Washington Post deconstructs Pelosi heckling incident

From columnist Dana Milbank at The Washington Post:

For 17 months, anger at President Obama and congressional Democrats has been pooling on the left. On Tuesday morning, it spilled onto the floor of an Omni Shoreham ballroom and splashed all over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The celebrated San Francisco liberal took the stage to greet what should have been a friendly audience: the annual gathering of progressive activists organized by the Campaign for America's Future.

Instead, Pelosi was eaten by her own.

Just three minutes into her speech -- right after she gave the triumphant news that "Change is here!" -- two men stood up and spread out a large pink banner in front of the podium demanding "Stop Funding Israel Terror."

At that moment, a wheelchair-bound woman named Carrie James began to scream from her table about 30 feet away: "I am not going to a nursing home!" At that cue, about 15 people in the crowd -- who, like James, wore orange T-shirts demanding "Community Choice Act Now" -- unfurled bedsheet banners and struck up a chant: "Our homes, not nursing homes!"

Bodyguards rushed forward and formed a six-person ring around Pelosi and the lectern. Leaders of the conference tried to take the speaker backstage until the disturbance could be quelled, but she brushed them off: "I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving," she said. "You have made your point. I'm going to give my speech over your voices."

And she did, for an excruciating half-hour. The hecklers screamed themselves hoarse, dominating Pelosi's speech through her concluding lines: "I want to say thank you to Campaign for America's Future for your relentlessness, for your dissatisfaction, for your impatience. That's what I see every day in my district."

Political movements tend to unravel gradually, but on Tuesday this one seemed to be imploding in real time. As the "tea party" right has gained strength, Obama's hope-and-change left has faded. The frustration has crystallized at the gathering this week of demoralized activists.

At Monday's opening session, attendance was sparse: 10 empty tables and about 200 empty chairs. "Progressives have grown ever more dissatisfied, and for good reason," Robert Borosage, the conference organizer, said at the start. "Our hopes or illusions were shattered: escalation in Afghanistan, retreat on Guantanamo, no movement on worker rights or comprehensive immigration reform, dithering on 'don't ask, don't tell,' reverses on choice, delay on climate change and new energy."


After a musical break that included the Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," Borosage's co-director, Roger Hickey, took up the complaint. "Larry Summers and Tim Geithner and Rahm Emanuel don't see themselves as part of a movement, and we often see them as part of a problem," he said.

Up next, Darcy Burner of ProgressCongress.org accused Obama of "split the baby" politics and complained that some liberal leaders had sold out for invitations to "White House cocktail parties."

Tuesday brought a denunciation of the Democrats from former Democratic chairman Howard Dean: "It's time for them to behave like Democrats if they want to get reelected. They have forgotten where they came from -- and they haven't been here that long."

In the exhibit hall was a table labeled "Phone Bank for Bill Halter" -- the man trying to unseat Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) for being insufficiently liberal.

But that was tame compared with the treatment of Pelosi. With her daughter and infant granddaughter watching, the House speaker stammered and struggled to belt out her speech as disability activists shouted her down. Borosage, shaking his head and licking his lips, tried to shoo the wheelchairs away from the podium.

Some audience members tried to shout down the hecklers. "Why are you doing this? You think this is going to help?" pleaded one. Another man asked the demonstrators if they'd "mind shutting up" and flipped his middle finger at them.

This only worsened the disturbance. "Sorry, the stakes are a little high!" James shouted from her wheelchair. Pumping her fists in the air, she chanted: "Hey, hey, ho, ho, nursing homes have got to go!"

Pelosi tried to make a joke. "Listen, I'm used to noise. I talk to the Democratic caucus every single day." A bit of laughter mixed in with shouts of "Our homes! Our homes!"

Pelosi said she supports the hecklers' legislation, a long-languishing proposal to increase access to community services for the disabled, who say it would allow more of them to live at home. But the protest wasn't about reason; it was about rage. Pelosi finally finished her speech to a mixture of cheers and boos. "Everybody calm down," Hickey pleaded. "Let's take a deep breath."

