Nominations, please!--DRA's Eagle and Turkey Awards

Is there someone you would like to give an Eagle or Turkey? If so, please email your nomination to us at gabim@dralegal.org (or just reply to this mail). Here are examples of past award winners:

2002 EAGLES

Portland International Airport for its commitment to providing excellent access to deaf and hard-of-hearing travelers. The airport has consistently worked with members of the disability community and it has held numerous focus group meetings in order to gauge community needs. At the moment, the airport features visual paging that is accessible by teletypewriter (TTY) phones for the deaf , TTY phones at hotel and ground transportation information centers, and terminal maps that clearly show where TTY phones can be found. In addition, the airport also has a list of qualified sign language interpreters that can be quickly recruited if needed. Visual screens can be found throughout the airport and they make traveling easier for everyone, disabled or not. In this age of heightened security, the airport's efforts are especially important as traveling can be a precarious and frustrating experience -- even if you are not deaf or hard-of-hearing.

AlphaSmart, a technology company that produces affordable and easy-to-use computing devices that are primarily used in the educational world. Since it's inception in 1992, Alphasmart has striven to make its portable word processors accessible to students with varying abilities. Its products possess accessible features such as alternate keyboard layouts for left and right hand users, "sticky keys" that allow users with limited mobility to click on one key at a time in a multi-key function, and word prediction software to facilitate the writing process for students with learning disabilities. In addition, its word-processor features different fonts and font sizes that can help individuals with visual disabilities. Individuals with disabilities are active on the company's Advisory Board and they moderate the website's community center where other individuals with disabilities can go to get product support and information.

Fannie Mae for its HomeChoice mortgage loan program, which is designed to enable low- and moderate-income borrowers who have disabilities or who live with family members who have disabilities to purchase homes. Fannie Mae has committed two trillion dollars over ten years to provide assistance to underserved populations. The company also offers special underwriting flexibilities to individuals with disabilities in order to make purchasing a home affordable, such as lower down payments, financing for disability-specific modifications, and high income to expense ratios in housing costs. Fannie Mae trains lenders to work closely with independent living centers and other disability organizations. All of their literature is available in different formats. We also honor Fannie Mae for being a catalyst in helping people who are institutionalized live more independent lives.

J. Paul Getty Museum http://www.getty.edu/museum/ for its successful utilization of universal design. The museum has managed to integrate accessible features into all aspects of the space, from a ramp that winds throughout the sculpture gardens to a fully accessible tram. The museum's brochures are available in alternative formats and the museum's myriad accessible features are clearly pointed out on maps. Sign language interpreters can be arranged and videos are closed captioned. The Getty Museum is one of the most accessible museums in the world and it proves that access can be beautifully integrated in to the fabric of the museum.

2002 TURKEYS

California State Board of Education for its politically motivated and hastily implemented High School Exit Exam. The State Board has stuck to an extremely short time line for implementing the exam. This time line does not provide a realistic time frame for the alignment of the students' curriculum to the standards of the Exam and it expects students to know material they have never been taught. The California High School Exit Exam has one of the most restrictive accommodations policies in the nation for its high school students with disabilities. The use of accommodations which are regularly used in the classroom and on other exams, such as spell-checkers and calculators for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia, or readers for blind students, invalidate the students' test scores. In addition, the State Board has instituted no form of alternate assessment for students whose disability prevents them from being accurately assessed by standardized exams. The consequences are no surprise: nearly 90% of students with disabilities have not passed the Exit Exam and are currently on track to be denied a high school diploma.

The State of Louisiana for its total disregard for disability community's desire to live independent lives outside of nursing homes. Ninety-three cents of every medicare dollar is spent on nursing home facilities in Louisiana. The State's ratio of nursing home beds per capita exceeds the national average by more than 50%. Furthermore, attendant wages average $5.56 and only 7% of these attendants have health benefits. With statistics like this, it is no wonder that disability organizations have labeled Louisiana the worst state in the nation.

Walgreens Corporation for its discrimination against individuals with mobility and visual disabilities. Walgreens stores are consistently cluttered with merchandise and aisles are frequently blocked with merchandise and storage bins, therefore creating a frustrating and hazardous experience for customers with disabilities who attempt to shop at the stores. Customers have reported getting trapped in aisles and tripping over merchandise. Due to Walgreens' refusal to correct this problem, a lawsuit has been filed against them to enable customers with disabilities to shop without barriers.

