Monday, September 05, 2005

OCDAC Newsletter September 5, 2005

Dear Friends,

This week since we're all too busy with our education, fundraising,
and office duties. We don't have too much to say in this newsletter
but to let you know we've uploaded 46 OC-Fair photos into the
newsletter's website for you to enjoy.

This is good animation of our largest educational booth in action and
is worth the look http://www.deafadvocacy.com/ba2005.gif

And for the newcomers to this list, a BIG WELCOME to this newsletter.
Our membership list has grown astonishingly in the past month!

We've finished up preparing for the Deaf festival that's taking place
in Van Nuys later on this month. We will have a lot of information
and resources in many different languages. Los Angeles is a very
diverse county and we will have our information available in diverse
languages.

Finally our hearts goes out to those affected by Hurricane Katrina and
our prayers especially goes to the victims with disabilities in their
biggest struggle of their lives.

OCDAC Communications

-------------< INSIDE NEWS >

This Thursday and Friday our our bowling nights fundraisers at
Westminster lanes 6pm to 9pm.

We still need a volunteer coordinator who will help us keep in touch
with volunteers and to contact them and make sure they are given the
opportunities to participate in our activities. Our volunteer list has
grown dramatically during the fair. We really need help managing them.

We have decided to eliminate our Rose parade fundraiser and replace it
with a bigger times square like event at the Orange County Fairgrounds.

We also need committees for the Pirate's festival, Silverado Festival,
and Winter Festival fundraisers as well.

We have also started on our Deaf Expo (Mata.tv) planning for the event
in November in Long Beach.

-------------< OUTSIDE NEWS >

Gallaudet's First Deaf President to Retire
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/01/AR2005090102149.\
html


Mamma Mia! Makes All Performances Accessible to the Deaf and Hard of
Hearing
http://broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=4653

Nunavik schools re-wired to aid hearing impaired
http://www.nunatsiaq.com/news/nunavik/50902_01.html

Call boxes to be adapted for deaf
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/12558953.htm

-------------< DEAF GRAPEVINE >

Hello everyone,

I would like to share with you a press release that the Community
Emergency Preparedness Information Network (CEPIN) has issued last
Friday, announcing points of contact for deaf and hard of hearing
people who are impacted by Katrina.

Jim House
National CEPIN Coordinator

Assistance Available for Hurricane Victims who are Deaf or Hard of
Hearing CEPIN Regional Centers Standing by to Assist Displaced
Individuals and Families

Emergency assistance plans have been put in place for Hurricane
Katrina victims who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families.
The Community Emergency Preparedness Information Network (CEPIN)
Project has designated CSD of Oklahoma and Northern Resource Virginia
Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons (NVRC) as CEPIN contact
centers for Hurricane Katrina victims and their families.

Agencies serving deaf or hard of hearing individuals in the areas
affected by Hurricane Katrina are reporting that their phone lines and
offices are shut down for the time being. Coverage for pagers may be
weak at times due to loss of network capabilities. As a result, people
wanting to find information on recovery and rescue efforts in the
areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina are encouraged in Louisiana or
displaced westward in Texas to contact CSD of Oklahoma during regular
business hours at:

www.c-s-d.org (click on locations, then Oklahoma)
(866) 845-7445 Voice/TTY (Toll Free)
(918) 835-7445 Voice/TTY
(918) 835-6459 FAX
[email protected]

We have people standing by at the CEPIN regional center, which is
being facilitated by CSD of Oklahoma Division Director Glenna Cooper,"
said Dr. Benjamin J. Soukup, CSD CEO. "We recognize that people who
are deaf or hard of hearing are often overlooked in disaster recovery
and rescue
efforts, and we are working hard to ensure that this does not happen
with Hurricane Katrina. CSD of Oklahoma is working closely with the
local Red Cross and other appropriate organizations, and they will
beable to provide assistance."

"In addition to the victims, our office is also providing support and
resources to the responders and volunteers to ensure that deaf and
hard of hearing refugees are getting much-needed assistance," added
Soukup.

For those wanting information in other states affected by Katrina such
as Florida, Alabama or Mississippi, and displaced refugees in the
Mid-Atlantic area, contact Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf
and Hard of Hearing Persons (NVRC).

