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Americans with Disabilities Act 33rd Anniversary

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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) celebrated its 33rd anniversary on July 26th, 2023.

Much remains to be accomplished in the United States to make for a truly equitable society for citizens with disabilities. However, the work completed in the name of this act remains undoubtedly noticed in society today.

CIL celebrated the 33rd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act by hosting a panel at our Winter Park office. The panel features Representative Anna V. Eskamani, Representative Rita Harris, and Policy Fellow Hiram Helfman.

The panel discusses in detail the ADA’s impact on the lives of people with disabilities, and the next steps needed to make a truly equitable society.

 

Intersectionality between Disability and LGBTQIA+

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By Matthew Louis LaGassa and Embry Burton Published June 8, 2023

Reviewed by Victoria Wells

 

About the Authors

Matthew Louis LaGassa (born March 2002) was diagnosed Autistic when he was two years old, and has always thought of his neurodivergency as a core part of his identity. Outside of his internship here at CIL, he’s a soon-to-be Senior year student at Rollins College, majoring in in English and minoring in Writing, with a knack for analytical essay writing. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, videogames, tabletop roleplaying games, and baking.

Embry Burton (she/they) is a sophomore at Rollins College involved in the Bonner Leaders Program. They are planning on double majoring in biology and psychology. Embry enjoys reading, volunteering, and feeding the cats on campus. They feel particularly passionate about the topic of the intersectionality between disability inclusion and LGBTQ+ pride because of their identity as nonbinary, pansexual, and someone with a chronic joint illness.

 

Pride and Disability: The Overlap in Community and Activism

Happy Pride Month from the Center of Independent Living in Central Florida (CIL)! As the LGBTQ+ community all across the country is gathering to uplift each-other’s voices in the fight for their rights, we’ve been hard at work this week doing the same, albeit with an intersectionality-fueled twist. We’ve previously documented how the Independent Living Movement, the cornerstone of our ethos, shares its roots with the African American Civil Rights movement, and similarly, both our community and movement have much overlap with the equally storied history of LGBTQ+ community and activism. Looking at the statistics and activists of the past and present, it’s clear that it’s an overlap that deserves to be highlighted.

 

The Statistics: Community Overlap

Beginning with reviewing the overlap in our communities, it is evident that people with disabilities make up much more of the LGBTQ+ community than they do their cisgender heterosexual counterparts. Among the approximately seventeen million people that make up the LGBTQ+ community, around five million (roughly thirty six percent of the community) are estimated to be people with disabilities as well (Pauli, 2021; Human Rights Campaign, n.d).

Further studies break this estimated five million down further via percentages: thirty percent of queer men and thirty six percent of queer women self-identify as people with disabilities (Pauli). Breaking down the data even further among individual sexual orientations and gender identities, fifty two percent of transgender people self-report having a disability, as do gay and bisexual men at twenty-six and forty percent respectively, with lesbian and bisexual women both at thirty six percent (Human Rights Campaign; Pauli; DeVault, 2023). Overall, studies like these affirm that queer people are more likely to identify as having disabilities than the general population, and naturally, from such a wide overlap, many activists with a foot in both sides of it have rose throughout this shared history.

 

Audre Lorde: Blind, Lesbian, Black, Feminist, Poet, Essayist, Activist.

Predating even the 1969 Stonewall Riots, Audre Lorde shines as one of the earliest figures in this storied history of intersectional activism. Born to a poor immigrant family in New York on February 8, 1934, Audre was legally blind due to being short sighted (Holder, 2021). She found success as a poet in her teens, and continued to write and present her poems, as well as essays, in adulthood as a Columbia University graduate and Librarian in New York Public Schools (Holder; Poetry Foundation, n.d.). It was these experiences as Black Lesbian with a disability in straight white male academia that became the foundation of her activism, where she specialized in the intersection between queer theory, feminist theory, and critical race studies, most prevalent in her essay, “The Master’s Tools Will Not Dismantle the Master’s House,” (Poetry Foundation).

