Please come and recharge your advocacy by joining ADAPT of Texas,  the Coalition of Texans w/ Disabilities & Superior Health Care, representing people of all ages, for a collaborative screening!

Double feature! Two  15 minute documentaries about the Americans with Disabilities Act, in celebration of the ADA’s 35th anniversary, with ADA. Friday, July 25, 4-7 pm at ADAPT of Texas. 

Celebrate freedom, independence, and 35 years of building access and inclusion. Access is a Civil Right!  Come recharge your  advocacy w/ music, food, film, & fun.

FRIDAY JULY 25, AT ADAPT: 1100 S IH 35 Frontage Rd, Austin, TX 78704

BUS ROUTES #7 AND #20

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, a landmark legislative fight to secure rights and access for persons with disabilities, encompasses all disabilities and guarantees the right to employment, public transportation, places of commerce and recreation, essentially the right to Boldy Go Where Everyone Else Has Gone Before to participate in society on an equal basis.

ADAPT OF TEXAS/PACT DEMANDS COMMUNITY FREEDOM NOT THE BIG UGLY BILL

JUNE 5, 2025   ADAPT of Texas/PACT Members met at 300 East 8th Street where the office of Senator Ted Cruz is housed.

Disabled Texans, children and seniors rely on vital keys to independence for living in the community: Medicaid and Medicare, Community Attendant Services and Accessible Affordable Integrated Housing.

“Without support for many disabled people like myself, living in the community is very difficult. In fact, survival becomes an issue,” said Ron Cranston, a disabled senior Texan. 

The United States Senate has taken up the budget bill after the recent recess. The budget bill was passed by the US House with extremely devastating consequences for people with disabilities across Texas and the nation. 

ADAPT of Texas members returned two and a half weeks ago from DC fighting to stop the House vote for the big “UGLY” Bill that is going to devastate and kill people with disabilities, seniors and children with disabilities as well as hurt children and families that receive SNAP.   The group gathered on the street out in front the federal building and a small delegation went in to negotiate. Eventually the staff members who the receptionist had claimed were not there came down and spoke with the group and set up a future meeting.
This event was part of a nationwide set of.visits by ADAPTers across the U.S.

We will present demands to Senator Cruz to mitigate damage of the proposed budget bill as a coordinated effort with other National ADAPT Chapters.

Free Our People!

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ADAPT of Texas has joined our brothers and sisters from across the nation in Washington DC to challenge those in the halls of power to remember there are real people being hurt by the proposed cuts and cuts already happening by the federal government.
On Monday they held a giant rally which you can see on our ADAPT of Texas Facebook page. Leaders and representatives from many disability organizations spoke. The Trump Administration, DOGE and Republican Congressional leadership all refer to cutting waste and abuse but their random slashing of federal agencies and programs as well as the draconian cuts to critical programs go well beyond this! Many of their actions seem directly aimed at people with disabilities.
Tuesday the House was having a budget hearing on cuts to Medicaid. Medicaid not only funds health care for low income people with disabilities, but also equipment like wheelchairs and also attendant services.

ADAPT attended the hearing chanting “no cuts to Medicaid,” and “fraud and abuse my ass!” The committee chair called for order and soon called the police in to remove the ADAPT protesters. They were wheeled out to join their chanting cohorts in the hallway. Eventually 25 people were arrested.
Congress has artfully set it up so the specific cuts will have to be done by the states and the Republican led Congress can say we didn’t make those cuts. But they will have forced the states into that corner.
Here is just some of the coverage the protest got:

Fox News

Washington Times

Politico

The Hill

To all concerned with Congressional Budget cuts:

ADAPT of Texas met with Jill Wyman, Central TX Regional Director, and Dylan Bricker, Deputy Regional Director,  of Senator Cornyn’s Staff in Austin.  We simultaneously met by phone with their office in D.C.The subject of the Federal Budget proposal to cut $800 billion in healthcare expenditures was the major topic of the meeting. People with disabilities will be the bearers of the cuts most surely through Medicaid if not Medicare and Social Security.Surprisingly, Jill, the senator’s policy director, stated that she had not heard of the plight of the Texans with disabilities and attendants who rely on Medicaid funded home and community based service programs for survival or work.

This is a call for action!  Senator Cornyn must hear individually from you! 
Give him your story! Make it personal! He must know what will happen to you if the Congress cuts these services. It is a  life and death decision!

NO MEDICAID CUTS! NO MEDICARE CUTS! NO SOCIAL SECURITY CUTS! NO BLOCK GRANTS/PER CAPITA CAPS!Email Jill Wyman at JILL_WYMAN@CORNYN.SENATE.GOV

AND PLEASE CC ME IN THE EMAIL.

We are providing points to address to assist with your letter if needed.  If you have any questions, please email me at ronniebonners@aol.com 

Free Our People! ADAPT/PACT Community Ron Cranston

Adapt of Texas & Superior Healthplan are collaborating for “Dancing with Superior Stars” An Initiative to engage adults with disabilities to prevent social isolation, make exercise fun, & provide preventive health information. 
“Dancing with Superior Stars”is a monthly celebration where community members can enjoy a snack, discuss advocacy, dance, & receive information on health resources. AIl welcome. NO CHARGE. The first 3 of 10 monthly parties will be on; Fridays March 28″h April 25th & May 30 Every party from 4p-6p. Post party hanging & encores encouraged.
ADAPT of Texas is located at 1100 S. IH 35 Austin, TX 78704 (access road). Served by the #7 & #20 buses. Info at adaptoftexas.orgor call Disabilty Rights Radio at 512-443-1852. Healthy snacks & drinks provided each month. A cake celebrating community members, anniversaries, & or disability history will be highlighted each month. DJ sets provided by DRR. Llive music, & or health presenters provided as well at each party.
Come & cut the rug, while we, “FREE OUR PEOPLE!” with healthy choices, free food & active conversation. DON’T MOURN ORGANIZE!

