I’m taking a few days off, but will be checking email and comments while I’m gone.

Wouldn’t this be a great time to cruise the archives and read some of the posts you missed?

Back next week …

From the [UK] Guardian:

The UK’s Conservative Party is planning a £1m fund to help people with disabilities become members of Parliament. The effort by the Tories is aimed at encouraging the UK government to be more representative of the people it serves. One in five people in Great Britain has a disability, but only five percent of members of parliament are “registered disabled.”

Funds would be used to support people who wish to become MPs, underwriting the costs of adapting premises to make them accessible, sign language interpreters, specialized equipment, travel and support workers.

Abigail Lock, head of campaigns at the disability charity Scope, said: “We know many people want to be candidates and that money has been a barrier to that. Campaigning is prohibitively expensive so we welcome this move to break down those barriers.”

Building exceeds requirements; Says one organizer, it’s ‘revolutionary’

From the [Minneapolis] Finance and Commerce:

The Minnesota Twins’ new stadium will be one of the most accessible in the nation when it opens in the spring, say disability advocates.

Among the features of the new Target Field: Extra-wide entrances and curb cuts for wheelchairs, outfield captioning boards, gradually sloping pedestrian bridges, slick mass transit access, and special hearing devices at some ticket windows.

Jeff Bangsburg, a member of the project’s access advisory committee, said it’s “been amazing to see a baseball team, the county, the city, the new ballpark owners all work together … to make sure this was far and above beyond code” for accessibility.

(Photo from the [Minneapolis] Finance and Commerce)

From the Voice of America:

Kicking off the celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the United Nations has issued a statement saying that hundreds of millions of people with disabilities around the world continue to face overwhelming obstacles in their efforts to lead a meaningful life. An excerpt:

Globally, almost one in ten people is a person living with a disability and recent studies indicate that persons with disabilities constitute up to 20 per cent of the population living in poverty in developing countries.

Many persons with disabilities continue to face barriers to their participation in their communities and are often forced to live on the margins of society.  They often face stigma and discrimination and are routinely denied basic rights such as food, education, employment, access to health and reproductive health services.

Many persons with disabilities are also forced into institutions, a direct breach of the rights to freedom of movement and to live in their communities.

In commemoration of the Dec. 3 event, the UN launched a campaign called “Empowering Persons with Disabilities with the Right to Act.”

By Emily Ramshaw in the Texas Tribune:

State data shows that Texas educators forcibly pinned down students with disabilities more than 18,000 times in the last school year, sometimes causing injury. A handful of districts reported more than 40 incidents of restraint per every 100 students with disabilities during the 2007-2008 school year, with one reporting more than 70 such incidents.

Statewide, school staff restrained four of every 100 special education students, with some students being restrained dozens of times.

Educators say restraints are sometimes the only way to prevent disasters. They point to the September 2009 case of a 16-year-old Tyler special education student who fatally stabbed his music teacher in a classroom.

But disability rights advocates say the numbers point to a crisis in Texas special education. They say teachers are resorting to physical restraints because they aren’t properly trained to manage their students’ disabilities – posing a threat to vulnerable children and to themselves.

See also:

Student Restraints Day 2: How Texas school districts compare — Texas Tribune

TribBlog: Restraints: A gut-wrenching case — Texas Tribune

Special ed teacher charged in restraint case — WISTV [Columbia, SC]

Teacher’s aide charged with cruelty — WISTV [Columbia, SC]

From the [Toronto] Globe & Mail:

Canadian parents of children with Asperger’s syndrome are resisting a proposal by scientists to remove the Asperger’s label from psychiatry’s diagnostic manual. The parents say such an action would cause confusion and potentially impede treatment for people with the disorder. Scientists say the change is needed for the sake of clarity.

… “I don’t think that it’s a good idea,” says Gene Semchych, president of Asperger Manitoba Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness of the syndrome. “My fear is that if … the label of Asperger’s is not recognized under the DSM, then it would be very easy for the people with Asperger’s syndrome to fall between the cracks as they did before.”

… Back after Labor Day. I’ll do a roundup when I return, so please do keep those emails coming in while I’m away.