As if to admonish the discontented activists over their treatment of the speaker, the strains of Fatboy Slim's "Praise You" came from the sound system:

We've come a long, long way together

Through the hard times and the good

I have to celebrate you, baby

I have to praise you like I should.

Jet Li says his new movie about autism will offer alternative to Chinese kung fu epics

From The AP. In the picture, Chinese actor Jet Li , background, waves as he promotes his new movie "Ocean Heaven" by visiting the dolphins at Hong Kong's Ocean Park with a small group of autistic adults.

HONG KONG — Jet Li says he hopes that his new movie about autism offers a refreshing alternative to the historical and kung fu epics that dominate the Chinese industry.

The veteran action star plays an aquarium worker who cares for his autistic son in the low-budget "Ocean Heaven" — his first Chinese-language production since the 2007 release of "The Warlords."

"Nowadays everyone is making blockbusters. Making a 7 million Chinese yuan ($1 million) movie requires a lot of sincerity," Li told reporters in Hong Kong. "This movie is about sincerity. It shows that in this day and age that filmmakers are willing to do something for society."

The actor promoted the movie by visiting the dolphins at Hong Kong's Ocean Park with a small group of mentally handicapped and autistic adults.

"I hope everyone can examine what is the most important relationship in life — the relationship between parent and child," he said.

A noticeably thinner Li said he lost 18 pounds (8 kilograms) from a thyroid condition.

Like Jackie Chan, a fellow kung fu star who crossed over to Hollywood from the Hong Kong movie industry, Li also now juggles careers in Chinese and American films.

His recent Hollywood releases include "The Forbidden Kingdom," which costarred Chan, "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" and "The Expendables."

Danish town says it spends thousands to send teen with dyslexia to class via taxi

From The Copenhagen Post in Denmark:

Local authority was forced to pay 700,000 kroner more than necessary in what mayors say is one example of forced overspending

Kalundborg local authority has revealed that it is forced to pay nearly half a million kroner per year in taxi bills to send a 13-year old boy to Ballerup – a distance of 93 kilometres – each day to spend an hour in a special class for dyslexic children.

The revelation is the latest in series of forced overspending brought forth by local authorities as the government prepares the country for deep cuts – amounting to 24 billion kroner – to turn the economy around.

The head of education for Kalundborg local authority, Poul Edvard Larsen, recognised the costs were ‘absurd’ but said the authority had been ordered to send the boy to the school by a special complaints committee for remedial education.
The authority had originally offer the boy remedial classes in his own school in Kalundborg in western Zealand at a cost of 100,000 kroner a year. The boy’s parents were dissatisfied with the offer and brought their case before the committee.

Instead, the authority has ended up paying close to 800,000 kroner annually, including 300,000 kroner for one-to-one classes at a special institute for dyslexic students in Ballerup, and nearly half a million in travel costs.

The Kalundborg case is just one of many that KL, the union of local authorities, has brought to the government’s attention. KL believes that current social welfare legislation is putting an unbearable strain on local authority budgets.

According to KL, local authorities have repeatedly lost cases brought by citizens with special needs before the welfare complaints committee. These cases typically concern housing, daily taxi trips or provisions for the disabled.

Colorado mother accused of killing infant son says she did it because she thought he was autistic, would "ruin" her life

From The AP:

BOULDER, Colo. — Police say a woman accused of killing her infant son did it because she believed the boy was autistic and thought his condition would "ruin" her life.

Stephanie Rochester, 34, was charged June 7 with murder in the June 1 suffocation death of her 6-month-old son, Rylan. According to an affidavit seeking her arrest, Rochester wanted to commit suicide but didn't want to "burden her husband" with the potentially autistic boy.

The affidavit says that the night before the infant died, Stephanie and Lloyd Rochester "talked about how they wanted to have fun in life."

"Stephanie said that she knew they would not have fun while they were caring for a severely autistic child," according to the affidavit, written by Boulder County sheriff's Detective Mark Spurgeon.

The woman told police she had worked with autistic children as a hospital counselor and believed her son had the developmental disorder, which affects a person's ability to communicate and interact with others. Pediatricians said Rylan was progressing normally.

