Mission Statement: Disability Rights California defends, advances, and strengthens the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities.

California
Replying to @DisabilityCA
UPDATE: The DRC intake line is available Monday/Tuesday/Thursday/Friday from 9:00AM – 3:00PM. Our intake line is closed on Wednesdays.
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Today is the 53rd anniversary of the passage of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a landmark piece of disability rights legislation. The Rehabilitation Act was the first major federal civil rights law to protect people with disabilities from discrimination in federal employment, federal agencies, programs that receive federal financial assistance, and more. Significantly, The Rehabilitation Act paved the way for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other advancements in disability rights laws. While there is still work to be done, today is a day to reflect on the progress that has been made, and the foundation that the Rehabilitation Act built. People with disabilities, from decades past to present, have fought for and won the freedom to make decisions about their lives and be integral parts of our communities. Together, we will continue to protect this right. Photo credit: Anthony Tusler #DisabilityRightsCA #RehabilitationAct #Anniversary #CommunityIntegration #CivilRights . . Image Description: Image of people in wheelchairs protesting outside of a federal building. Text: Anniversary: Passage of the Rehabilitation Act.
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Yesterday, the Disability Community + Movement North Star Memo was released! The Disability Culture Lab convened nearly 50 members of the disability community, including Disability Rights California, to dream about our collective liberation and the steps we need to take to get there. This memo is the result of a year of collaborative, cross-disability visioning on how to make vital improvements for people with disabilities in the United States! You can now check out the memo at the link below and learn more by joining us for a virtual event TOMORROW. Memo Link: tinyurl.com/DisCoNSV @disability_lab Learn more about this work and memo by joining the community briefing on September 25, 2026, from 12 to 1:30 p.m. ET via Zoom. Register via the link: tinyurl.com/DisCoBriefing. When: Friday, September 25, 2026 at 9:00AM PT #DisabilityCultureLab #DisabilityRightsCalifornia #CommunityBriefing #DisabilityCommunityMovementNorthStar #Memo
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As part of D/deaf Awareness Month, we would like to recognize International Day of Sign Languages TODAY on September 23. This day celebrates sign languages around the world and highlights the importance of linguistic diversity, accessibility, and inclusion for Deaf communities. Today and beyond we can take the great opportunity to learn more about sign languages around the world. Together we can raise awareness about communication access, support sign language rights, and foster inclusion across all areas of life. Happy International Day of Sign Languages and Deaf Awareness Month! #DisabilityRightsCA #DeafAwarenessMonth #DeafCommunity #DHH #InternationalDayOfSignLanguages
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Check out episode four of DRC's documentary short series, The Power Healthcare Gives Us! Nicole is a dynamic professional speaker and content creator who has spent more than a decade fighting for disability rights. Learn more about how critical resources like Medi-Cal and In-Home Supportive Services empower Nicole to continue her work in advocacy and being a vital community leader! Watch the full episode at the link: disabilityrightsca.org/custo… Versions are available in American Sign Language (ASL) and with audio descriptions. This series is made possible with the support from The California Endowment. #DisabilityRightsCA #ThePowerHealthcareGivesUs #MediCal #IHSS #Documentary #NicoleAdler . . Video Description: Top frame text: The Power Healthcare Gives Us. Blue/green DRC logo. Top video of Nicole, she is a white woman with Down Syndrome who has long light brown hair and wears a blue dress. ASL interpreter below. End text: This series was made possible by support from The California Endowment.
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Video Transcript: IHSS for me. I always -- have a mom. She takes care of me medically and I have the freedom and my choice to live the life I want to thrive in. And just having that resource for me is really beneficial because I wouldn't be here without it. Having conversations matter, telling your stories matter. I see them everywhere. It’s what you have to do in your own unique way. And we want our services. We want our community to thrive. And I'm fighting for civil rights and for everybody in the world to know love revolution. The power of love.
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Webinar TOMORROW! Learn more about Medicaid and Medicare for adults with disabilities.
Join our webinar to learn how to help caregivers and adults with intellectual & developmental disabilities navigate Medicaid and Medicare! @Genentech @The_NHHF @DisabilityCA 📅 Sept. 22 | ⏰ 2 p.m. CT Register: bit.ly/iddwebinar
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Disability Rights California retweeted
Some helpful information from our good friends at Disability Rights California. Información útil de nuestros buenos amigos de Disability Rights California.
