aging population and growing disability community. Agencies like the United Nations, The World Health Organization to private industry should expand the conversation to see the ethical question that we need to begin to ask of those who are in the Universal Design field – should we not see this as perfect opportunity as a way to not just solve basic physical and environmental issues but vital to the social contract that we as human beings of this world face- the ability to access basic needs – healthcare, education and the right to work!

The Democratic Convention, the Disability Community & the Future of America

Over the past few nights I like many Americans have been glued to the television watching the DNC Convention from Denver Colorado. What has really struck me is how prominent disability issues have played in this convention, whether directly or indirectly. Starting with Michelle Obama’s speech Monday night talking about her father who had MS and how his life with a disability gave her the lessons that she draws from to this day to be a better, mother, wife, friend and leader. From there I have heard speeches from the likes of Mark Warren, former governor of Virginia to of course to my Senator, Hillary Clinton. The issues of jobs, the global economy and healthcare resonated with me and the impact on the disability community going forward in this election cycle is crucial. Whether one is Republican or Democrat the fact that these issues are being discussed are vital to the future of our country. For people with disabilities I feel that jobs and healthcare are the touchstones for the future of the disability community in the United States. I am sure one would ask, isn’t that true for all Americans? My answer would simply be yes, but I feel that for the disability community this is lynch pin that will create greater participation into the general populous of American life. Full access to healthcare and competitive employment is vital for the future of this community. So come November I think we as the largest voting bloc in the US have to consider how we see our future and what we can do to steer the ship and give ourselves the best possible outcome.

Has Satire Really Been Lost: The Great ‘Tropic Thunder’ Debate

Has Satire Really Been Lost: The Great ‘Tropic Thunder’ Debate

This past week was the release of the much anticipated comedy starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black about three actors who start out to make a war film and get entangled in an actual armed conflict. The film itself is a satire about Hollywood and specifically actors and how serious they take their profession in a job that all about ‘make believe’. It satirizes the whole idea of doing several weeks of basic training to get a ‘feel’ of what’s it like to be in combat for the purpose of the film.
However, during pre-screenings there were several Disability groups who were up in arms about the use of word of the ‘retard’ in the film and the portrayal of a character named ‘Simple Jack’. While I certainly sympathize with these groups that the use of this word can be incredibly harmful and the portrayal of a character like ‘Simple Jack’ plays on traditional stereotypes of those with cognitive disabilities it is important to look at this in a larger context. The film was trying to satire why the Academy pays so much attention to people who play characters with cognitive disabilities and how that impacts Oscar voting. In the course of the film Downey Jr’s character goes down the list of American films of those characters with cognitive disabilities from Chauncey Gardner in ‘Being There’ to Sean Penn’s portrayal in ‘I am Sam’.

What I took away from this is Hollywood’s insatiable appetite for neurotypical’s to play roles of those with cognitive disabilities and seeing that as a great acting feat. Actually if people really take a step back and look at this in a larger context shows Hollywood’s contempt for both actors and the profession itself. As Downey’s character pointed out that you don’t want to go over the deep end and be ‘too moronical’…whatever that quite means!

All I know is at times we need to take a deep breath and look at all works of art in the context they are – it’s time and place. Then, we can move forward and make an informed decision. I feel that organizations have right to voice their opinion but it is critical that we all make sure that we know what the end game is when challenging any form of expression. Hopefully, there will be something positive that comes out of this.

Michael Savage - What was he Saying?

After hearing Michael Savage comment’s this past week on the radio I was compelled to write about. I actually listened to his statement multiple times on a loop because I couldn’t believe he actually said what he did. Here is a guy that is perpetuating the “frigid mother” concept espoused by Bruno Bettelheim over forty years ago and has been debunked time and time again over the past fifteen. His statement was just crass full of inaccuracies and outright ludicrous. Yet, if you look beyond the vitriol he does bring up a very important point and that is how do we define this diagnosis called autism and why is it on the rise? As the anthropologist Richard Grinker wrote about in his book Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism he is a firm believer that there are cultural and social variables in how autism is defined and more importantly how it is diagnosed. With out of 150 children in this country being diagnosed with autism it harkens back to what I believe what was Savage’s intent & that is why is it in on the rise & how have we not seen this before?

Developing Innovation!

Developing Innovation!

I have been asked to design a national conference on Disability, Business and Innovation. The hope is that this will be something that is an annual event. While most people who are in “the know” realize the data favors such an event and that a conference like this can only be beneficial for business it still is one of those areas where not everyone has caught onto the realities of the variety of variables that will truly impact the future of the global workforce that will in turn create other opportunities in the development of new products and services.

