Disability Rights California v. County of Alameda

July 31, 2020
DREDF and co-counsel Disability Rights California (DRC), Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho, and the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of DRC and its constituents with serious mental health disabilities against Alameda County and Alameda Health System. The lawsuit challenges the County’s failures to provide adequate community-based services to people with serious mental health disabilities causing unnecessarily cycling through the County’s locked facilities, including the John George Psychiatric Hospital and the Santa Rita Jail. The complaint details how Black people with serious mental health disabilities are harmed at staggeringly high rates by Alameda County’s failures to provide intensive and appropriate community-based services. The lawsuit seeks increased linkages and access to community-based services and decreased reliance on institutionalization. [...]

Lawsuit Filed Against Alameda County for Its Failed Mental Health System

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July 30, 2020
(Oakland, CA) Today, Disability Rights California (DRC), along with Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, and the Oakland-based law firm Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho filed a federal lawsuit under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) against Alameda County and Alameda Health System. The lawsuit challenges the unnecessary and illegal segregation of people with mental health disabilities — especially Black people with disabilities — in psychiatric institutions and the failure to ensure people with disabilities are provided the services they need. [...]

The Making of the ADA

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July 26, 2020
"The Making of the ADA - Memories From the 10th Anniversary of the signing of The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991" (2015)

On the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), we pause for a moment to take stock of the impact the ADA has had on our lives and our communities over the past quarter century and to recognize both the sung and the unsung heroes who worked tirelessly to make the dream of full civil rights for people with disabilities a legal reality.

In Celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act

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July 26, 2020
Today is the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and as anniversaries do, it sparks us to remember the event, reflect on the actions that led to the event, look at where we are now, and contemplate our future. We are proud of the role DREDF played then and continues to play now.

COVID-19: Face Masks and People With Disabilities

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July 23, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic poses a serious risk to public health, especially the health of people with disabilities, including Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) with disabilities. COVID-19 is transmitted from person to person primarily through droplets in the air. These droplets are emitted when people talk, cough, sneeze, or breathe.

DREDF Mourns the Passing of Civil Rights Leader Congressman John Lewis

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July 18, 2020
DREDF mourns the passing of civil rights leader Congressman John Lewis. We honor Mr. Lewis' long lifelong commitment to fighting injustice and working towards his vision for a Beloved Community.

Legal Claim Seeks Changes After Black Disabled Student is Handcuffed in Moreno Valley School District

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July 15, 2020
(Riverside, CA) - Disability Rights California, Barajas & Rivera APC, and Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund submitted a tort claim to the Moreno Valley Unified School District (MVUSD) on behalf of an 11-year-old Black student with disabilities who was discriminated against by school police. The claim gives formal notice to the District of the harm that the student endured and seeks to eliminate such discriminatory disciplinary practices and replace them with meaningful accommodations that protect and support not only students with disabilities, but all students. [...]

Black Child with Disabilities Handcuffed, Forcibly Detained by Moreno Valley School Police

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July 15, 2020
(Riverside, CA) – On July 15, 2020, Disability Rights California, Barajas & Rivera APC, and Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund submitted a tort claim to the Moreno Valley Unified School District (MVUSD) on behalf of an 11-year-old Black student with disabilities who was discriminated against by school police. The claim gives formal notice to the District of the harm that the student endured and seeks to eliminate such discriminatory disciplinary practices and replace them with meaningful accommodations that protect and support not only students with disabilities, but all students.

Know Your Rights in California: Access to Hospital Care During COVID-19

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July 1, 2020
NEW, Know Your Rights! Read about California's new guidance document for hospitals during COVID-19. The guidance document says how hospitals can prevent shortages, and how they can make care decisions during the crisis.

Resolution of Federal Civil Rights Complaint Raises the Bar in Prohibiting Medical Discrimination Against People With Disabilities During COVID-19 Pandemic

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June 26, 2020
The Arc of the United States, Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, Autistic Self Advocacy Network, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund and Samuel Bagenstos -- challenging states' plans for rationing medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic as discriminating against people with disabilities. Medical rationing policies have disproportionately impacted Black people with disabilities, who have higher rates of COVID-19 infection and [...]