"We are heartbroken seeing all the devastation that Katrina has
brought upon people in the Gulf States, especially those who are deaf,
hard of hearing, deaf-blind and late-deafened," said Cheryl Heppner,
Executive Director of NVRC.

Heppner added, "As part of CEPIN, we are eager to work with
organizations and agencies to ensure that people who are deaf or hard
of hearing get the services they need, especially hearing aids or
other devices vital to effective communication. At a time when their
lives are turned upside down, we hope the last thing worry about is
how they will be able to communicate with others."

NVRC may be contacted during regular business hours at:
www.nvrc.org
(703) 352-9056 TTY
(703) 352-9055 Voice
(703) 352-9058 FAX
[email protected]

Volunteers who have experience in working with deaf and hard of
hearing people and have training in First Aid, CPR, CERT, and other
rescue efforts should contact one of the two regional centers to offer
their services. The CEPIN website also has a list of statewide
resources available at
www.tdi-online.org/tdi/emergencypreparedness/cepin.htm for the areas
affected by the hurricane.

If you need assistance in recovering from the disaster, contact the
nearest Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA):
www.fema.gov
1-800-462-7585 TTY
1-800-621-FEMA (3362) Voice

For a list of organizations to donate money to:
www.fema.gov/press/2005/katrinadonations.shtm

(Please note that FEMA and other organizations are asking for monetary
donations, not donations in the form of food, clothes or other goods).

If you need food, clothing, shelter or medicine, contact the
AmericanRed Cross:
www.redcross.org

If you need to find your family members, go to the American Red Cross
FamilyLinks website at:
www.familylinks.icrc.org/katrina

If you receive social security benefits, Social Security
Administration is working to ensure that individuals continue to
receive their retirement or disability checks. More information is at:
www.socialsecurity.gov/emergency/
1-800-325-0778 TTY
1-800-772-1213 Voice

Its critical that we have this information on hand for victims, and
that people are aware of these resources, said Jim House, CEPIN
Project National Coordinator. The CEPIN Project will continue to be
very supportive, and to monitor the recovery activities and provide
assistance as needed. CEPIN will be adding information to its website
and sending out information as news develops, and we encourage people
to check our website for updates.

About the CEPIN Project: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security
awarded TDI nearly $1.5 million for the two-year CEPIN Project, which
focuses on developing model community education programs for deaf and
hard of hearing consumers about emergency preparedness. For more
information about the CEPIN Project, please visit
www.tdi-online.org/tdi/emergencypreparedness/cepin.htm.

About TDI: TDI is a non-profit advocacy organization that promotes
equal access to telecommunications and media for individuals who are
deaf, late deafened, hard-of-hearing or deaf-blind. Since 1968, TDI
has successfully advocated for federal legislation such as the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Americans with Disabilities Act
and the Television Decoder Circuitry Act, both of 1990, as well as
other legislation and policies mandating greater access to wireless
technology, captioning as well as other telecommunication and media
technologies. Since its inception, TDI has been promoting access to
9-1-1 centers and other public safety answering points, and is now
working to ensure full access to information during natural or manmade
disasters and other types of emergencies. TDI publishes annually, a
National Directory & Resource Guide, commonly known as The Blue Book,
a popular resource book for people with hearing loss, as well as the
GA-SK quarterly news magazine. For more information about TDI, visit
www.tdi-online.org.

# # #

For more information about the CEPIN Project at TDI, contact:

--
Jim House
National CEPIN Coordinator
Community Emergency Preparedness Information Network
TDI
8630 Fenton Street, Suite 604
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910-3822
[email protected]
www.tdi-online.org/tdi/resources.emergency.asp
TTY or VP: 301-589-3006
AIM: JimHouseCEPIN
Fax: 301-589-3797
Voice: 301-589-3786
Step in with CEPIN - Your life may depend on it.
-------------< BULLETIN >

VRS Technology is GREAT. But.............

Look at what it's been doing to take a lot of interpreters away from
the mainstream communication needs like doctor appointments, lawyer
appointments, job interviews, police interrogations, and other more
important communication situations.

The ADA gives these entities the right to refuse interpreters if
searching for interpreters becomes burdensome and simply the
interpreter shortage is all the 'burden' they need to use to refuse
our rights to interpreters.

