Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Are you a woman with a disability? Are you sick and tired of discrimination? Then Feminist Response in Disability Activism (FRIDA) is for you. FRIDA knows things aren’t right when:

Women with disabilities can’t get Pap smears because most doctors’ examining tables aren’t accessible

Women with disabilities get left on the curb by bus drivers who don’t want to stop for wheelchairs

Women with disabilities who live in nursing homes have to pay for pads and tampons out of the $30 left out of their SSI each month

Women with disabilities are given the wrong information by their doctors, sometimes resulting in catastrophic health situations

Women with disabilities who receive home services are sometimes told their children should be acting as their personal care assistants

Women of color with disabilities are treated like they are stupid and don’t know their rights

Women with disabilities are not provided with interpreters

Women with disabilities aren’t treated respectfully on paratransit

Women with hidden disabilities don’t get the respect they deserve

Women with disabilities go to jail because no one understands their disability

Women with disabilities don’t receive the proper medical care or accommodations in jail

Women with disabilities are considered not sexy and asexual

Women with disabilities have doctors who won’t listen to them

Women with disabilities aren’t told about birth control

Women with disabilities don’t know where to get help on sex issues

Women with disabilities don’t have access to diagnostic test equipment that fits them

Women with disabilities are easy victims for rape and domestic violence

Women with disabilities who need to exit a bus are forgotten by bus drivers, who say “Oops! I forgot you were there!”

Come to a FRIDA meeting and let’s do something about this! Bring your concerns for women with disabilities to our next meeting on Monday, August 21, from 2 to 4 pm at Access Living, 614 W. Roosevelt Road. An ASL interpreter will be present. For accommodations, please contact Sharon Lamp at slamp1@uic.edu. For more info about FRIDA, call Monica at (312) 253-7000 (v) or Amber at (312) 253-7029 (TTY) or asmock@accessliving.org.