Ignoring the emergency needs of the disabled
By GARY BAUMGARTEN
You’d think the people running the shelters in hurricane-prone south Florida would get it. But apparently not.
Marc Dubin, an attorney for the Center for Independent Living in south Florida tells News Talk Online on the Paltalk News Network that many shelters don’t offer accommodations to people with disabilities. There were even cases, during Hurricane Katrina, he says, when disabled people were turned away from shelters.
For the past four years, Dubin says, he has been trying to get Broward County Florida officials to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. He finally requested a review from the Justice Department which resulted in a federal request that Broward comply.
The county, Dubin says, refused and now Justice is contemplating suing.
Similar negotiations between the Center for Independent Living and officials in Miami-Dade resulted in improvements. But, Dubin says, less contentious negotiations are still ongoing there and with officials in the Florida Keys.
For more information, go to Dubin’s blog at http://www.adaadvocacyblog.org/ or join him in the Disability Advocacy Discussions room on Paltalk. You can also email Dubin at mdubin@pobox.com.
Short URL: http://reportergary.com/?p=15480
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