She was a staunch figure in movements confronting racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia for decades, where her writing continued to ring “with passion, sincerity, perception, and depth of feeling,” (Poetry Foundation). Sadly, Audre was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1977, but she never stopped writing: her 1980 self-reflection on the latter condition, The Cancer Journals, went on to win American Library Association’s Gay Caucus Book of the Year Award in 1981 (National Museum of African American History & Culture, 2020). Sadly, six years after that diagnosis, Audre was diagnosed with liver cancer, and passed away on November 17, 1992 (National Museum of African American History & Culture).

With a storied legacy like that, Audre Lorde certainly deserves her legacy today as “A ‘self-described ‘black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet,’” and so much more, and it wouldn’t be long until many more activists would come to follow in her steps, no where matter where they went (Poetry Foundation).

 

Bobbie Lea Bennet: Trans Woman, Wheelchair, Courageous

With Transgender people in many states at risk of losing their access to gender affirming care, Bobbie Lea Bennet’s story of taking the fight straight to the top is as timely as ever. Born in Louisiana on March 31, 1947, Bobbie was a United States Medicare recipient for her use of a wheelchair. With this unique position, Bobbie successfully mobilized media coverage in support of her to confront the system’s lack of coverage for cover gender affirming surgeries, spurned her own request for Medicare to cover it being denied with no explanation (Transjoy, 2023; Phoenix, 2022). In 1978, after a cross country road trip from San Diego, California, to Baltimore, Maryland, Bobbie made her case to Medicare’s director at the time, Thomas M. Tierney, and won, obtaining gender affirmation surgery as a trans woman at last (Transjoy).

Bobbie continued her activism in 1985 by founding the St. Tammany Parish Organization for the Handicapped to serve the needs of people with disabilities in the eponymous Louisiana Parish, but has sadly since been dissolved (Transjoy). Bobbie continued to live a long life of activism for both LGBTQ+ and disability rights, passing away on July 18, 2019. Alongside countless other intersectional activists’ stories, Lorde and Bennet’s legacies live on today in more recent figures.

 

Lydia X. Z. Brown: Non-Binary, Living at the Intersection, Writer, Activist, Scholar, and Attorney

Moving up to modern times, the Chinese American Lydia X. Z. Brown, they/them or no pronouns, stands out for their many skills as a “writer, public speaker, educator, trainer, consultant, advocate, community organizer, community builder, activist, scholar, and attorney” (Brown, n.d.). They are incredibly involved and accomplished in their local and national community as leader of the “Fund for Community Reparations for Autistic People of Color’s Interdependence, Survival, and Empowerment… an adjunct lecturer and core faculty in the Disability Studies Program and the Women’s and Gender Studies Program at Georgetown University, and as an adjunct professorial lecturer in the American Studies Program at American University’s Department of Critical Race, Gender, and Culture Studies.” Among these and many other impactful roles, they are also the “Director of Policy, Advocacy, and External Affairs at the Autistic Women and Nonbinary Network” (Brown).

Having “worked to address and end interpersonal and state violence targeting disabled people, especially disabled people at the margins of the margins… of disability, queerness, race, gender, class, and nation and migration,” for over a decade, Lydia shows no signs of stopping anytime soon, and neither does this last group.

 

Drag Syndrome: A Royal Ensemble of Down Syndrome Artists

Closing out our litany of recognition with “The new queer cultural heroes,” Drag Syndrome, a “drag collective featuring highly addictive queens and kings with Down-Syndrome,” these of creative artists celebrate gender expression, sexuality, and their identities as people with Down-Syndrome (Drag Syndrome, n.d.). With art as their starting point before anything else, and country-to-country tours, Drag Syndrome has been featured in many major news outlets, including BBC, The New York Times, and NBC, spreading their message of acceptance and inclusivity far and wide, and where honored to do the same.

 

Conclusion:

As we pride ourselves in being inclusive of every person it is important that we better understand these struggles, alongside the ones many further face as people with disabilities, hold fast to the figures that both have, and are still fighting, to push back against such bigotry, and make their courage our own. In the spirits of Audre Lorde, Bobbie Lea Bennet, Lydia X. Z. Brown, Drag Syndrome, and countless others like them, we at The Center for Independent Living stand with all queer people with disabilities, and are here for them, so that they may find the help they need to live safe and fully independent lives.