The United States Treasury for its refusal to print bills that are accessible to individuals with visual disabilities. U.S.banknotes are identical in size and color and as such, individuals experience unnecessary impediments when going about their everyday lives from shopping to taking public transportation. These individuals are also at a higher risk of being victims of fraud and deception. Over 120 countries around the world have taken steps to alter banknotes to make them more accessible and the National Academy of Sciences, in 1995, issued a recommendation to the U.S. Treasury on this matter. However, the Treasury ignored the recommendations. Currently, the American Council of the Blind is battling the Treasury in court on this issue.

2001 EAGLES

Wynd Communications Corporation for its leadership in developing communication technologies for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.

New Mobility Magazine for its mission to improve the quality of life of wheelchair users "with information, empowerment, and entertainment".

Cingular Wireless for their commitment to include people with disabilities in their marketing campaign. Casey Martin for his drive in pursuing equal access on the golf course.

2001 TURKEYS

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. For the second year in a row as a result of its persistent discriminatory actions against individuals with disabilities, including a failure to work with groups that act as job "coaches" for individuals with disabilities. As of November 2001, Wal-Mart had 16 disability suits pending against them, including one brought forth by an individual in a wheelchair who was refused a job application as a result of his disability. Another suit has been brought forth for a second time by deaf plaintiffs as a result of Wal-Mart's refusal to honor a settlement agreement in a 1998 lawsuit which involved a lack of alternative training materials for deaf employees.

Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Nominee Jeffrey Sutton for his total disregard for the Americans with Disabilities Act, which he claims is unnecessary. Sutton argued against the ADA in several high impact Supreme Court rulings. Sutton also argued against the Olmstead Act in the Olmstead v. L.C. case and stated that states had no duty under the ADA to serve individuals with disabilities in integrated settings. Sutton is also in favor of limiting the protections of Medicaid, Section 504, and the IDEA.

McDonalds Corporation, Inc. has proven itself worthy of DRA's third Turkey award as a result of its total disregard for the ADA on an international level. Outside of the United States, McDonalds restaurants are architecturally inaccessible to individuals with mobility disabilities. One would think that McDonalds, with its plethora of resources, would attempt to be a model of American values and virtues overseas. Instead, it has chosen to only provide access where it is mandated to. Shame on McDonalds for choosing to do the minimum that it can do. DRA challenges McDonalds to become a better global citizen.

The Jerry Lewis Telethon for using pity as a tactic to raise money. In September, during his annual telethon to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), Mr. Lewis advised disability activists to stay in their houses if they did not want to be pitied because they were "cripple" and in wheelchairs. Mr. Lewis is the one to be pitied for his ignorance, however. While we are appreciative and respectful of the amount of money that Mr. Lewis has been raising for the MDA for the past 35 years, we wish he would find a way to do it that would confer dignity upon persons with disabilities instead of pity. "Jerry's kids" have grown up after all.

2000 EAGLES

Microsoft Corporation for its commitment to developing accessibility features in all of its software.

Bank of America for its commitment to to install over 2,500 "talking" ATMs across the United States.

Pacific Bell Park for being one of the most accessible stadiums in the world.

ADAPT for vigilantly fighting to strenthen the Americans with Disabilities Act and other federal and state laws that protect individuals with disabilities.

2000 TURKEYS

Cinemark USA, Inc. One of the largest movie theaters companies in the nation, Cinemark places its accessible seating in the first rows of its theaters, forcing patrons with disabilities to crane their necks to view the screen. People with disabilities ask to sit throughout the theater with lines of sight comparable to those enjoyed by the general public.

University of Alabama appealed Garrett v. University of Alabama to the U.S. Supreme Court. Garrett claims that her employer, the University of Alabama, demoted her after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. The University asked the Supreme Court to hold Title II of the ADA unconstitutional when applied to state entities such as universities and public schools, places often in violation of the ADA.

Chuck E. Cheese fired Donald Perkl, a cognitively disabled employee, because of his appearance. Perkl's manager stated that he didn't want "those type of people" working at his restaurant. After multiple attempts to appeal by Chuck E. Cheese, the case went to trial. The defense argued that Perkl was "too retarded" to feel pain and thus should not receive compensatory damages. The jury ultimately awarded Perkl $70,000 in damages and Chuck E. Cheese $300,000 in punitive damages, the maximum allowed under the ADA.

Representative Mark Foley, republican congressman from West Palm Beach Florida, introduced the ADA Notification Act, a bill proposing to amend the ADA to require a 90-day notice to a prospective defendant to correct an alleged violation before the commencement of a civil rights action regarding public accommodations or a commercial facilities. The bill would provide businesses that have already had over 10 years to comply an additional opportunity to delay.

 printer-friendly format