With innovation comes resistance. We are at a ‘tipping point’ where organizations have to begin to put aside there fears (as hard as that may be to do) and see the possibilities ahead. With disability (and aging) issues it is fundamental that businesses begin to spearhead new innovations beyond the parameters of the government because in my estimation it is the for profit world that can have the vision & the capital to see the social value as well as the long term economic return.

I look forward to the time when disability becomes a cornerstone of not only diversity strategies but general business philosophy!

What is In a Message?

Business often tries to develop a message that will attract customers to the product they are trying to sell. Yet often times it seems to me that what most corporations seem to miss is that messaging goes far beyond just the general conventions of marketing and branding but must see it as an overall philosophy. Business must begin to understand there consumer – there needs, motivations and the patterns by which they live their lives. For the disability community this “niche market” has been an enigma for most businesses to truly get a handle on what the right type of message to send would be. Partly because it is a fairly fractured community with many different types of disability, however, I feel if we begin to really assess the issue we can come to a greater understanding of how to project certain messages that will attract the 56 million Americans with disabilities and be able to adapt it to other communities of those with disabilities globally.
To start off, American business must understand a basic truth that people with disabilities are people first! They want to live lives that are as productive, rewarding and fulfilling as everyone else. They have the same hopes, aspirations as any able bodied person. As I’ve said many times before disability is part of the human experience, it is an element that defines a person but in most cases is NOT the whole person. This is critical for business to understand when developing an overall strategy in developing a message that caters to not only the individual with a disability but family & friends. What is important to understand is that an individual’s disability impacts the people around them. If companies can begin with this premise they will start to understand how to frame the messaging to meet not only the individual with a disability but see the profound impact it can have on the market at large. To be continued…..

Network Affinity Groups: The Disability Perspective

I recently spoke and attended at a conference in New York City devoted to Affinity Groups/Employee Network Groups. The two day conference was truly an eye opening event because it allowed me insight into the inner works of how Affinity groups work within various corporate cultures. Looking at both the strengths and weaknesses I was able to think about how we can leverage this to meet the needs of workers with disabilities.
Affinity Groups were initially developed as small, informal, self started employee groups for people with common interests and issues. Now they are developed to help not only members but the companies they are part of to look strategically of how to utilize them to benefit the organizations.
What I have realized is that disability affinity groups are mostly small in size and comprise of some members with disabilities but also those that are family members. What I came to realize is something that has coincided with my philosophy for a while – disability is much more than a diversity issue – but a human one! In thinking about how to grow a Network Affinity Group around disability there are some challenges, the major one being self identification. How does one do it? Should one do it? There are some obvious answers because many with more profound disabilities can’t hide their disability but others with more “invisible” disabilities can stay away from it. The argument has been it will hide them from the stigma and possible ridicule if people knew. Secondly, it may give them some more job security.
While there is certain logic to that argument my answer is that disability is part of the human experience. For business to avoid this issue it is essential for them to see Network Groups as value added services than can help them with issues of human capital, retention to market innovation. Business must see disability as a cornerstone to their overall business strategy. The role that affinity groups can play are twofold, one create a central resource for employees to a variety of resources about how they can deal with their disability which will in turn increase workplace efficiency but also see themselves as a conduit to building larger coalitions with other groups to how to serve the issue of disability in their communities. It can be a win/win for all!

A Fundamental Question: Disability, Fear & How Far Have we really come?

I recently watched the little known film “The Music Within” based on the life of Richard Pimentel one of the great champions of the American with Disabilities Act and a pioneer in employment policy. The film looks at the trajectory of his life from young child dealing with a mentally ill mother to his tour in Vietnam where he lost a good part of his hearing to his journey to becoming a disability activist.
Where Pimentel made his mark was developing the first training manual for hiring people with disabilities called “Tilting at Windmills” in the mid 1970s. This was revolutionary for its time because it shed light on a community that had been ostracized for far too long. It provided government agencies the blueprint to hiring persons with disabilities.
In watching the film I kept thinking to myself even though Pimentel really set the groundwork for the enactment of The American with Disabilities Act how far have we really come in hiring, retaining & creating productive environment for workers with disabilities? In continuing to ponder this question I realized there are some real correlations between the time that Pimentel was working on “Tilting at Windmills” and now. During that time Vietnam vets were returning home many newly disabled and trying to adjust into civilian life find work and just live a productive life. Today in the midst’s of a war in Iraq and Afghanistan there are soldier returning dealing with the same issues as their counterparts did close to forty years ago. We have to begin to ask ourselves the questions, how far have we come in hiring, retaining and developing workers with disabilities. In a post Americans with Disabilities Act era are we any better than we were in the Vietnam era? The simple answer is yes, however, it is never really that cut and dry. There have certainly been strides made since Pimentel’s training manual was published and the enactment of the ADA but with a shifting demographic and most business inability to grasp that these types of hiring practices is not just but about good will but rather a valued business decision that will have a tremendous ripple effect far beyond this much continued parochial view point that still persists about the disability community it is only then that we will make strides. A universal design model that shows what is good for people with disabilities in fact impacts society as a whole.
We must continue the work that Pimentel started and create new opportunities that show we are not just limiting this to a disability issue but rather a see it as a human one.