Our title II and III rights to interpreters are being stifled by the
VRS industry. Our rights to interpreters are being quashed by the
lucrative VRS jobs and benefits offered to interpreters.

It's time to fight to return the interpreters back to the deaf
communities that need them and let the greedy VRS industry farm up
their own interpreters.

Richard Roehm
CEO
OCDAC

-------------< ADVOCACY NEWS >

This is a letter I will be sending out regarding the nomination of
John G. Roberts to be an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
I'm still seen as a leader of the California deaf communities which
resulted from the resignation of the California Association of the
Deaf's president Russell Bye. Therefore this letter is done on
behalf the 3.1 million plus Californians with hearing and speech
impairments:

September 6, 2005

The Honorable Senator Arlen Specter The Honorable Senator Patrick Leahy
Chairman Ranking Member
Committee on the Judiciary Committee on the Judiciary
United States Senate United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510 Washington, D.C. 20510


Dear Senator Specter and Senator Leahy:

On behalf of 3.1 million Californians with hearing and
speech impairments and their respective organizations, we write to you
regarding the nomination of John G. Roberts to be an Associate Justice
of the U.S. Supreme Court. As the nomination and confirmation process
now begins to unfold, we strongly urge you to consider the
extraordinary impact that Judge Roberts, if confirmed, will have on
the lives, liberties, and constitutional rights of the tens of
millions of Americans with physical, mental, cognitive, and
developmental disabilities.

We applaud Senator Leahys determination to obtain the release of
withheld documents that would shed further light on Judge Roberts
record. Each day, as new documents are uncovered, we get a clearer
picture of Judge Roberts views many of which lie outside of the
mainstream. For example,
Reagan Administration documents demonstrate Roberts role in attempting
to undermine the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and
the Washington Post reported on August 30th, that Roberts uncritically
passed along demands that the administration repeal a requirement of
government contractors to hire the handicapped.

We also applaud Senator Specters letter of August 23rd to Mr. Roberts
seeking his opinions on the "judicial activism" demonstrated by the
Rehnquist Court, especially in regard to the narrowing of the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the failure to respect the
intent of Congress in crafting this historic and bipartisan law.

Sen. Specter clearly outlined many of the concerns of the disability
community in objecting to the Court's "judicial activism in
functioning as a super-legislature" and the disregard exhibited by a
pattern of declaring "acts of Congress unconstitutional
notwithstanding the enormous evidentiary support for Congress' public
policy determinations."

Mr. Roberts does, in fact, have a very different view of "judicial
activism." In Board of Education v. Rowley, 458 U.S. 176 ( 1982 ), an
8-year-old student who was deaf sought to have a sign language
interpreter provided to assist her in school. The trial court ruled
that federal law required the state to provide an interpreter for her.
The appeals court affirmed. Roberts, while at the Justice Department,
wrote a memo to the Attorney General criticizing these decisions.
Roberts stated that the lower courts, in an exercise of judicial
activism, used the vague statutory language to overrule the board and
substitute their own judgment of appropriate educational policy.

Mr. Roberts' views in this regard are further demonstrated by his
serving on the Legal Advisory Council of the National Legal Center For
The Public Interest. This extreme organization has promoted the very
"judicial activism" Sen. Specter has decried and has attacked ADA
civil rights
protections in numerous forums including its publication of a document
belittling Congress' authority and entitled "Civil Rights and the
Disabled: The Legislative Twilight Zone."

Sadly, Mr. Roberts' record reveals that he would not only continue
this trend of "judicial activism" but would further it, risking our
remaining protections spared only by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
siding with the majority in 5-4 decisions including historic cases
such as Tennessee v. Lane, 541 U.S. 509 (2004).

Our concerns are illustrated by Mr. Roberts' 2000 television
interview, in which he declared that the Rehnquist Court was not
"conservative" enough. Roberts, of course, later convinced the
Rehnquist Court to eliminate ADA protections for millions of
Americans with disabilities
especially those with epilepsy, diabetes, mental illness and
work-related injuries.

