Today, we celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most well-known civil rights activists that accomplished a great deal in his short life. Dr. King's accomplishments have made it possible for us to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama as the first African-American President of the United States.
During the celebration, we cannot lose site of the core of Dr. Kings civil rights dream. I work very closely with people with developmental disabilities. In the state in which I live, there are thousands of people on waiting lists for basic lang-term care services - residential services like living in a group home and vocational services like day programs/job training and support programs. They are eligible for such services. However, since there is not enough funding for these basic services, people with special needs are placed on waiting lists. People with special needs are often forced to live and work in congregate settings. Many policymakers feel that it is more cost-efficient to "warehouse" people with special needs in instituional settings or in large work centers. This isn't a problem if people choose such settings. However, many are forced into such settings against their will.
In celebrating the progress we have made in civil rights as a nation, we need to recognize that we have yet to realize Dr. King's dream. We should save some of our celebtatory energy to continue to push for the dream of everyone being valued and treated as a human being - regardless of skin coler, gender, disability, etc.
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