Stephanie Rochester's lawyer, Boulder County public defender Megan Ring, did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Spurgeon wrote that the night Rylan died, his mother placed three baby blankets on top of his face, then went downstairs to plan a vacation to Cape Cod with her husband. She got up around 2:30 a.m. and put more blankets over the baby, police said.

At about 6 a.m., Stephanie Rochester took the blankets off Rylan's head and "just lost it when she realized what she had done," according to the affidavit. She and Lloyd Rochester took Rylan to Avista Hospital in Louisville, where he was pronounced dead.

Rochester was being held on suicide watch. She's due back in court for a status conference June 24 and is scheduled to have a preliminary hearing Sept. 8.

Rochester's friends and family, including her mother, were in the courtroom Monday, but her husband was not.

District Attorney Stan Garnett told the Daily Camera newspaper that he is unlikely to seek the death penalty in the case.

Wheelchair-using drummer gets his groove back on with his own invention

From CNN:

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Jason Gerling (pictured) always knew he would make a major impact as a musician.

An accomplished drummer, he was at the top of the local music scene in 1994, winning local drumming competitions and performing regularly at hot spots in the Twin Cities.

He was 23 years old, and planned to move to New York, or perhaps Nashville, to launch his music career.

Then one night, everything changed.

Heading home from a late night gig, Gerling fell asleep at the wheel.

"The car flipped over five or six times, that's what they told me," he said. "They said I looked like something out of a horror movie ... They had to use the jaws of life to snip through the car doors to get me out."

He was lucky to be alive. But then came the bad news.

"[The doctors] said 'you're probably never going to walk and probably never going to play the drums again,'" he remembered.

"It was like a nuclear bomb was dropped on my life. I thought my career was over."

The accident had left him paralyzed from the chest down.

Gerling refused to give up his passion from drumming. Within a few years, he regained the use of his arms.

But he never got back the use of his legs. To this day, Gerling remains in a wheelchair.

That has hampered his ability to play a drum set which requires a foot pedal to operate the bass drum and the hi-hat cymbal.

For a while, he got by with a special setup that triggered a bass drum noise when he hit a certain pad with a drumstick.

That didn't cut it for Gerling.

So he invented a system that allows him to trigger a bass drum sound while continuing to play the snares, cymbals, and the rest of the drum set.

Gerling uses a mouthpiece trigger provided to him by Origin Instruments, a company with a line of products aimed at helping people with disabilities -- particularly quadriplegics -- operate computers.

Gerling rigged the mouthpiece to control tiny rubber sensors under each cymbal. Anytime he sucks on the mouthpiece while simultaneously hitting one of the cymbals, a bass drum noise is triggered from a small subwoofer situated directly inside the bass drum casing.

He can move the sensors under any of part of the drum set.

"This is over 10 years in the making," he said, smiling behind his state-of-the-art drum set.

Despite his hard work, Gerling said he has no desire to patent his invention.

"If people want to know how to build their own triggers, then, by golly, they can just contact me," he said. "I'll give them the information for free. Encouragement shouldn't come at a price."

One glance at Gerling's Facebook inbox reveals a worldwide fan base many of whom are exactly that: encouraged.

He reads over one letter from someone who had their legs amputated last year: "Thanks for being my inspiration."

Another one reads, "I'm back playing rock and roll, using some of your techniques. Thanks for being my inspiration."

Another fan writes, "Thanks for your effort in helping change the paradigm in the music industry."

That particular "thank you" note is special for Gerling. Getting the music industry to include more disabled musicians -- to look "between the wheels" of his wheelchair as he puts it -- is exactly what he aims to do.

"There's so many musicians who are disabled who don't get the chance to play live," he said. "So I want to tell them to knock on doors and encourage the music industry to be willing to hire a person with a disability."

And he seems to be on his way.

On April 28, Gerling debuted his mouthpiece technology -- accompanied digitally by music he composed himself --- for the very first time during a private event at Minneapolis' famous Guthrie Theatre.

To him, it was his first step to getting back on the road, doing what he loves more than anything, and at the same time urging others in similar situations to pursue their dreams and change the world.