 

Works Cited:

Audre Lorde. National Museum of African American History and Culture. (2020, May 29). https://nmaahc.si.edu/audre-lorde

Brown, L. (n.d.). About. Lydia X Z Brown. https://lydiaxzbrown.com/about/

DeVault, N. (2023, March 10). Study affirms LGBTQ people are more likely to have a disability than the general population – ameridisability. The Latest National Disability News. https://www.ameridisability.com/study-affirms-lgbtq-people-are-more-likely-to-have-a-disability-than-the-general-population/

Drag syndrome. Drag Syndrome. (n.d.). https://www.dragsyndrome.com/

Holder, D. (2021, August 24). Audre Lorde, warrior poet. DisHistSnap. https://www.disabilityhistorysnapshots.com/post/audre-lorde-warrior-poet

Pauli, P. (2021, June 2). Celebrating approximately 5 million LGBTQ+ people with disabilities for pride 2021. RespectAbility. https://www.respectability.org/2021/06/pride-month-2021/

Phoenix    1 year ago1 year ago, B. (2022, February 25). LGBT+ History month X disabled students group – Bobbie Lea Bennett. THE HOOT. https://thehootstudents.com/lgbt-history-month-x-disabled-students-group-bobbie-lea-bennett/

Poetry Foundation. (n.d.). Audre Lorde. Poetry Foundation. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/audre-lorde

TransJoy. (2023, April 5). LGBT+ figures in history #5: Bobbie Lea Bennett. TransJoy. https://www.transjoy.co/2022/03/01/bobbie-lea-bennett/

Understanding disability in the LGBTQ+ community. Human Rights Campaign. (n.d.). https://www.hrc.org/resources/understanding-disabled-lgbtq-people

 

CIL Celebrates ADA’s 33rd Anniversary! The Movement, the Act, and Us.

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By Matthew Louis LaGassa Published May 25, 2023

Reviewed by Victoria Wells

 

About the Author:

Matthew Louis LaGassa (born March 2002) was diagnosed Autistic when he was two years old, and has always thought of his neurodivergency as a core part of his identity. Outside of his internship here at CIL, he’s a Junior year student at Rollins College, majoring in in English and minoring in Writing, with a knack for analytical essay writing. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, videogames, tabletop roleplaying games, and baking.

 

This July, specifically July 26, 2023, is the thirty third anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Though much still remains to be done to make the United States a truly equitable society for its citizens with disabilities, the work done in the name of this act, and the Independent Living Movement that led to it, is undoubtedly noticeable in the present day.

To celebrate the people and the movement that got us to this point, we at the Center for Independent Living in Central Florida would like to tell you the histories of:

  • the Independent Living Movement,
  • the people behind it,
  • the creation of the first Center for Independent Living,
  • the Americans with Disabilities Act,
  • and our very own center.

 

The Independent Living Movement:

Beginning with the movement’s shared roots “with the [ongoing] African American civil rights struggle and with other movements of the late 1960’s and 1970’s,” the Independent Living Movement believed in the empowerment of individuals with disabilities. This empowerment was accomplished through “the formation of community-based groups of people with different types of disabilities who worked together to identify barriers and gaps in service delivery[,]… and to influence policy makers at all levels to change regulations and to introduce barrier-removing legislation,” (WILS, 2017). These guiding principles of community-based individual empowerment would remain foundational to the movement, paving the way for Ed Roberts, who in turn paved the way for us.

The People Behind it:

As a Polio survivor, Ed Roberts “had virtually no functional movement and used a respirator to breathe.” Upon his admission to The University of California at Berkeley in 1962, he was required to “live in the campus medical facility, Cowell Hall,” (Hayman, 2019).  During this time, Ed developed a sense of community with his fellow students with disabilities “based on the barriers and discrimination that they all faced.”

Inspired by the political activism of the decade, these students organized into The Rolling Quads, and with the help of “Jean Wirth, an English teacher at the College of San Mateo in San Mateo California,” established the “Physically Disabled Students Program.” This created provisions for Personal Assistance Services, wheelchair repairs, emergency attendant care and help in obtaining whatever financial services were available” (WILS).

