Tag Archives: ADAPT

A DAY WITHOUT ATTENDANTS

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  • Press Advisory

For more information, contact: Nancy Crowther 512-808-7486, ncrowther21@gmail.com or David Wittie 512-577-8982, davidwittie@yahoo.com

 

 

A DAY WITHOUT COMMUNITY ATTENDANT SERVICES

 

ADAPT of Texas and the Personal Attendant Coalition of Texas, PACT, will hold a press conference at 1:45 pm in the Capitol Rotunda Tuesday February 19, 2019.

ADAPT and PACT will be addressing the impact of:

• The state’s neglect of the problem of a growing lack of community attendants,
• The wage rate for community attendants which is about half that of fast food workers, box packers and convenience store clerks,
• The complete lack of benefits for community attendants including NO sick leave or holidays,
• The state’s abject failure to address recruitment or retention of community attendants,
• The state’s near total disregard for the impact of this shortage on disabled people’s lives and health.

 

 

All Night Vigil for the Death of Disability Rights

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we are here at 11th and Congress in downtown Austin for an all night vigil. The state budget bills have ignored the call to raise attendant wages from $8 an hour to $13. Despite the fact fast food workers grocery baggers and gas station workers make more Texas thinks it’s unnecessary to raise the wages of these critical workers.  To see a video on this issue click here

The state is completely defunding the relocation services that help people in nursing homes move back into their own homes.

The state is also completely defunding In-Home and Family Support program, on of the most cost effective ones we have.  People on that program will just be out of luck.

The state is doing nothing about the over 100,000 people on waiting lists for community services.  Some of these folks have been waiting over a decade and now can just wait 2 more years.

We have folks here from El Paso, Austin, Kileen, Conroe, Corpus Christi and the Valley.  IMG_2579

Earlier we held a funeral in the Rotunda of the Capitol and a funeral march through the first floor.

 

ADAPT Participates in Local Marches

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Last weekend ADAPT was busy on the streets of Austin.  We were one of the hosts at the One Resistance March on Friday night for which a large group of local organizations got together to march and share information and concerns about the radical turns being taken by the federal government.  In addition to the march through downtown, in which about 7,000 people participated, representatives of many at risk groups spoke about their specific concerns, and a wall of barriers was torn down.  Danny Saenz spoke for ADAPT and Heiwa Salovitz participated in the wall tear down; both represented us proudly highlighting many disability issues!  Cathy Cranston and Robin Hoffpauir carried a PACT/ADAPT banner in the march.  It was all about supporting one another, resisting efforts to harm our people and mobilizing for action.  Lots of other ADAPTers turned out as well!

Saturday, among the 50,000 people at the Women’s March in Austin there were many ADAPT folks sprinkled in the crowd.  Being short in a massive crowd of primarily standing people, we operated on trust and the knowledge that there were others out there cause it was a trifle difficult to see each other.  But we met many supporters of disability rights.  Bob Kafka was especially pleased to see Katie (who used to be a VISTA at UCP TX) carrying a huge My Medicaid Matters sign.  There were lots of other people with disabilities and non-disabled supporters in the crowd.  The energy and intensity were terrific and we encourage one and all to go to the Women’s March on Washington website and sign up for follow up actions.  If you are interested in following up on disability issues locally contact ADAPT or call 512-442-0252.  We are meeting at the Capitol Cafeteria (inside the Capitol on the E-1 level) every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 10 am and you can just come and join us; but don’t be late — we move out for action pretty darn quick!