Imminent state budget cuts means that the hours of staffing that will be lost, the transportation funding that will disappear, the recreation dollars that will not be available, will remove choice and opportunity from the people we serve. These cuts will set our profession back decades in terms of equality, civil rights and equal access for people with intellectual disabilities.
civil rights
Posted inCT Viewpoints
Get disability out of the abortion debate
In the 1990’s, I was part of a group of women who wanted to reconcile reproductive choice with disability rights in the then new era of prenatal screening. Some in our group had disabilities such as spina bifida or muscular dystrophy that arose in utero. Others like me had conditions like cerebral palsy that occurred at or after birth but were concerned about ripple effect. Would we all become a new class of illegitimates?
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The National Popular Vote is not an end run of the Constitution
Last Thursday, the Connecticut House of Representatives debated a bill, HB 5434, which would include Connecticut in the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. When this bill passes in enough states, the NPV Interstate Compact will change the way the American people elect the President of the United States. During the Connecticut House debate, an argument was made that the NPV Compact is an “end run around the Constitution.” This assertion is not true.
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Give her and other Connecticut adoptees back their identities
My birth certificate is a legal lie.
What’s true on it is that I was born at 4:44 a.m. Oct. 27, 1967. It’s also true I was born in Norwalk Hospital. And I’m guessing that Eric G. Norrington, MD, who’s listed as the attending physician, really was there.
What’s not true are the names typed in all caps under “Full Name of the Child’s Mother and Father.”
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Lessons of the abolitionists are important today
The organizing efforts of black and white abolitionists in the 1800s can provide us with powerful inspiration as we face the dangers of Trump and the Republican majority. That’s one reason on May 18 I will be joining the upcoming celebration of Frederick Douglass’s first visit to the capital city at the Center Church (First Church of Christ in Hartford).
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Equitable pay for women worth billions to Connecticut
According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, nationally, women earn about 80 cents for every dollar earned by men and this gap is even more pronounced for women of color – black women earn 63 cents and Hispanic women earn 54 cents as compared to white men. This economic injustice affects not only women, but every man and child who has a woman in their lives.
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Require open carry gun folks to show their permits — without being asked
As open carry is legal in Connecticut, I cannot say it would be appropriate or reasonable to allow police to demand a permit of a person who is acting within the law. That being said, open carry is uncommon so, right or wrong, people may be concerned by the sight of a gun. I believe the only constitutionally acceptable remedy is to require permit holders to present their permit during any interaction with police.
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Open carry pistol permit bill punishes the law-abiding
The General Assembly’s Judiciary Committee is considering H.B. 6200, a bill that would allow police officers to demand to see one’s pistol permit if they “observe” a pistol or revolver. The problem with this bill is that it targets only the law-abiding. The purpose of this bill is squarely to punish legal behavior — behavior that the advocates of this bill dislike.
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Suzio, Linares bills on electoral vote put party above country
I am concerned about two bills proposed in the Connecticut General Assembly; SB 108 introduced by Sen. Len Suzio, 13th District, and SB 133, introduced by Sen. Art Linares, 33rd District. These bills would change how Connecticut awards its Electoral College votes to presidential candidates.
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Labor and civil rights unite tomorrow to oppose racism, raise pay
Forty-nine years ago tomorrow, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. On this anniversary, we are reminded of his legacy as thousands of underpaid workers, local racial justice activists, elected officials and clergy will take to the streets in two dozen cities across the country, including Hartford, to fight racism and raise pay.
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Democrats missed opportunity in passage of hate crime legislation
Division comes from a lack of transparency? This is where Danielle Morfi of North Haven should have started her comments on ‘partisan politics’ in Connecticut. With all her outrage aimed at Sen. Len Fasano, Morfi failed to see the true dangers of Connecticut’s one-party system. State Democrats missed an opportunity by unilaterally drafting and introducing […]
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CT Bar Association opposes Trump’s cuts to Legal Services Corporation
President Trump’s proposed budget, which eliminates federal funding to the Legal Services Corporation, would hurt people across the country, including Connecticut, in need of legal aid in civil court cases.
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Meet some Connecticut Muslims, learn about Islam’s core values, at Thursday symposium
In the rude awakening of the Westminster attack, my Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is bringing our nationwide True Islam educational campaign countering extremism to our State Capitol on Thursday. Discover how True Islam enriches our great country during our exhibition in the Legislative Office Building’s Concord hallway from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
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The ‘open carry’ debate is about privacy, not guns
Granting police the power to ask to see open carry permits from gun owners may not violate the Second Amendment, but it might violate the Fourth Amendment, the right to privacy. You have the right to conduct business without agents of the government asking to see your papers.
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Housing opportunity is educational opportunity
I have always believed that my success and opportunities in this country were attributable to my access to a solid education, and this fundamental belief has driven my passion to eliminate the achievement gap. Research resoundingly confirms the importance of good teachers, a solid curriculum, an appropriate cultural environment in school as well as other factors that are connected to the school setting. However, it is only more recently that I have begun to understand how segregated housing is a significant “missing” piece of the achievement gap. If we want better educational outcomes, then housing segregation – racial, ethnic, and economic – must be addressed.