Not surprisingly, the evening was capped off with a standing ovation.

Now that he's made his invention public, Gerling said he plans to show others how to create the technology through "innovative drumming clinics" that could grow into a music tour with other artists.

"People need encouragement," Gerling said, "and if I can be in the position to help someone else, that's just an honor you can't take lightly."

Charges pending in Connecticut for fake autism therapist

From NBC-TV in Conn.

Weston, Conn., Police are expected to file charges against a New York woman on Tuesday accused posing as an autism expert and taking $300,000 from the Weston Board of Education.

Police plan to charge Stacy Lore (pictured) with first-degree larceny. Investigators in Norwalk filed similar charges in March.

Between 2005 and 2008, investigators say Lore represented herself as a board-certified behavior analyst with a doctorate from NYU and a decade of experience working with special needs children.

The attorney general's office said that during that time period, Lore and her company, Spectrum Kids LLC, were contracted by the public schools in Norwalk, Stamford, Weston, Bridgeport and Middlebury and she collected more than $635,000 in fees from those districts and the families of the children she worked with.

Most of those children are autistic.

There's no legal requirement for schools to check the credentials of behavior analysts.

Suzanne Letso, executive director of the Connecticut Center for Child Development in Milford, said that's why Lore's alleged fraud went undetected by so many school officials and families for so long.

"Either licensed or certified is a requirement for every professional working in our public schools with disabilities except applied behavior analysts," Letso said.

Last month, state lawmakers passed a bill to close that loophole. The measure establishes clear standards for behavior analysts to be put into effect by 2012. Gov. M. Jodi Rell has signe d the bill into law.

Lore is at the Niantic Correctional Institution for the charges out of Norwalk.

New documentary about Joan Rivers shows audience anger about a Helen Keller joke

From Bloomberg News:

“Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work” opens with a close-up of the septuagenarian’s surgically altered face without any makeup. The shot is shockingly raw and compelling, much like Rivers and this documentary about her life.

Rivers (pictured), who turned 77 this week, is probably the most influential stand-up comedienne of her generation. Her outrageous style has spawned a host of imitators, from Kathy Griffin to Sarah Silverman, and her perseverance through a roller-coaster career is a reminder that toughness is as important as talent in show business.

Filmmakers Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg, whose previous documentaries have tackled such serious subjects as ethnic slaughter in Sudan and a man wrongly imprisoned for murder, followed Rivers for a year to chronicle her dogged attempts to stay in the public eye.

They show Rivers performing in clubs, signing books, acting in an autobiographical play and appearing on “The Celebrity Apprentice.” Uncomfortable moments aren’t whitewashed. When a man with a deaf son heckles Rivers for telling a Helen Keller joke at a concert in Wisconsin, she angrily castigates him for having no sense of humor. (Rivers told the crowd she doesn’t like children, but would have made an exception for Keller “because she didn’t talk.”)

NY boy with Asperger's saves choking friend

From MYFOXNY.COM:

Lunch time turned frightening for a boy in Valley Stream, Long Island.

Nicholas Landecho choked on a taco in the school cafeteria. Teachers patted him on the back trying to help, but it was a nine-year-old classmate who ultimately saved Nicholas.

The boys and their mothers appeared on Good Day New York to talk about the event.

"The taco got stuck in my throat. I drank some milk. I went to the aides. I couldn't breathe, " said Nicholas. "Marken ran over."

That's when Marken Suaza put his arms around Nicholas' stomach and performed the Heimlich Maneuver.

"I think Nick spit into a garbage can," said Marken.

The nine-year-old hero has Asperger's syndrome - a form of autism.

Marken's mother said she wasn't surprised her son jumped into action.

"Children with Asperger's are brilliant. Marken's inpulsivity-which kids with Asperser's get a bad rap for having- saved Nicolas' life," said Kenia Nunez.

"Nicholas was nervous. I was very happy to hear that Marken ran into action and didn't think twice to save his friend. We're so grateful to Nicolas," said Maria Lendecho.

And how did Marken learn the Heimlich Maneuver?