In Toyota Motor Manufacturing v. Williams, 534 U.S. 184 ( 2002 ),
Roberts successfully argued to the Supreme Court that a woman who had
developed severe bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and tendonitis from
working on the assembly line at an auto manufacturing plant could not
prevail in a
suit against her employer for failing to accommodate her disability.
Roberts argued that she was not a person with a disability because she
was not sufficiently limited in major life activities outside of her
job. Roberts brief greatly distorted the extent of the womans
limitations. As a result of Roberts distortions, the Supreme Court
held that the test for coverage under the ADA is a narrow one that
must be strictly applied, and it articulated a more stringent test
than the test set forth by Congress in the law itself.

Indeed, Judge Roberts has a long history of advocating for the
weakening of legal protections for children and adults with
disabilities under the ADA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act,
Child Welfare Act, and education law, as well as the legal
underpinnings of such laws including
Congress commerce power. Attached, please find an overview compiled by
the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law entitled John Roberts
Problematic Record on Disability Rights.
http://bazelon.org/issues/disabilityrights/judicialnominees/roberts.htm

We share Sen. Specter's concerns that, in the Supreme Court, we are
witnessing judicial activism to roll back federal protections
including the ADA with the use of "manufactured rationales used by the
Supreme Court to exercise the role of super legislature and make
public policy
decisions which is the core Congressional role under the
Constitution." Based on his record, we are concerned that the ADA, a
bipartisan law that seldom attracts public attention similar to the
hot-button issues often debated in the context of Supreme Court
confirmation hearings, might be
further weakened should Judge John Roberts be confirmed.

We call on the Senate Judiciary Committee to allow testimony from
representatives of the disability community and to fully examine Judge
Roberts record and views in regard to the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA) and disability rights protections generally.

Sincerely,

Richard Roehm
Editor OCDAC Newsletter

-------------< ANNOUNCEMENTS >

COME TO OUR MEETUPS! The Orange County American Sign Language Meetup
Group - http://asl.meetup.com/37/ - meets each 3rd Wednesdays of the
month. The Orange County Deaf & Hearing Impaired Meetup Group -
http://deaf.meetup.com/38/ - meets each 1st Saturdays of the month.

Our new ASL class start in the third week of August and the slots are
really being filled now as there is a limit of 8 students per class
for better quality of education and sign language training.

Please visit our iGive store http://www.igive.com/ocdac

Please visit our bookstore that has related books and different kinds
of assistive living devices at http://store.deafadvocacy.org

If you shop at Albertsons and have a community partners card, please
consider adding your card to our list of supporters. You can now
download and print our Albertsons Community Partners signup forms at
Http://www.deafadvocacy.com/AlbertsonsSignup.pdf and have your
friends, neighbors, associates, and relatives sign up as supporters
and then mail it to the address on the form. Our goal is 25,000
supporters who shop at Albertsons. And when you shop at Albertsons,
please dont forget to use the community partners card.

We recycle used cell phones, empty printer and toner cartridges. If
you have any of these to unload from your hands, please send or drop
them at our agency at 2960 Main Street, A100, Irvine, California 92614

-------------< DEAF QUOTES >

"Technology is helping more and more deaf people hear," Gallaudet
president I. King Jordan, said, "but here at Gallaudet, we focus on
learning and achieving -- not on listening. So I would still say deaf
people can do anything, except hear."

-------------< COMMUNITY BULLHORN >

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE - September 1, 2005

From: www.deafsportlawsuit.com

2005 CISS CONGRESS VOTING FRAUD SCANDAL SOUTH AFRICA CALLS FOR
COMMISSION OF INQUIRY SET UP

By Rafael Pinkhasov Pinchas,CISS/Deaflympics Ombudsman

New York, USA - The recently-concluded 39th CISS/Deaflympics Congress
held in Melbourne, Australia, was marred by an alleged vote rigging
scandal by certain individuals, in which nearly 151 voting ballots
were missing or went unaccounted during the election contest for
various CISS/Deaflympics Executive Committee positions.