The Creation of the First Center for Independent Living:

Following this program’s establishment, Ed founded the Berkeley Center for Independent Living in 1972 (WILS; Hayman). This center was the first of its kind, and its core values of “dignity, peer support, consumer control, civil rights, integration, equal access, and advocacy,” have since remained “at the heart of the independent living and disability rights movements,” serving as the founding principals of vital legislation and successive centers alike (Hayman).

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA):

Like Ed Roberts and the Berkley Center for Independent Living, the history of the Americans with Disabilities act began long before its first introduction to Congress in 1988 (Mayerson, 1992). The shift in public policy that had paved the way for the act occurred in 1973 “with the passage of Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act. Section 504, which banned discrimination on the basis of disability by recipients of federal funds,” marked the first time Congress recognized that people with disabilities required legislation to remove societal barriers and provide the necessary accommodations (Mayerson). When the Section 504 regulations were issued on May 4, 1977, the movement spent the following decade educating the public on disability discrimination, and involving themselves in Supreme Court litigation, all paving the way for the regulations that would be provided by the passing of the ADA (Mayerson).

The act was initially introduced “in April 1988 in the 100th Congress,” and once more, the community mobilized “to educate people with disabilities about the ADA and to gather evidence to support the need for broad anti-discrimination protections” (Mayerson).  Once the new ADA was introduced in the 101st Congress on May 9, 1989, the community further mobilized: “A team of lawyers and advocates worked on drafting and on the various and complex legal issues that were continually arising;… a lobbying system was developed using members of the disability community from around the country; witnesses came in from all over the country to testify before Congressional committees” (Mayerson).

The community retained their sense of perseverance against proposals and amendments that threatened to weaken the ADA.  Finally, the Bill was signed into law on July 26, 1990, at last codifying accommodations for people with disabilities as “no longer a matter of charity but instead a basic issue of civil rights,” (Mayerson).

Historical Fun Facts about the ADA:

  1. Prior to being signed into law, the ADA was first introduced to Congress in April, 1988, followed by a revised version of it in May the following year.
  2. Both times the ADA was introduced in Congress, people with disabilities mobilized to show their support by educating communities of its importance, solving the complex legal issues that kept arising, and a lobbying system of community members nationwide testifying in its favor in front of congressional committees.
  3. On September 25, 2008, the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) was signed into law and took effect at the start of the following year. This act clarified and broadened the original act’s definition of disability, making it easier for people with disabilities, now including people with cancer, diabetes, epilepsy, and more, to qualify for the ADA’s protections.

Fun Facts about the Impact of the ADA:

  1. As part of Title I’s prohibitions on discrimination in the workplace, employers, government included, are required to provide reasonable accommodations for employers with disabilities. Common examples of said accommodations include providing large print, braille, or audiotape versions of written materials and for people who are seeing or hearing impaired, or sign language interpreters.
  2. The ADA’s requirements for accommodations extend to schools, enabling students with disabilities to receive accommodations in their classes and exams, such as large print dictionaries for people who are legally blind, or extended time for people with Autism or other disabilities that make it difficult for them to focus.
  3. Thanks to Title III’s prohibitions on discrimination in public places, accommodations like wheelchair ramps and accessible parking have enabled people with disabilities to access locations that were previously unavailable to them.

Our Very Own Center:

The creation of the Centers for Independent Living continued throughout these many years of civil rights fights leading to the over 400 that exist around the United States today, all championing the five core services – advocacy, information and referral, independent living skills, peer support and mentoring, and transition- in the way that aligns best with our communities.

Beverly Chapman, a lobbyist, tireless disability advocate, columnist for the Orlando Sentinel, and more, is additionally responsible for the founding of our CIL in 1976, and served as our first executive director. Keep learning about our history and Beverly’s here:

History

The ideas at the heart of the first Center of Independent Living, the affirmation of civil rights that is the ADA, and the perseverance of the disability community and their friends that lead the country to it, resonate in our community to this day. We at the Center of Independent Living in Central Florida are proud to carry on those ideals in our work everyday.

 

References

 

 

A Personal Letter of Opportunity- Meet Luz

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I think we can all agree that 2020 has been a year like no other. However, despite all the negativity this year has brought, I still have HOPE. I have HOPE that there are still incredible people in this world that want to help others and HOPE that when a person with a disability needs something that can make their life more meaningful and become more independent, that people step up.

