[Nfbk] Advocacy Action today

Tue Feb 28 00:02:18 UTC 2012

I also made my calls today to advocate.  Thanks to Cathy for the numbers and Melanie for the pushing.  

Sent from my iPhone

On Feb 27, 2012, at 4:46 PM, "John Glisson" <j.glisson at insightbb.com> wrote:

> Awesome, Melanie!!!  I am very pleased to find your excitement, enthusiasm
> and most especially your follow-through on 'Advocacy Action' on behalf of
> all the blind of Kentucky not to mention individuals with other types of
> disabilities regarding our State SB 87 and National H.R. 3086!!!  I also
> appreciate your 'Peer Pressure' here encouraging me to do the 'Right Thing'
> and make my calls as well ... I almost worked through the day, one of those
> days with Murphy's Law unleashed, and let the time get away from me before
> advocating for anything!  Thank you and keep up the good work!  I made my
> calls also and included the H.R. 7 Rest Amendment which will push our blind
> vendors out of the Rest Areas along the Interstates if not stopped ... John
> g.
> 
> PS. FYI ... There is also a House Bill, HB 10, in KY that relates to tax
> incentives to employers who employee Kentuckians with disabilities that we
> should consider supporting, for OFB is tracking this Bill closely.  I will
> need to look and discover Bill number(s) for actions being taken also in
> legislation impacting education and blind or visually impaired youth, which
> is also being tracked by OFB.  Then, as you've probably been hearing on the
> news, the Legislature has reached the point of Budget matters.  The House
> already has its version of the budget ready to pass along to the Senate. I
> do not know exact details, yet I am assured that the Office for the Blind
> will suffer budget slashes!  So, when communicating with our
> representatives, we do need to remain mindful of these issues and offer
> support on the positive side of the Office for the Blind.  jg
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfbk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
> Melanie Peskoe
> Sent: Monday, February 27, 2012 10:54 AM
> To: 'NFB of Kentucky Internet Mailing List'
> Subject: [Nfbk] Advocacy Action today
> 
> Hello fellow Federationists,
> I just finished making my advocacy action calls to our state and national
> representatives. First I called the Legislative message line and left a
> message regarding SB87 for the Natural Resources and Energy Committee asking
> them to please support the Accessible Electronic Information Act. Next I
> called Congressman John Yarmouth's office and urged him to support HR 3086
> which would eliminate sub minimum wages for the disabled. I called Senator
> McConnell and asked for his support as well. I also called Senator Paul's
> office and expressed that as he is on the Health Education Labor and Pension
> Committee, his support of this bill is influential and greatly needed. 
> 
> Our own John Glisson informed me that tomorrow may well be the most
> important day for SB 87 as it is the day that the agenda is made for the
> Natural Resources and Energy Committee meeting on Wednesday. We need to call
> and urge the chairman of the committee to place SB87 on the agenda for a
> VOTE! We also still need to leave a message for the rest of the committee to
> support it. We're almost there on this one! Let's see it through!
> 
> I'd love to hear from others who are calling Frankfort and Washington also.
> What are your thoughts and experiences? 
> Best regards,
> Melanie
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfbk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
> Cathy
> Sent: Sunday, February 26, 2012 10:57 AM
> To: NFB of Kentucky Internet Mailing List
> Subject: [Nfbk] FW: [NFBAffiliatePresidents] Fwd: Letter from Dr. Maurer to
> the House of Representatives re: H.R. 3086
> 
> Good Morning Everyone,
> 
> We had a great turnout at the NFBGL Chili Supper and Auction yesterday. The
> NFBGL board worked hard to make it a big success. This is just one more
> example of how the NFB can combine work and play to raise funds and build
> the organization. Now for work of a different sort. We have been making
> ourselves known in Frankfort by continuing to call in support of SB 87, The
> Access Technology Bill. Tomorrow is Monday, so keep the calls going. We are
> also in need of your help on the national level as well. As most of you know
> we are trying to gain support for HR 3086 which will eliminate section 14(c)
> in the Fair Labor Standards Act which gives employers the legal right to pay
> blind and other disabled people sub minimal wages. We have 44 members signed
> on to help us eradicate 14(c). We also have the support of about 40 other
> groups who represent other disabilities behind our efforts. But, the
> opposition has launched the counterattack. Those representing the sheltered
> shops have hired big-time lobbyists to speak for those they are trying to
> exploit. They are circulating a pamphlet titled "Where Will Sammy Go?" We on
> the other hand have circulated a letter to all members of both the House and
> Senate. The letter is from Dr. Maurer and is attached below. We are asking
> you to begin calling Congress to offer support for HR 3086. We need to hit
> Sen Rand Paul's off especially hard because he serves on the Health
> Education Labor and Pension committee that deals with this issue. I am going
> to give you the phone numbers of all of the Kentucky reps. Keep them on hand
> because there is another issue that is getting ugly. This is the LaTourette