For details, click to
www.deafsportlawsuit.com/update72.htm
www.deafsportlawsuit.com/update74.htm

One CISS/Deaflympics Nation-Member - the Republic of South Africa and
its country's delegate to the 39th CISS/Deaflympics Congress, Mr.
Julius Maxajwe - has recently made the following statement related to
the alleged voting fraud,

"There is a need for establishment of the Commission of Inquiry to
investigate the vote rigging allegations because a number of Deaf
sports leaders were unhappy with the manner in which elections were
held. The Republic of South Africa personally voted for Valery
Rukhledev of Russia and we are confident that most of the delegates
voted for him, too. This, the Republic of South Africa believes,
explains the missing votes! Thus, please call for the establishment of
Commission of Inquiry to investigate these vote rigging allegations
and come up with the truth, nothing but the whole truth! This
Commission, the Republic of South Africa suggests, should be made up
of impartial persons and no one from the CISS/Deaflympics Executive
Committee should be in the Commission."

The Republic of South Africa is currently the third major world power
in the deaf sports movement as at the recent 20th Deaflympic Summer
Games at Melbourne, this nation finished third in the gold medal
standings ( a total of 13 gold medals won ) at the Games after the
Ukraine ( 20 gold medals ) and Russia ( 14 gold medals ).

-------------< DEAF FRIENDLY JOB OPPORTUNITIES >

2 deaf or hard of hearing mortgage consultants needed for a
Riverside, California mortgage company.

All candidates interested in any of the job opportunities are
required to apply for our job placement services. Our intake form is
at Http://www.deafadvocacy.com/intake.htm

-------------< DEAF FRIENDLY BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES >

Become an owner of a _________.WS website for only $10 a month! All
_________.WS owners automatically become .WS website resellers and it
comes with an automatic selling program and all you have to do is lead
people to your .WS reseller website. The WS stands for 'website'! Link
has video of the program in American Sign Language and is a excellent
self-sufficiency opportunity for people
who want to be on the top of the .WS cyber real estate market. Hearing
people can participate as the reseller link also has a video for them.
Begin your journey toward self-sufficiency by sending a blank email to
[email protected] and it will auto-reply back to you with information
about this fantastic program. And you will get another email message a
few days later with the full explanation of the program.

-------------< LETTERS >

Dear Mr. Roehm or Deaf Activist:

I want your group to know the following:

1. I live in Section 8.
2. This month I have debts which restrict my spending to about 125.00
3. I am being stalked by a murderer who tortured me and raped my
girlfriend after claiming to be from Amnesty International. He is
using me for forced labor as a writer and has confiscated my life's
work as a writer repeatedly.
4. If you thought of evacuating me to an emergency shelter, I would
comply in return for help, but need to be sure there is a clinic for
my prescriptions and a food kitchen.
5. I would be very low on money and energy.
6. I believe BOTH Reagan AND Clinton worked on the crime in which I
found Lennon assassination letters. They have repeatedly circulated
rape rumors about me to cover their hate crimes. I was a resigned
Medical Library Clerk investigating leads that AIDS was manmade in the
80's which turned up certain proof of it. I believe BOTH Reagan AND
Clinton authored the AIDS onslaught.
7. For this reason I do not believe your group would be able to
overcome the hesitancy which would exist to protect me.
8. The murderer has brutally and REPEATEDLY TORTURED me. They also
ferociously raped my retarded and deaf girlfriend.
9. To punish me for speaking out, the Clintons have served as
advocates for the men who tortured me in childhood, which destroyed
our lives, my mother lost her home.

Mac Crary - [email protected]

-------------< EPILOG >

If you wish to contribute to this newsletter, feel free to send in
news, stories, and opinions relating to the disability community. Your
support for this effort to move the disability community forward will
be greatly appreciated. We will continue to aggressively pursue
justice, fairness, and equality for the disability community as it has
been doing since November 1996. We have chosen that EDUCATION is the
best way accomplish this objective.

Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center is a community based organization
that puts people with disabilities first in their advocacy for equal
opportunities in safety, health, and productive living.

The Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center provides services for disabled
individuals and their families in our community who need help in
navigating the social services maze go without proper food, shelter,
and essential medical care every day due to a variety of factors
including low wages, job loss, injuries, illness, age, domestic
violence, or divorce. While all of us are susceptible to hard times,
disabled individuals are at the most risk. With the generous support
of people like you, we are able to help many of these families and
individuals not only to meet essential daily needs, but to work toward
a brighter future with programs in job training, education,
counseling, elderly assistance, and temporary housing.

Feel free to forward this email message to any one and any of your
personal mailing lists so we can get the important messages out far
and wide and encourage them to sign up for our weekly newsletter.

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