A pretty comprehensive look at the long fight that led up to the ADA. Lots of footage from the ADAPT history museum is featured and several ADAPTers share their take on the struggle. The various roles so many people played to make this happen shows the power of the people united, as well as the power of the pitchfork approach to advocacy. IN Austin it will air March 25 at 8pm.

To see the very exciting trailer just click on this link:

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/change-not-charity-americans-disabilities-act-trailer

For more exciting actions, backgrounds, photos, articles and videos go to the ADAPT Museum www.adaptmuseum.net This is a work still in progress, but full of fascinating content you can enjoy!

For more information on ADAPT style organizing visit the Disability Organizing 101 and Beyond online manual.

The Wheels of Justice march to the Capitol to push Congress to pass the ADA. Photo: Tom Olin.

KEYS TO COMMUNITY LIVING Rally

When: March 14, 2025

Time: Meet at 11AM on the North Side of TX Capitol, Rally begins at 11:30AM 

Keys to the Community for People with Disabilities:

• $20 Base Wage for Community Attendants

• Home and Community Based Service Programs 

• Housing – Affordable Accessible Integrated

NO MEDICAID BLOCK GRANTS/NO PER CAPITA CAPS

For More Information Contact: Cathy Cranston, 512.650.6543, flacacata@aol.com. Or Bob Kafka, 512.431.4085, bobkafka10467@gmail.com

CTD, TARA ,TX Parent to Parent, Texas Advocates, AHA! Rev Up, Reach CIL, PACT, Mary Lee residents, E4 and folks from across the state joined ADAPT of Texas to call on Attorney General Paxton to stop his efforts to get Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 declared unconstitutional. Paxton, along with 16 other attorneys general filed a lawsuit that calls for 504 to be declared unconstitutional, a move that would strip rights from low income housing tenants, students with disabilities, health and human services clients, and others. Claiming they are only trying to get people with gender dysphoria from receiving protection under 504, the AGs never the less continue to call for the destruction of all of 504.This full-frontal attack on 504 was continued in a recent hearing for this case.

Recently the 504 rules were changed to include people with gender dysphoria, and to finally cover health and human service programs so that those entities that get federal funding can’t discriminate by having inaccessible facilities and/or programs and services that discriminate The details of these rules are fantastic and you should read them!

504 is the precursor to the ADA and much of the ADA follows 504, BUT 504 has some protections that aren’t covered by the ADA. Also, with Texas’ long record of attacking disability rights you can rest assured if they are able to dismantle 504, ADA and other laws will soon follow.

The crowd of almost 100 people in Austin spoke strongly at a press conference outside the Supreme Court Building and Capitol. In El Paso advocates from Desert ADAPT and others held a simultaneous press conference to underline the statewide concern about this problem. After the Austin press conference part of the group marched over to deliver our posters and signs to the attorney general himself. We were stopped in the lobby and eventually state police were called in, so we left but not before our message don’t mess with 504 had been loudly delivered.
we urge you to contact Attorney General Paxton and tell him to leave 504 alone.

ADAPT of Texas is holding its annual FUN RUN on Saturday February 15^thfrom noon – 2pm.

This is not a traditional FUN RUN.  It is not a race.  Sponsored FUNRUNNERS go around a ¼ mile track

as many times they can in 1 hour.

If your group is signed up as a participating FUN RUN group, your group receives 75% of all funds collected by your runners.

ADAPT of Texas has a secure computer program that allows you to solicit funds via email or social media.

We will be having a Zoom meeting on Tuesday, January 14^th at 2pm central  to further explain the opportunity to raise funds.

For more information: Ron Cranston   ronniebonners@aol.com

                                             Bob Kafka           bobkafka10467@gmail.com

For Immediate Release

For information:  Bob Kafka bobkafka10467@gmail.com

Subject:  ADAPT of Texas Demands HHS Commissioner Young Take Action on Durable Medical Equipment (DME)

Members of ADAPT of Texas will, on Thursday October 31st at 2:30pm at 4601 West Guadalupe, drop off a list of demands to rectify the “HORROR” people with disabilities and older Texans are experiencing in repairing and acquiring DME, like wheelchairs, walkers and other critical equipment we need to live in the community. 

This is no joke. It is unacceptable HHS fails to realize or care the impact loss of this equipment has on Texans real lives.

“People are stuck at home or sometimes in bed for months because they can’t get their wheelchair fixed,” said Nancy Crowther ADAPT Organizer.

“We have seen increased medical conditions because Commissioner Young fails to act” said Ron Cranston longtime ADAPT of Texas Activist.

ADAPT of Texas has met with HHS with little concrete improvements.
              

visit www.adaptmuseum.net

On Oct 31, 2024, at 7:05 AM, Austin Free Press <contact@austinfreepress.org> wrote: