[nagdu] No Jews Allowed
Albert J Rizzi
albert at myblindspot.org
Thu Jan 21 03:14:34 UTC 2010
very heavy. Wow
Albert J. Rizzi, M.Ed.
CEO/Founder
My Blind Spot, Inc.
90 Broad Street - 18th Fl.
New York, New York 10004
www.myblindspot.org
PH: 917-553-0347
Fax: 212-858-5759
"The person who says it cannot be done, shouldn't interrupt the one who is
doing it."
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-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Linda Gwizdak
Sent: Wednesday, January 20, 2010 7:37 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] No Jews Allowed
Hi Marion,
The article was very good and it shows that there are still people who are
oppressed for who or what they are. I thought I'd put another twist on this
to show that we all must support each other NO MATTER what we are! Here
goes:
" Imagine that you sought help from the police after being beaten by your
husband, only to find that you were told that you could not receive their
services because you are Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(you'd be bashed by the police!)
Imagine that you sought the services of the domestic violence program but
are told that you could not receive their services because you are
Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(you'd be blamed for what befell you because of your immorality)
Imagine that you sought the services of the Red Cross during a Hurricane
but are told that you could not receive their services because you are
Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(you'd be passed over as the service dogs were left behind)
Imagine that you are the victim of rape, and sought the services of the
rape treatment service but are told that you could not receive their
services because you are Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(you'd be victims all over again because you were queer and "had it coming")
Imagine that you desperately need medical care but are told that you could
not see the doctor because you are Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(particularly if you were transgender - I personally knew someone this
happened to and he almost died as a result)
Imagine that you went shopping, and are unable to go into a grocery store
because you are Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(you'd have to endure nasty names like "Fag" "Dyke")
And imagine that you seek out the services of an attorney, and are denied
services because you are Lesbian/Gay/Transgender.
(you'd have to find an LGBT-friendly attorney)
You would be outraged, and hurt. You would find allies to join you in
protest. You would seek to have anti-discrimination laws enforced. You would
consider suing. You would wonder how in this day and age such discrimination
could occur." BTW, the recently passed Hate Crimes Act just signed by Obama
is not only the first one to include disabled folks, but transgender folks
as well - protections for expressing gender identity. We all need each
other!
Now add BLIND or DISABLED LGBT people and how we get denied these services
BECAUSE we are LGBT. Could be double whammy! Many times blind and disabled
people may be denied these services from some service providers is not
because the providers don't see us as human - they usually don't even have
the access problems even in their brains! It never crosses their radar! I
can say that I have never experienced these callus denials because I was a
blind person - I've gotten it because of what my mobility aid is - my guide
dog. We have to continue to have laws to protect us in our use of our dogs.
But we still are people but not quite the same people as those without
disabilities or blindness. Here's where we need to educate ourselves and the
public on what we can do as blind people and about our dogs.
This article shows us that we all need to be open to learning about people
who are different from ourselves and to become allies in each other's
struggles for equality. We have to stop fearing each other. That is
Christians, Jews, Muslims, Gay, straight, or if you fit society's view as to
what a person should be like according to what your genitalia shows you to
be. People come in such a rich variety of ways of being and we have to
learn aboout all of the diversity of humankind. Only when we do this we
will all be free to be who we are and we'd be allowed to be the people we
are.
Lyn and Landon
----- Original Message -----
From: "Marion & Martin" <swampfox1833 at verizon.net>
To: "NAGDU List" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>; "FLAGDU List" <flagdu at nfbnet.org>;
"NYAGDU List" <nyagdu at nfbnet.org>; <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, January 18, 2010 9:09 AM
Subject: [nagdu] No Jews Allowed
> Dear All,
> I was asked to circulate this message by Marc Dubin, Mr. Dubin is a
> subscriber to the email list of the National Association of Guide Dog
> Users. Marc is a former Senior Trial Attorney with the United States
> department of Justice and currently serves as the Director of Advocacy for
> the Center for Independent Living of South Florida, located in Miami, and
> Chairs the Florida Bar's Disability Law Committee
>
> . I hope everyone will take the time to read his comments, as I believe
> they will help put our work as advoacates into perspective!
>
> Fraternally yours,
> Marion Gwizdala, President
> National Association of Guide Dog Users
> National Federation of the Blind
>
>
>
> No Jews Allowed
>
> By Marc Dubin, Esq.
>
> mdubin at pobox.com
>
> Imagine that you sought help from the police after being beaten by your
> husband, only to find that you were told that you could not receive their
> services because you are Jewish.
>
> Imagine that you sought the services of the domestic violence program but
> are told that you could not receive their services because you are Jewish.
>
> Imagine that you sought the services of the Red Cross during a Hurricane
> but are told that you could not receive their services because you are
> Jewish.
>
> Imagine that you are the victim of rape, and sought the services of the
> rape treatment service but are told that you could not receive their
> services because you are Jewish.
>
> Imagine that you desperately need medical care but are told that you
> could not see the doctor because you are Jewish.
>
> Imagine that you went shopping, and are unable to go into a grocery store
> because you are Jewish.
>
> And imagine that you seek out the services of an attorney, and are denied
> services because you are Jewish.
>
> You would be outraged, and hurt. You would find allies to join you in
> protest. You would seek to have anti-discrimination laws enforced. You
> would consider suing. You would wonder how in this day and age such
> discrimination could occur.
>
> Every day, people with disabilities seek the services of law enforcement,
> domestic violence programs, Red Cross Shelters, rape treatment programs,
> health care providers, businesses, attorneys, and others, and are denied
> services because they have a disability. Architectural barriers that
> should not exist remain. Sign language interpreters are not provided.