"By reading the choking posters," said the boy hero.

UK hospital ordered to pay £90,000 after disabled man suffocates in hospital bed

From The Daily Mail in the UK:

A scandal-hit hospital that allowed a severely disabled patient to suffocate after his head became trapped between the bars of his bed was ordered to pay £90,000 in fines and costs yesterday.

Kyle Flack (pictured), 20, was supposed to have special 'bumpers' fitted to his bed to protect him from the rails but staff used some that were too short.

He was also supposed to have one-on-one care around the clock but was often left on his own.

Two days after he was admitted to Basildon Hospital in Essex a ward hostess serving breakfast noticed his head had become trapped.

Staff tried desperately to resuscitate Mr Flack, a quadriplegic who had cerebral palsy, was blind, deaf and mute and was the size of a 12-year-old, but were unable to save him.

It later emerged the hospital had adult-size bumpers but none for children which cost 'a little more'.

The hospital last month admitted failing to protect patients at risk of injury or death under health and safety legislation and was yesterday fined £50,000 and ordered to pay £40,000 costs.

Mr Flack's adoptive mother Gillian, 55, who looked after him from the age of two, afterwards called for chief executive Alan Whittle to quit.

She said: 'My son couldn't call for help, he had a horrendous death, and nobody went to his room. I have to live with the fact I put him in that hospital.'

Mr Flack, from Stanford-le-Hope, was admitted to the hospital on October 10, 2006, with a stomach problem and his mother made it 'quite plain' he would need bumpers.
But he was issued with ill-fitting equipment, despite having problems at the same hospital previously.

He was later moved from a four-bed room with constant care to a private room where he was only occasionally monitored by a night nurse with 12 other patients.
Basildon Crown Court heard 34 patients in England and Wales died between 1996 and 2006 as a result of getting trapped in bed rails.

Prosecutor Pascal Bates said warning information and posters had been issued by the government but Basildon Hospital had no procedures in place to deal with the risk.
In Mr Flack's case, he added, there had been a 'vacuum of information'. It had 'failed in procedures in relation to supervision, in passing on information, in training of staff and assessment of risk'.

Iain Daniels, defending, said risk assessments were now carried out and 872 child-sized rails had been purchased.

The hospital was criticised in a damning Care Quality Commission report last October when inspectors found blood-spattered curtains, soiled mattresses, and disposable equipment being used more than once.

There were also concerns about death rates.

Texas Tech museum to host work by artists with disabilities

From The Daily Toreador, the student newspaper at Texas Tech. In the picture: Inspired by his personal experiences with dyslexia, Justin Finnegan, 17, created “Dyslexia Phase Two” — a sculpture covered by crumpled and charred pages that symbolizes the struggle to process written information.

The Museum of Texas Tech University is working on the opening of two new exhibits this month.

The first exhibition opened Sunday and will remain open until September 12. The exhibit, called “Accelerated: A Juried Exhibition of 15 Emerging Artists with Disabilities,” captures the creativity of the minds of some very unique individuals.

This will be the eighth year VSA Arts, an international nonprofit organization, and Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. have worked together to recognize upcoming artists with disabilities who show potential in the visual arts, said David Dean, director of information services for the museum.

The exhibit showcases the work of young adults from all over the nation. Oil paintings, pencil drawings, installations and acrylic paintings are some of the types of art shown in the exhibit. Each piece of art portrays information about the artist and what the art means to them.

“This exhibition celebrates the fact that people with disabilities can do what they need to do to express themselves with limitless possibilities,” Dean said.

Hearing impaired person added to committee to draft India's disability act

From Sify in India:

The government has decided to include a hearing impaired person in the newly-formed committee which will draft the new disability act, activists of groups working for the disabled said June 9.

The decision comes after a day-long protest Wednesday by disabled people in front of the office the ministry of social justice and empowerment at Shastri Bhavan in the capital.

Around 100 disabled people participated in the protest demanding that a hearing impaired person must be included in the committee.

Paul Ramanathan, a disabled organisation activist, told IANS: 'Non-inclusion of members of the disabled groups while passing the first disability act was the government's failure 15 years back. We are determined that the same mistake of poor representation is not repeated this time.'