Politics, Disability & The Cult of Personality

Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister of Britian and more recently Governor of New York David Patterson are two political figures who are disabled and have been very vocal about saying so. I guess the first question that comes to mind is can this by a viable political tool or is this a product of 'Identity Politics' that is pervasive across western society. The fact is that while the argument can be made concerning both I believe there is a third alternative. That is humanizing disability - showing that through ones inconviences it does not impact ones ability to do the task at hand but just as important is the ability to unite people under a common understanding of a human expierence. After hearing Patterson's speech a few weeks ago based on his own expierence with disability he humanized the concept of reaching out to the disenfranchized and has an innate capacity to see the synergy.

Spasms....

Spasms have dominated my life for the past several weeks. The winter in the North East with the shifting weather patterns have always made my physical life tough. The physical pain can be grueling and has made my daily life tough to handle over the past few weeks which are the reason I haven’t posted. Thankfully back in the saddle and will be blogging again real soon!

Aging, Disability & A Global Policy

We are at a critical moment in human history. With an age revolution both developed nations and the developing world need to take a new look at aging and disability like never before. This must become a critical component of the fabric of any nation’s public policy and its impact on everything from employment to education is profound. After the spending several days at the United Nations 46th Session of the Commission on Social Development sitting in on events discussing areas from active aging, employment to emergency preparedness it has become evident that the social understanding of aging and disability must be reassessed based upon not only regional cultural understanding but as a human rights issues that resonates on a global level.
I have spent the last several years looking at certain types of disability issues and its impact on a micro level focusing on the personal issues and the dynamics that go along with that. I do believe that we need truly find the link between the fundamental issues that one faces on a micro level and see how to take these elements to perfect public policy on a macro level. Often times there are a top down approach & we don’t find the middle ground, or the connection between the individual and society.

Going forward one of my goals is to make that connection between the needs of the individual with that of the larger society. Now, we go forward!

A Virtual Universe : Disability , Employment & The Future of The Job Interview

We are in a virtual age, the internet has redefined how we live , work and play. It is creating a whole new cultural landscape of how we conduct our lives to such a degree that essential part of our dailyt existence. For people with disabilities this new 'virtul universe' has opened up a plethora of opportunities providing access to new possibilities that was not avaliable previously. One of these new access points is the job interview. Companies like TMP Worldwide is using the platform of Second Life, an online social networking community that uses 3D graphics to create a fully integrated virtual community where individuals and businesses can connect with one another. This platform is growing in popularity by leaps and bounds to the point where millions of dollars are being spent on the site on a monthly basis. Companies as diverse as Cisco Systems to Major League Baseball have made there presence known. Even universities like Stamford and John Hopkins are providing seminars on Second Life.

What makes this type of platform valuable for people with disabilities isa virtual access to major corporations which can lead to eventual jobs in the 'real' world. But by being using this accessible enviornment to conduct interviews, connect with business leaders TMP Worldwide is creating a new paradigm by which people with disabilities can gain access to the job market. Now, there are still a lot of hurdles to be overcome but this a huge leap foward in progress.

Politics & People with Disabilities

We are in the heart of the 2008 Presidential Race. With 2 contests in Iowa and New Hampshire complete the question I have is what are the issues on the table for disabled voters. Questions of healthcare, the economy are certainly at the top of the list. But what other hot button issues do voters with disabilities want to discuss but more importantly- WHAT CANDIDATE IS CATERING TO THE NEEDS OF DISABLED VOTERS.While the disabled community in many ways is still a fragmented community seperated by the type of disability or diagnosis there is still a shared understanding of the challenges & struggles of living with a disability as well as the barriers that are still rampant in this country that have discriminated against people with disabilities in the employment arena, the healthcare system, transportation that are really get to the core of one's own civil rights as a citizen in this country. There are shared expierences that build this community ( or one can see that connection) It is important that we as a community take that shared identity - even with the differences and bring that to the ballot box. So which candidate will truly stand up and stand out for the millions of disabled voters in America...I still this verdict is out on this one!