> Policies that should be changed are not changed, and these policies
> prevent people with disabilities from using the services they need.
> Written materials are not offered in alternative formats. Service animals
> are excluded.
>
> If you are a person with a disability, these scenarios are all too
> familiar. You recognize these denials for what they are - civil rights
> violations. These denials are as offensive, as hurtful, as harmful as
> signs saying No Jews Allowed.
>
> My family understands this all too well. I am Jewish. When my parents
> were growing up, they were kicked out of school, for being Jewish.. Their
> parents were no longer allowed to work, because they were Jewish. They
> were beaten up by their neighbors, because they were Jewish. They could
> not shop in the neighborhood grocery stores, because they were Jewish.
> And, they were arrested, along with every other member of their family,
> because they were Jewish.
>
> Yes, it was another time and place. It was Poland, and Hitler was coming
> to power. Discrimination was all around them, and grew, and grew.
>
> I believe that I am well aware of the cost of social injustice and of the
> abuse of power, . My parents instilled in me an awareness of the
> importance of public service, the cost of prejudice and abuse of power,
> and of the debt I owe.
>
> Both of my parents came to the United States in 1952, from Lodz, Poland.
> My parents were both survivors of Hitler's concentration camps, and were
> the only members of their respective families to survive.(They each had 7
> brothers and sisters) Before the war, Lodz had the second largest Jewish
> community in Europe. As of 1939, there were 230,000 Jews in Lodz. The
> Germans moved them all into one area of the city, and walled it off.
> Eventually, an additional 25,000 people were brought in (20,000 Jews, and
> 5,000 Gypsies). The Germans then systematically starved and killed them.
>
> Beginning in January of 1942, the Germans began transporting Jews from
> Lodz to the Chelmno death camp, at a rate of approximately 1,000 a day.
> Within 3 weeks, over 10,000 people had been transported. Between February
> and April of 1942, over 34,000 more were taken away and killed. These
> deportations continued month after month. In August 1944, the ghetto was
> closed, and all remaining residents were transported by train to
> Auschwitz. My parents and some members of their families were among this
> group.
>
> As of 1944, of the original 250,000 Jews in Lodz, 30,000 were still
> alive.. Shortly before the end of the war, on January 18, 1945, the
> Germans removed 66,000 Jews from Auschwitz, and in an effort to avoid
> discovery by the Soviet Army, which was advancing toward the camp, marched
> them in the snow for days, and shot them as they marched, trying to
> destroy the evidence of what they had done. My father was on this death
> march, but escaped by leading a group of prisoners into the forest,
> emerging only when the Soviet Army arrived.
>
> By the time they were liberated from Auschwitz at the end of the war, in
> January 1945, only 15,000 of the original 250,000 jews in Lodz had
> survived. An estimated 1, 500,000 Jews were killed at Auschwitz. All of my
> parents' families, including their parents, their grandparents, their
> cousins, their uncles, their aunts, their sisters, and their brothers,
> were killed.
>
> Upon their liberation from Auschwitz, my parents were sent to a Displaced
> Persons camp, where they were kept for seven years. My sister was born in
> and spent the first six years of her life in the Displaced Persons Camp.
> In 1952, my parents emigrated to the United States.
>
> I tell you this because it is essential that we understand that the
> discrimination we address on behalf of people with disabilities is about
> civil rights, and about what we as a nation stand for when it comes to
> ensuring equal opportunity. When someone in a wheelchair is denied access
> to shelter, or access to government services, or access to civic life,
> they are experiencing discrimination. When someone who is deaf or hard of
> hearing is denied access to health care because a doctor refuses to pay
> for a qualified sign language interpreter, they are experiencing
> discrimination. When someone who is blind is denied access to written
> materials in accessible format, they are experiencing discrimination.
Let's
> not be unclear about this. The denial of civil rights is the first step
> toward seeing people with disabilities as inferior, and the first step to
> allowing the kind of thinking that can lead us down a very dangerous path.
> When the Nazis came to power, the first group killed were people with
> disabilities. It is essential that we understand the parallels, and that
> when we see discrimination, we stand up to it, and that we ally ourselves
> with its victims. We need not see signs saying "No People with
> Disabilities Allowed" to understand that discrimination is occurring, and
> that we need to do what we can, what we must, to remove those invisible,
> yet powerful signs. Lack of intent is not the test. The test is whether
> the discrimination occurs, and whether we have the will to overcome the
> discrimination. I believe we do, if we work together, and if we have the
> will to identify the discrimination for what it is.
>
> Reproduction of this article is encouraged.
>
>
>
>
>
> Marc Dubin, Esq.
>
> Director of Advocacy, Center for Independent Living of South Florida
>
> mdubin at pobox.com
>
> Mobile: 305-896-3000
>
> Fax: 877-731-3030
>
> www.victimswithdisabilities.org
>
> Chair, Florida Bar Disability Law Committee
>
> http://disabilitylawcommittee.blogspot.com/
>
> Former Senior Trial Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice 1993-2005
> www.ada.gov
>
> Former Special Counsel, Office on Violence Against Women, USDOJ
>
> www.ovw.usdoj.gov/overview.htm
>
> Founder & Executive Director, CAVNET www.cavnet.org
>
>
>
> ADA Expertise is owned and operated by Marc Dubin, Esq. Opinions posted
> are posted in a private capacity, and are not to be construed to be the
> opinions of the CIL, its employees, Board, or volunteers.
>
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>
>
>
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