> Amendment which will commercialize the highway rest areas. The Randolph
> Sheppard Act has given blind vendors a priority in these locations and this
> amendment threatens this priority. It will allow McDonalds, Burger King and
> other like establishments to invade these rest areas. We need your calls to
> appose the LaTourette amendment. When calling your Congressman ask for the
> person in that office in charge of Transportation and state your opposition.
> Thanks for all you do.
> 
> Cathy
> 
> Rep Ed Whitfield, (202) 225-3115
> John Yarmuth, (202) 225-5401
> Rep Ben Chandler, (202) 225-4706
> Rep Geoff Davis, (202) 225-3465
> Rep Bret Guthrie, (202) 225-3501
> Rep Hal Rogers, (202) 225-4601
> Sen Mitch McConnell, (202) 224-2541
> Sen Rand Paul, (202) 224-4343  
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfbaffiliatepresidents-bounces at nfbnet.org
> [mailto:nfbaffiliatepresidents-bounces at nfbnet.org]On Behalf Of Lewis, Anil
> Sent: Friday, February 24, 2012 11:14 AM
> To: Affiliate Presidents
> Subject: [NFBAffiliatePresidents] Fwd: Letter from Dr. Maurer to the House
> of Representatives re: H.R. 3086
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Anil
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
> Begin forwarded message:
> 
> From: "Freeh, Jessica" <JFreeh at nfb.org<mailto:JFreeh at nfb.org>>
> To: "NCB Staff" <NCBStaff at nfb.org<mailto:NCBStaff at nfb.org>>
> Subject: Letter from Dr. Maurer to the House of Representatives re: H.R.
> 3086
> 
> February 23, 2012
> 
> Dear United States Representative:
> 
> I am writing to you in support of H.R. 3086, the Fair Wages for Workers with
> Disabilities Act of 2011.  If you are already one of the cosponsors of this
> bill, I thank you.  If you have not signed on as a cosponsor, I urge you to
> do so as quickly as you can.  I am also writing to you representing disabled
> Americans who are affected by subminimum wage payments who want this bill to
> pass.  Furthermore, I am writing to you to sound the alarm against those who
> say that they know better what to do for the disabled than disabled
> Americans themselves.  They will tell you that disabled Americans cannot
> speak for themselves and that they have taken on this burden.  They are
> trying to deny us our own voice in Congress and we ask you to listen to the
> people, not to the self-appointed so-called spokesmen of the people.
> 
> The National Federation of the Blind and the growing list of over forty
> other organizations of disabled Americans that support this legislation are
> well aware that those of you who are cosponsoring this legislation or
> considering doing so are receiving considerable pressure from
> representatives of sheltered workshops and others holding special wage
> certificates that allow them to pay less than the federal minimum wage.  You
> are being told that the workers who receive subminimum wages in the
> sheltered workshop system have nowhere else to go, and that their lives
> would be destroyed by H.R. 3086.  Those of you from Missouri, in fact, may
> have received a piece of correspondence that asks, Where will Sammy, Patti,
> and Becky go when you eliminate their jobs?  This flyer also contains quotes
> from parents, siblings, and caregivers of sheltered workshop employees,
> wondering what H.R. 3086 will mean for their loved ones.
> 
> Whatever the motives of the people behind it, the correspondence is based on
> outdated ideas about the capacity of workers with disabilities and a
> misguided commitment to an antiquated model of service to such workers.
> Rather than participating in a constructive dialogue about what life will be
> like for workers with disabilities, once the subminimum wage exemption is
> phased out in three years as required by H.R. 3086, the workshops choose to
> circulate correspondence meant to pull on your heartstrings, to evoke your
> pity, and to promote low expectations.
> 
> The argument of the sheltered workshops is that some people, particularly
> those with severe developmental disabilities, are simply unfit for
> competitive employment.  This is simply wrong.  To continue this practice
> when proven employment strategies exist is inexcusable.
> 
> We are also told that these individuals must be given a choice.  We are all
> for freedom of choice, but true freedom of choice can only come with
> unbiased and accurate information.  Do Sammy, Patti, and Becky know that
> people like them are in fact working in competitive jobs?  Do they know that
> services like supported employment are already available to help them
> acquire and keep such jobs?  Do their parents, guardians, and loved ones
> know this?  My experience tells me that they do not. Rather, they have far
> more likely been told by sheltered workshop staffwho all too often share
> societys low expectations for disabled people and have an obvious conflict
> of interestthat Sammy, Patti, and Becky will never achieve competitive
> employment and that the sheltered workshop is the best they can hope for.
> In short, what they have been told is neither accurate nor unbiased.
> 
> Despite the manipulative tone of the correspondence, however, it is fair
> enough to ask what will happen to Sammy, Patti, and Becky and others like
> them if this bill passes.  I believe that the answer to this question is
> limited only by the spirit, ambition, and imagination of disabled workers
> themselves, and by our willingness as a society to work hard to help them
