Tuesday was Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day at the Florida Legislature. People with disabilities and their allies say the opportunity to share their stories with lawmakers is invaluable.
Lauren Modawell is a self-advocate. The main thing she’s advocating for this year is more job opportunities. She says many people with disabilities would love to have jobs…
“...but they need assistance with opening the mind of employers," she said, "to the idea of hiring people with disabilities that would love to work but don’t often have the opportunity to do so because doors are being shut in their face.”
She said she hopes lawmakers will encourage employers to consider hiring more people with disabilities.
“Employers are very close-minded," Modawell said. "They basically focus only on the outer appearance and the individual’s disability -- not what the individual can add to them."
Tina Cordova is a member of the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council. She’s also the executive director of Posability, a nonprofit in Hernando County, and an advocate for her 14-year-old daughter.
Cordova says the legislative awareness event is vital to the disability community.
“Being able to present our personal stories and really taking the politics out of their decisions and helping them make it more personal is absolutely vital to our work here," she said. "Helping them connect the decisions that they make for our families, for our communities, for our state -- it’s an opportunity that I would advise no one to pass up.”
Some of the advocates’ concerns include access to services and resources -- especially those needed for some people with disabilities to live outside an institution and in a community setting.
