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News and Events

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News

Title	Date
Access Living opposes recommendation of commission to keep institution openAccess Living urges closure of Mabley and creation of more community supportsIn early September, Governor Quinn announced the closure of two state run institutions for people with developmental disabilities, including the Mabley Developmental Center. Access Living supports the closure of both institutions.	October 27, 2011
Access Living President blogs on housing and independenceRecently, Access Living’s Marca Bristo authored a guest blog for IFF, a leading community development financial institution in the United States.	September 26, 2012
Access Living rallies for jobs and Medicaid funding for people with disabilitiesAdvocates join National Day of Action to support independence for disabled On Thursday, November 17 at 3:30 p.m., people with disabilities from Access Living will join thousands of other advocates at the Jobs Not Cuts rally at the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago as part of the National Day of Action. Access Living will call for investment in resources that employ people with disabilities, support people with disabilities while on the job, and eliminate physical, programmatic and social barriers that prevent people with disabilities from entering the workforce.	November 17, 2011
Access Living salutes Governor Quinn for decision to close Howe Developmental Center Access Living of Metropolitan Chicago salutes Governor Patrick Quinn for his decision to close the Howe Developmental Center in Tinley Park, Illinois. The decision to close the institution was announced today by the Office of the Governor.	August 28, 2009
Access Living salutes the work of Mrs. Maggie Daley Access Living remembers the life and work of Mrs. Maggie Daley, who died of cancer on November 24, 2011.	November 30, 2011

Lead On: The Access Living Blog

Disability Rights & Empowerment

Access Living is committed to the advancement and empowerment of people with disabilities in Chicago and nationwide. Our programs and services represent a multifaceted approach in attaining this goal.

Title	Date
Disability Culture: Fe Fes travel to west coast for awareness eventOn April 13, I traveled with the Empowered Fe Fes to the State of Washington to speak at Eastern Washington University for a Disability Awareness Week conference. I am the Women & Girls Organizer for the Empowered Fe Fes, which is a group of young women with various disabilities who have worked for over 15 years together to explore the issues and struggles unique to young women with disabilities while spreading awareness about disability rights.	June 5, 2010
On the 20th Anniversary of ADA: Remarks by Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez at the National Disability Rights Network Annual Conference in Los AngelesMost people in our nation, when they think of “Civil Rights,” they think of Dr. King on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, of hundreds of protestors on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, of students at lunch counters and university doors.	June 11, 2010
20th Anniversary ADA Events in Chicagoland and beyondNearly 20 years ago, President George H.W. Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act, proclaiming, “let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down.”	June 26, 2010
Illinois budget cuts threaten independence of people with disabilities A few weeks ago, Illinois announced millions of dollars in cuts to programs that support people with disabilities living independently in their own homes and communities. Statewide, the community is organizing to stop the cuts. Community based programs support the independence of people with disabilities and make fiscal sense — community services cost less than institutional services.	July 14, 2010
July 19, 2010 - Illinois Disability Community rallies to protect independenceDisability community rallies to protect independence Calls for state leadership to preserve cost efficient programs and raise revenueFacing budget cuts that could force people into costly institutions, disability advocates and organizations representing thousands of people with developmental, psychiatric and physical disabilities rallied outside the State of Illinois Building today. While Illinois faces a massive financial crisis, more than 20% of the service cuts announced last month impact people with disabilities.	July 20, 2010

Events Calendar

Title	Date
Abilities Expo Chicago Abilities Expo Chicago is new, it’s exciting, it’s fun and it’s back on June 28-30, 2013 at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center!	June 28-30, 2013
Access Living Open House Access Living invites you to the organization’s annual Open House. Thursday, June 27 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.	June 27, 2013
Advocacy Appreciation Day -- Power to the PeoplePower to the People Presents an Advocacy Appreciation Day	June 19, 2013
Are You Prepared? Town Hall Meeting on Emergency Preparedness for People with Disabilities Town Hall Meeting on Emergency Preparedness for people with disabilities	June 26, 2013
Cross Disability Support Group3rd Tuesday of each month from 1:00 - 2:30 p.m.For people of all ages, genders and disabilities. This support group is a chance for people with all types of disabilities to share concerns and ask questions, and engage with others.	3rd Tuesday of each month

Press Releases

Title	Date
A Huge Step Forward for People with Mental IllnessHistoric agreement reached to transition Illinois residents unnecessarily housed in large, impersonal nursing homesLast week was a good week for people with mental illness in Illinois. On Thursday, a federal judge granted preliminary approval for an historic agreement between the State of Illinois and thousands of people with psychiatric disabilities represented by a number of advocacy groups, including Access Living, and a private law firm - led, in this case, by the ACLU of Illinois - that will give thousands of people with mental illness an opportunity, if they choose, to move out of large, private nursing homes and into community-based settings. This agreement marks a sea change in Illinois state policy - which for far too long has relied on troubled, sometimes dangerous nursing homes to serve people with mental illness.	June 14, 2010
Disability coalition testifies in Springfield on behalf of community-based services On April 22, Access Living, as part of the Community for All Coalition, testified in Springfield in support of community based services in the Illinois Budget.	April 22, 2010
Olmstead Settlement may transition thousands of people with disabilities into community-based settings A landmark agreement between the State of Illinois and thousands of persons with mental illnesses will result in significant reforms of Illinois’ outmoded, overcrowded and scandalized nursing home system.	March 15, 2010
Access Living Statement in Response to March 10 Budget Address Access Living statement in response to Governor Quinn’s Budget address	March 11, 2010
The Bullhorn - The Newsletter of Access Living Access Living’s bimonthly newsletter The Bullhorn, the newsletter of Access Living, is published bimonthly.	Jan 19th, 2010

The Bullhorn - The Newsletter of Access Living

Access Living’s bimonthly newsletter

The Bullhorn, the newsletter of Access Living, is published bimonthly.

Title	Date
The Bullhorn Volume 78Volume 78 of the Bullhorn, the Newsletter of Access Living, from October 2012.	January 10, 2013
The Bullhorn Volume 77The Bullhorn Volume 77 August 2012	January 10, 2013
The Bullhorn - Volume 76The Newsletter of Access Living Volume 76 of the Bullhorn, the Newsletter of Access Living, published in June of 2012.	January 9, 2013
The Bullhorn Volume 75Volume 75 of the Bullhorn, the Newsletter of Access Living, published in April 2012	April 2012
The Bullhorn Volume 74Volume 74 of The Bullhorn, The Newsletter of Access Living	March 2012