> succeed in their goals.  I believe that disabled workers can do far better
> than receiving pennies per hour.  Under this bill, they will either earn
> real wages in the workshops that currently employ them, or they will receive
> the training and support that they need to obtain competitive employment
> somewhere else.  Imagine for a moment that all of the government and
> philanthropic resources that are currently supporting the sheltered workshop
> system were redirected to finding real employment opportunities for people
> with disabilities.  If they were, I suspect that solutions as yet undreamt
> of would emerge to help such individuals succeed in competitive employment
> situations.
> 
> The sheltered workshop industry has existed for over seventy years.  Many
> argue that it is an acceptable status quo, which must not be changed.  We
> reject this formulation.  Even if you believe that those of us advocating
> against subminimum wages do not have all the answers, this is no excuse for
> allowing the system to continue.  The current practice of paying subminimum
> wages is unfair, discriminatory, and immoral, and no amount of hand-wringing
> about what may follow it can change that.  Please do not simply let inertia
> direct our course.  We are urging you and other willing partners, including
> any from the sheltered workshop industry, to work with us to find real
> solutions for people like Sammy, Patti, and Becky, rather than shrugging
> your shoulders and saying that the exploitation must continue because we as
> a society will not expend the effort to come up with anything better.
> 
> There was a time in our nations history when African-Americans were believed
> to have limited capacity and were fit only for slave labor on plantations.
> There was a time when women were thought capable only of maintaining the
> family home, and thus were not even permitted to vote.  Fortunately we
> realized as a nation that it was bigotry and low expectations that were
> defining the roles of African-Americans and women rather than their true
> capabilities.  We realized, albeit belatedly, that America would be a better
> nation if the true capacities of these citizens were unleashed.  Americans
> with disabilities are now calling upon our fellow citizens to realize that
> the soft bigotry of low expectations is condemning workers with disabilities
> to near-slave labor, and that the system that arises from these low
> expectations must be abolished.
> 
> H.R. 3086 allows for a grace period of three years before sheltered
> workshops and other nonprofit employers currently holding special wage
> certificates must begin to pay their workers at least the federal minimum
> wage.  This is plenty of time for sheltered workshops to study the business
> models of similar entities that are already paying their employees
> competitive wages and make adjustments to their own policies and practices.
> Meanwhile, policy makers can redirect resources to enhance programs like
> supported employment, and create new solutions, to help workers with
> disabilities transition to real work for real wages.
> 
> As for freedom of choice: I am a person with a disability.  I have been
> blind all of my life.  I know the pain and despair that comes with low
> expectations and prejudice.  Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to
> make real choices about my life and career, and to experience the joy of the
> accomplishments that can only come through full and equal participation in
> society.  I want Sammy, Patti, and Becky to have the choices that I had.  If
> workers with disabilities truly want to stay in the sheltered workshop that
> currently employs them, or a facility like it, then no one will prohibit
> them from doing so.  However, if H.R. 3086 is enacted, wherever they choose
> to work, they will receive real wages that allow them to live fuller lives.
> They will know the satisfaction of receiving the equal pay for equal work
> that they deserve, in addition to any satisfaction that they may receive
> from getting out of the house and being among their friends.  They will no
> longer be dependent upon the resources of their loved ones or on public
> assistance in order to buy the things they need.  They will have disposable
> income to spend in the community, thereby contributing to our society and
> its economy.  They will go from a subsistent existence to one in which they
> can enjoy taking in a movie with their friends, an occasional restaurant
> meal, and all of the other small pleasures of life that other American
> workers take for granted.  They will become free people with real choices,
> not virtual slaves with false ones.
> 
> On behalf of the National Federation of the Blind, the over forty other
> organizations that support this bill, and the millions of disabled people we
> represent, we urge you to join us in our effort to change the paradigm of
> low expectations and kindly meant but devastating exploitation that has too
> long dominated the lives of over three hundred thousand Americans with
> disabilities.  We ask you to express the courage to support H.R. 3086 and
> the creativity to seek solutions that allow Americans with disabilities to
> become productive citizens.  I thank you for your attention to this urgent
> matter.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
>     [cid:074105315 at 24022012-09F2]
> 
> Marc Maurer, President
> NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
> 
> 
> 
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