Recognising the demand, the ministry invited a member of the National Association of the Deaf for the committee meeting scheduled Thursday. The protesters therefore called off their protest late Wednesday.

Javed Abidi, convenor of the Disabled Rights Group, said: 'The ministry extended an invitation to A.S. Narayanan, secretary of the National Association of the Deaf, for the first committee meeting. Hopefully he will be made a permanent member soon.'

'Earlier there were just three disabled members in the 30-member committee. Now there are 10 disabled members in the committee of 34,' he added.

Following pressure from various disabled groups, the ministry in April formed a committee to draft new legislation, reflecting the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, to replace the existing act.

Epilepsy drug linked to birth defects

From HealthDay News:

The offspring of women who took the epilepsy drug valproic acid during the first trimester of pregnancy are much more likely to have serious births defects affecting the brain, heart and limbs, a new study finds.

Babies whose mothers took valproic acid during the first trimester were 12.7 times more likely to have spina bifida, in which the spinal cord and backbone fail to develop or close properly, compared to babies whose mothers did not take the drug.

Babies whose mothers took valproic acid were also 2.5 times more likely to have an atrial septal defect (a heart defect); about five times as likely to have a cleft palate (a defect of the upper lip and roof of the mouth) or hypospadias (a penis abnormality); more than twice as likely to be born with an extra digit on the hand (polydactyly); and nearly seven times more likely to have craniosynostosis (premature fusion of the skull during fetal development that restricts skull and brain growth).

While valproic acid (brand names include Depakene and Depakote) was associated with a higher relative risk of the six birth defects, the absolute risk of having a baby with any of the defects remains small, the researchers noted. For example, the risk of having a baby with spina bifida was 0.6 percent, or six in 1,000, among women who took the drug compared to five in 1,000 of babies born to mothers who didn't take any epilepsy medication.

Yet given mounting evidence of the risks of valproic acid to fetuses, researchers urged women of childbearing age to try other drugs to control their seizures.

"These findings provide further evidence to avoid valproic acid, if possible, in pregnant women and [for doctors] to discuss with girls and women of childbearing potential the risk of the drug for the unborn child," said senior study author Lolkje T.W. de Jong-van den Berg, of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.

Dr. Kimford Meador, a professor of neurology at Emory University in Atlanta, echoed that warning.

"This drug should not be used as a first-line drug for epilepsy in women of childbearing age," Meador said. "There are multiple types of malformations that can be associated with valproic acid."

The review is published in the June 10 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

In the review, researchers first looked at eight studies that includednearly 1,600 births and identified some 14 birth defects that seemed to bemuch more common among the children of women who took valproic acid early in pregnancy.

Researchers then took that information and analyzed data from a large European study that included nearly 4 million births and 98,000 birth defects. They found women who took valproic acid in early pregnancy had two to 12 times the risk of having a baby with one of six specific birth defects compared to women who took no epilepsy drugs. The findings were similar when birth defect rates among those taking valproic acid were compared to the rates for women who took other epilepsy drugs, leading researchers to conclude it was the valproic acid, not some other epilepsy drug, that was to blame.

Among those who took valproic acid during early pregnancy, the chances of having a baby with any of the defects was less than 1 percent -- cleft palate (0.3 percent), hypospadias (0.7 percent), polydactyly (0.2 percent), craniosynostosis (0.1 percent).

Previous research has also linked valproic acid to spina bifida, other birth defects and cognitive problems in children, Meador noted. In April 2009, Meador was the lead author of a study that appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine that linked exposure to valproic acid in the womb to lower IQ scores in children at age 3.

The American Academy of Neurology recommends avoiding the use of valproic acid in pregnant women, according to background information in the article. Yet since up to half of pregnancies are unplanned, according to the study, all women of childbearing age should be warned about the dangers, researchers said.

Despite such concerns, valproic acid is often still prescribed, Meador said. In 2006, valproic acid was the second most commonly prescribed epilepsy drug, he noted.

Valproic acid is also prescribed to prevent migraines and for bipolar disorder, he added.