Five years ago, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, a diagnosis that would change the way I live the rest of my life. This disease has taken so much away from me- my mobility being the most difficult to cope with. My ability to get around on my own has drastically decreased and now I fully rely on my wheelchair to do even the simplest of things like get around my home.

Losing my ability to walk wasn’t the only obstacle I faced. My own home, a place that used to make me feel safe and happy, now made me feel afraid and anxious. The steps leading to my front door seemed like a steep mountain, and if I fell down, I was unsure if I would be able to get back up on my own. Not only did this unexpected diagnosis take a physical toll on me, but also an emotional and mental toll. I felt like a prisoner in my own home. With the isolation came depression.

I knew I needed help, but I did not know where to turn until last year when I was connected with an organization that would change my life forever. On September 21 of 2019, CIL provided me a miracle by building me a ramp. This ramp has truly changed my life. It has given me the ability to be independent, to access my home, and to not feel like a burden to others. It has given me a sense of safety and the ability to reconnect with the world.

Last year I was 1 of the 119 people that CIL helped by providing life changing home modifications like ramps, door widenings, and the installation of grab bars. In addition, CIL provided 73 people with assistive equipment like wheelchairs, walkers, and shower chairs to give them the sense of independence they deserve.

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, CIL has still been working hard to help people with disabilities in need, giving people struggling that same HOPE that they gave to me. Since March of this year, CIL has received 1 call per day from individuals needing a home modification. That is an additional 200 people added to the waiting list since March.

They cannot continue to do the amazing work that they do without you though. Your donation truly makes a difference. By making a donation to CIL you help to give Central Florida’s most vulnerable residents the opportunity to be in control of their own lives. Your gift will provide the much-needed accessibility that our neighbors with disabilities need in order to live their lives to the fullest. We all face obstacles, especially during a year like this one, so I ask you to embrace the opportunity to make a positive change in someone’s life, and make a donation to CIL.

Text states "Thank you for giving me hope" signed by Luz Gonzalez

image is a clickable button. Text on image states "Your support changes lives. Donate Today."

Image: low opacity background is collage of different people that CIL has helped. On top of collage is CIL "Opportunity Over Obstacles" fundraising campaign logo.

A Veteran’s Mission for Independence: Meet Bobbie Smith

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CIL Storytelling and Marketing Intern, Melissa smiling in a profile photo.

Written by Melissa Donovan

 

Bobbie Smith spent 10 years as a mechanic in the United States Army and another 20 working for the United States Postal Service. While Bobbie was not in a rush to stop working, he was forced to retire after developing prostate cancer. He underwent radiation therapy that ultimately saved his life, but this was just the beginning of Bobbie’s medical journey. His back also required an intricate spinal fusion surgery, and bad circulation related to his diabetes required a partial amputation of one of his feet. With all of that, Bobbie also lost one of the things that he cherished most: his freedom.

Bobbie has always been very active in his community and without a safe and accessible way to leave his house, he was not able to do things that he once enjoyed. “I’m not really a home body. I want to explore, stay busy, participate in activities, and give back to the community,” Bobbie said. He uses a motorized chair to get around his house and outside, but there was still one thing that stood in front of him and his independence: the stairs to his house. With limited resources and the desire to leave his home, Bobbie crafted a makeshift ramp that allowed him to leave his home, but was very unsafe and not fully accessible.

Although Mr. Smith makes it his mission to live as independently as possible, he still relied on regular assistance from family, friends, neighbors, roommates and daughter, who would all help him get in and out of his home.

“I had to depend on a lot of people, which is something I do not like to do,” Bobbie said. 

A chair stands on top of two brick stairs- the front door of Bobbie's home is open to see inside.
The chairs at the bottom of Bobbie’s front door left him relying on a chair and his friends and neighbors to get out of his home.

With the help of ABC Prosthetics & Orthotics and their volunteer group “Limb-It-Less,” Bobbie received an aluminum ramp on February 9, 2019 that was built using donated tools from Stanley Black & Decker. The ramp was was built to not only allow Bobbie to access his home without assistance, but also to do safely. Bobbie described first seeing his ramp like the feeling of “opening up a present on Christmas day”. 

“I am on the go a lot, and now I do not need any help leaving the house,” Bobbie said.

