Summer 2014: In The News
First Children's Book on Visitability Published
Eleanor Smith, director/organizer of the Atlanta-based advocacy organization Concrete Change, along with Nadeen Green, published the first children's book on visitability called Libby and the Cape of Visitability to begin a meaningful conversation about inaccessible homes and how as a community, we can work to change that.
Visitability is a movement to change home construction practices so that virtually all new homes offer specific features to make the home easier for people with mobility impairments.
Written for children ages 8-13, this book raises awareness about the exclusion created when houses are not built with simple accessibility features.
"I wanted the world to be different for the kids and everyone with disabilities," said Smith. "It was a way for kids to get this message and by having a main character that has a disability, a lot of the kids who read it will be able to say, 'Hey! That's me!'."
Smith and Green write about Libby, Aria and Benjamin, all who have been best friends since they were babies.
When Aria moves to a new house, Libby, who uses a wheelchair, doesn't get invited to Aria's birthday party because the house has barriers. The kids then meet Everett, an adult wheelchair athlete, who tells them how the disability rights movement gained successes through years of public demonstrations and pressing for laws. Everett shows them a photo from the 1970s portraying people with disabilities blocking inaccessible buses.
The kids are inspired to create their own version of public action to achieve the goal of a step-free entrance and wide bathroom doors in every new house.
The book brings awareness to visitability for children, but also allows parents to interact with the movement by showing what they can do to become involved in the cause.
"It's important that Georgians educate themselves about visitability, and know that making homes accessible doesn't cost extra or make it look funny," Smith said. Click to Tweet this!
Accessible homes benefit people with disabilities, the elderly, and people who are recovering from surgeries or injuries.
A victory for Smith and Concrete Change, which started in 1987 in Atlanta, was the recent mandate passed in Austin, TX that every new home built has to be accessible. The same movement has expanded to Tuscon, AZ and Bolling Brook, IL.
To get a copy of Libby and the Cape of Visitability, contact Eleanor Smith at .
For more information on Concrete Change and how you can be involved in the visitability movement, visit www.concretechange.org.
Call Your Senators and Encourage a Vote for CRPD
Crucial civil rights legislation for people with disabilities currently awaits the US Senate's vote. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is an international human rights instrument of the United Nations that is intended to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities.
Modeled after the Americans with Disabilities Act, CRPD values independence, respect and the concept of reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities. The treaty is vital for creating legislation and policies around the world that embrace the rights and dignity of all people with disabilities. Even though President Barack Obama signed the convention and forwarded it on to the Senate, it has failed to reach the necessary two-thirds margin required to approve the CRPD. GCDD encourages Georgia citizens to contact Sen. Johnny Isakson and Sen. Saxby Chambliss urging them to support the convention. 
Through advocacy, we can make a difference for Georgians with disabilities and for all those around the world.
Contact Sen. Johnny Isakson at:
Washington DC Office
United States Senate
131 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: 202.224.3643
Contact Sen. Saxby Chambliss at:
Washington DC Office
United States Senate
416 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: 202.224.3521
GaLEND Graduates 16 Participants
The Georgia Leadership and Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities graduated 16 participants from its program this past spring.
The program is designed to teach trainees skills to collaborate in the interest of coordinated, comprehensive, culturally competent care on behalf of children and adults with disabilities and their families. "GaLEND participants are future physicians, nurses, psychologists, teachers, social workers and speech-language pathologists along with family members and self-advocates," said Mark Crenshaw, director of interdisciplinary training at Georgia State University.
The GaLEND is a year-long interdisciplinary training program that is designed to strengthen Georgia's capacity to respond to the unique gifts and needs of children and adults with disabilities and their families. GaLEND operates as a program of the Center for Leadership in Disability at Georgia State University, in collaboration with the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse School of Medicine and the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Tags: Making a Difference, In The News