Despite the risks, valproic acid can be a very effective drug and may be the best choice for some patients whose seizures are not well-controlled by other medications, Meador said.

Texas amputee fights for mandatory college vaccinations for meningitis

From MyFoxAustin:

Hundreds of students at UT-Austin were vaccinated this spring for a potentially lethal form of meningitis, thanks to the special case of Jamie Schanbaum, MyFoxAustin.com reported.

Schanbaum, a 21-year-old student at UT-Austin, contracted meningococcal septicemia in November 2008, which causes the body to cut off circulation to the extremities to protect vital organs, and had to have both legs amputated below the knees as well as has portions of her hands.

However, she is driven to move forward with her life, and with the use of prosthetic legs, she has learned to drive, ride her bicycle, write with a pen, type and use her cell phone again.

"She was extremely motivated and just looking toward the future, not focusing on what she lost, but what she can still do despite her disability," said Dr. Juan Latorre, a specialist in therapy and prosthetics at St. David’s rehabilitation hospital, who is in charge of Schanbaum’s therapy.

Latorre is also an amputee, losing part of his leg in a train accident. However, like Schanbaum, his loss inspired him to help others.

Schanbaum and her mother Patsy worked to pass the Jamie Schanbaum Act in 2009, requiring freshman attending Texas colleges and living on campus to get the meningitis vaccine. The law went into effect January 1, and approximately 5,000 new students are expected to be vaccinated when they arrive at school in the fall.

"I hope that parents, or anyone, just takes that information," Schanbaum said. "If there's a vaccine out there than can save their life, why should they not get this? If you see my speeches or know my story, there's a lot to know about me. It's an interesting experience, what I've gone through. A life changing one."

Although she doubted herself in the beginning, she doesn’t need as much help anymore and invites others to say hello and asks her questions.

"I guess I'm grateful to have gotten sick because I know that I'm saving lives, whether they know it or not," she said. "I'm glad to have done that."

NJ school bans hearing-impaired girl from using sign language

From ABC News. (Note: This is an older story from April 18.)

School officials have threatened a hearing-impaired girl with suspension if she uses sign language to talk to her friends on the school bus, the girl's parents say.

Danica Lesko and her parents say sign language is the only way to for the 12-year-old to communicate, especially while riding to school on a noisy bus.

But officials at Stonybrook School, which is not a school for the hearing-impaired, and district officials in Branchburg, N.J., apparently believe signing is a safety hazard. They have sent a letter to the Lesko family ordering Danica to stop using sign language on the school bus or risk a three-day suspension.

The March 30 letter from her principal that said Danica was "doing sign language after being told it wasn't allowed on the bus."

The Leskos may file a lawsuit over the sign language ban, claiming officials are violating Danica's civil rights and violating the Americans with Disabilities Act.

"She has a hearing problem, and now she's being punished for using sign language," Mary Ann Lesko, Danica's mother, told The Star-Ledger of Newark. "It's absurd."

Danica's parents told the paper that other students who rode to school with their daughter made fun of her, and refused to stay in their seats as they teased other girls who were using sign language. They said school officials are singling out Danica and not addressing those who should really be reprimanded.

In a statement released through the school district's attorney, David Rubin, the Branchburg Board of Education refused to discuss the details of Danica's case, saying only that its version of events differs from the parents' version.

However, the board insisted it has not violated anyone's rights and is only trying to protect other students who must ride on the school bus.

"The Board is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to all students with disabilities, and is satisfied that there has been no violation of that policy in this case," officials said in the statement. "The Board is also committed to assuring the safety of all students who travel on District buses, and will continue to take appropriate steps to accomplish that goal."

One deaf-rights advocate said Danica's parents have a strong basis for a lawsuit because sign language could be a considered a foreign language, and school officials could be violating the girl's First Amendment right to communicate.

"Why should there be a ban?" asked Charlotte Karras, outreach coordinator for the Edison, N.J.-based Alliance for Disabled in Action. "It's a violation of her communication rights. She's said it's the only way she can communicate with her friends & It's [the ban] against the ADA and violates the First Amendment and her family can file a discrimination suit citing the Americans With Disabilities Act."