Bobbie recommends that veterans who are in similar situations to get in touch with CIL. He is very thankful and appreciative of all the work that volunteers have done for him to give him back his freedom. 

Seven people stand in front of and to the sides of Bobbie Smith (in his electric wheelchair) on an aluminum ramp in front of a house.
Volunteer team “Limb-it-Less” join Bobbie on his newly assembled ramp.

 

Click here to donate to help more veterans like Bobbie rediscover their independence.

Celebrating NDEAM- CIL Staff Spotlight: Danielle Head

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October is nationally recognized as National Disability Employment Awareness Month, also known short as NDEAM. This year’s observance is unique in that it not only marks the 75th anniversary since NDEAM originated, but 2020 also celebrates the thirtieth anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); a piece of civil rights legislation signed by George H.W. Bush, that granted rights and equal opportunities to people with disabilities in the United States.

One of the numerous focuses of the act was the expansion of equal employment opportunities and full inclusion for people with disabilities. While great advances in employment equality have been made thanks to the ADA, some people with disabilities still find it difficult to secure meaningful employment. In the state of Florida alone, there are an estimated 2.67 million people who indicate that they have some sort of disability, according to a 2019 report from the Florida Chamber Foundation. This is 13.4 percent of all Floridians. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an unemployment rate of 7.3 percent among people with disabilities in the United States in 2019, a slight decrease from the 8 percent reported in 2018. However, people with disabilities are still twice as likely to be unemployed, compared to those without a disability.

This was the case for a young woman named Danielle Head, 35, who was not born Deaf, but after childhood complications from Rotavirus, lost her hearing. After graduating and attaining an associate degree from Seminole State College, Danielle wanted to explore the work field of graphic design and photography, with the hope to ultimately land a job. But it’s not that simple for people with disabilities in the United States. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2019, unemployment rates for persons with a disability were higher than those for persons without a disability, even with the same education levels. Although Danielle had a respectable amount of graphic design and photography experience, she still struggled to find fulfilling employment that utilized her skills and capabilities.

Danielle Head sitting down in graduation gown, smiling and holding diploma.
Danielle graduated from Seminole State College in May of 2018 with an A.S. in Digital Design.

“I think that it’s important that people know that people with all different types of disabilities can do so many things that a lot of jobs require. There is so much misconception about the capabilities and work ethic of people with disabilities,” said Danielle.

In November of 2018, Danielle was referred to the Center for Independent Living of Central Florida, now known as CIL, for employment services. After working closely with her case manager on things like her resume, interview skills, and the job application process, Danielle felt ready for the next step of the process, which was on the job training, or OJT. This process typically is a supervised hands-on experience at a workplace to ensure that the transition to a job after this process is smooth. Danielle inquired if her training could take place within the walls of CIL, specifically with the development department, and her request was happily accepted. Development Director, Brittany Pilcher, knew that this training opportunity could allow Danielle to utilize and grow her skills of graphic design and photography, and that is exactly what happened.

photo of Danielle Head shoulder up, wearing a blue CIL polo shirt.
Danielle Head, 35, currently works at the Center for Independent living of Central Florida (CIL).

After Danielle’s on the job training came to an end, she still found herself struggling interview after interview. She couldn’t help but feel that she was at a constant disadvantage because of her disability, and found that as an individual who is Deaf and primarily uses American Sign Language to communicate, there was a communication barrier that kept her from connecting with potential employers. At this time, an opportunity arose within the development department at CIL for a graphic design position, and Danielle was happily selected to fill that role.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are approximately 6.5 million current job openings. Many of these positions could be filled by qualified people with disabilities; yet stigmas and misconceptions keep these positions vacant and unfilled.

Danielle Head standing in front large painted mural, wearing blue drape around her neck that says "Orlando City"
Earlier this year, Danielle was selected to design a mural at Camping World Stadium for Orlando City Soccer Club. Image source: Seminole State College

“With increased education and advocacy on people with disabilities, we hope that potential employers see the true benefits of hiring people with disabilities,” said Jascinth Lawrence, Program Director at CIL.

“Our clients are eager to get into the workforce and lead independent lives; they just need the opportunity and employers who are willing to see them for their abilities,” Lawrence added.