Karras said her organization would be willing to help the Leskos with any legal action.
Danica's parents say she began losing her hearing last November, when a classmate allegedly shot a bottle rocket near her ear. They have already sued the Branchburg School District over that incident.

Diversity Inc. profiles ODEP Assistant Secretary Kathy Martinez

From Diversity Inc.:

For the third year in a row, DiversityInc has selected several extraordinary women to profile in our Women We Love feature. The six women whose stories you'll read have two things in common: They overcame obstacles or cultural assumptions to become leaders in their fields, and they have continued, throughout their lives, to give back to others.

Kathy Martinez is one of those women. Here is her story:

My dad worked for a number of defense contractors, including Rockwell Collins and Northrop Grumman, and my mom cleaned houses and ultimately became a driver for Braille Institute. I was born in New Mexico and grew up in Southern California.

I was one of six kids. I’m blind and my sister is blind, and we are in the middle. Where we came from in New Mexico, it was very rural and very poor and most of the disabled kids were sent away. There was no example for my parents of kids being disabled and being integrated into the school system.

But my mother had a deep commitment that I would not go to a school for the blind. I’m two years older than my sister who’s blind, so I went first. My mother had to fight very hard. I was tested and tested and tested and I finally made it into the public kindergarten. For the first time there, I realized I was different. I would hear other kids on the playground, rush toward them and crash into other people or toys.

In school, that was the first time I realized I would have to negotiate the world differently. At that age, kids know no limits. They don’t believe you can’t do things and they would include me in ways kids can. I figured out ways I could play dodge ball, tetherball and other games. I couldn’t do it all but they figured out ways I could. I dealt with the teasing but my sister, Peggy, and I were very supported by non-disabled peers.

I feel very blessed to have had that experience. There was enough sameness. My parents were very clear that Peggy and I would participate—doing dishes, cleaning bathrooms, mowing the lawn. I asked my father when he told me to push the mower how I would know if I cut the grass. He said: “You are going to have to take your shoes off.”

Peggy is now an IT instructor for the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind and a talented musician.

We learned we could be part of the real world. Obviously, there were things that we could not do, but we had the expectations that we could do things. When people expect little of you, they get little back. When they expect a lot of you, they get a lot back. It took me 13 years to graduate from college, but I learned a lot; I traveled and made friends who have been supportive.

Attitude is caught, not taught. Our siblings would bring friends home and they would catch the attitude our siblings had to us. It was full inclusion. We were part of the family. I see that all the time in employment in the workplace. If you treat people with disabilities like average, day-to-day people, they function that way. We’re seen as superheroes and we’re not.

In an interview I went on, it wasn’t the first question, but they said, “OK, we just want to know, how you would find the bathroom? Would you have to have somebody take you? Because your team members would really resent that.”

As a Latina who is blind, I have first-person experience with the low expectations and assumptions of the majority. I have seen many disabled Latinos live down to these diminished expectations. They become overwhelmed by isolation, are disconnected from the service delivery system and don’t have disabled Latino professionals to look up to or network with. Even those who do access resources often are not receiving appropriate service.

We look at how the Latino and African-American populations are growing and how the incidence of disability is higher in those populations. In our communities, there is a huge, very quickly growing incidence of diabetes and hypertension, and so there are not people who have traditionally considered themselves people with disabilities and they may or may not be part of the “disabilities movement.” It’s just like many African Americans and Latinos are not a part of the “civil-rights movement.” But they are people with disabilities and they are a part of our community, and I really like the idea of the ally-building because these are typically folks who don’t say they have a disability but who could clearly be welcomed into a work culture where they see other people getting reasonable accommodations and realizing “It’s OK to be who I am.” Folks will ask for accommodations if they think it’s safe.

Disability is part of the human condition; it’s a part of people’s lives, and often, some of us become disabled after we’re children and when we’re adults. I always tell people that the ADA was not necessarily passed for someone like me
who was born blind. I know how to be blind. But for someone who happens to lose their vision or get shot or have an accident, it’s different.