We're in the middle of Disability Voting Rights Week! As you start making your voting plan for the November election, we want to help by sharing information about your options for returning your ballot if you want or need to vote using the ballot that is mailed to you. This is a brand new video that we are excited to share! It walks through your three return options for your mail ballot and provides practical tips. You can also check out the video on our YouTube channel where we have versions in English and American Sign Language (ASL). English Video: piped.video/q2wGZRYSyhE ASL Video: piped.video/3Rx6OKe9ceI If you have a disability, you are allowed to receive help with voting, including returning your ballot. If you have questions or are having difficulty voting because of a disability, DRC's hotline for California voters with disabilities is open year-round on weekdays during business hours (9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.) (and longer hours on Election Day). Call us at (888) 569-7955. When we vote, we make decisions that impact the lives of everyone around us. Voters with disabilities, like all voters, have a right to vote for who represents us, how taxes are spent, and more. You should not face discrimination in the voting process simply because you have a disability. Make your vote count by this Election Day (November 3)! We will continue to share voting resources on DRC social media as Election Day gets closer! #DisabilityRightsCA #BallotReturn #DisabilityVotingRightsWeek #BallotDropBox #MailVoting
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September is D/deaf Awareness Month!   In celebration of this month, we're taking a look back at when DRC participated in LEAD-K’s Love and Literacy Across California!   It was an incredible and lively experience for our DRC staff who were present in different California cities from Riverside, Fresno, Sacramento, and more with the goal of providing educational support for Deaf and Hard of Hearing children and families. Everyone who came out enjoyed storytelling, resources, books, activities, and meaningful connections amongst families and service providers. It was an honor to be part of an important day with several great partner organizations to create an engaging environment for children and families to sign, read, and learn from each other.   Stay up to date with LEAD-K Family Services to learn about next events in California! LEAD-K website: leadkfamilyservices.org/   This is a free annual event with locations across California! Together we can help ensure Deaf and Hard of Hearing children are supported in their ASL and literacy journeys.   #DisabilityRightsCA #ASL #DeafCommunity #Literacy #LEADK #HardOfHearing @NorCalDeafSvcs @GLADeaf @DHHSCtweets
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Video Transcript: [KEN] Hi hello. My name is Ken and I am here in Fremont with the Love and Literacy Event. [ANAHI] Hello my name is Anahi, ASL Interpreter Coordinator at DRC. Today we are at the LEAD-K event in Riverside. [TREMMEL] I’m here with Disability Rights California volunteering at the NorCal event for Deaf and Hard of Hearing and this event is called the Love and Literacy Event. It is about making sure that early intervention for kids to have language access and me and my coworker are here volunteering today. [ELISSA] I’m Elissa! [JESSE] Hi I’m Jesse Gilbert, Jesse. I’m here in Orange County at the event for LEAD-K. I’m here with the Peer Self Advocacy program at DRC. [YINKA] Hello my name is Yinka Glover and I work at Disability Rights California in the Investigations Unit and we are here today at the Love and Literacy Event in Fresno. [EVELYN] Hello my name is Evelyn Cortes and I’m with the Office of Client’s Rights Advocacy Unit and I’m the Client’s Rights Advocate for the Fresno office and we’re happy to be here! [KEN] And so we’ve all come together today to mix as a Deaf community including parents and children and educate about DRC, Disability Rights California. Next Year come out and join us! It’s really a lot of fun and a great opportunity to educate the community. Thanks bye!
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Virtual workshop TOMORROW! Learn more and register at the link: disabilityrightsca.org/event…
Are you a person with disabilities that needs to make changes to your housing rules or to your home’s physical structures to make it more accessible? Please join us at this virtual workshop to learn about your rights to do so. Join us to learn about your right to ask for a “reasonable accommodation” or “reasonable modification” – adjustments to rules, policies, services, and even the physical layout of your home to make it more accessible for you. We will review best practices, discuss potential costs, and go over what to expect once you have made your requests. Interpretation will be provided if requested at least 1 week before the event date. When: Tuesday, September 22nd at 1pm PT Learn more and register at the link: disabilityrightsca.org/event… #HousingResource #DisabilityRightsCalifornia #Webinar #VirtualWorkshop . . Image Description: Top image of a person smiling and seated in a wheelchair in a decorated living room. The person has long braids tied back and wears a pink striped sweater. Header Text: Virtual Workshop. Title Text: Reasonable Accommodations in Housing September 22, 2026 at 1:00pm. Blue/green DRC logo.
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September 15 through October 15 is National Latinx/e Heritage Month! During this time and beyond, we celebrate the cultures, contributions, and resilience of Latinx, Hispanic and Latino-identified communities throughout the Americas. This period also commemorates the independence anniversaries of several Latin American nations and uplifts the cultural traditions and legacy of a variety of Latine communities. Together, this month and beyond, we can celebrate and engage in this important opportunity to remove ignorance, prejudice and fear through education about multiculturalism and the history of the countless contributions of Latinx communities. Hispanic and Latino people come from a variety of countries, cultures, and communities and ALL deserve to advocate for their rights and engage in collective action against injustice. #DisabilityRightsCA #LatineHeritageMonth #Hispanic #Latino #History . . Image Description: Blue/green DRC logo. Title Text: National Latinx Heritage Month | September 15 - October 15. Two cut out photos. Left photo of Vanessa Ochoa, a Latina woman wearing a mariachi outfit complete with a large hat, bow around her collar, and a match blue and white patterned jacket and long skirt. Right photo of a Latino man, seated in a wheelchair, playing a guitar. He has blond dyed hair and wears glasses and a collared shirt. Background of colorful banner patterns with different flowers and tile patterns.
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One way to learn more about how elections are run and to help protect our democracy is by volunteering as a poll monitor. If you are available on Tuesday, November 3, our next statewide Election Day, you might consider volunteering with the nonpartisan election-protection monitoring coalition being organized by California Common Cause, Asian Law Caucus, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights. You can find all of the details, including the list of counties where monitoring is taking place, training dates, and requirements, at californiaelectionprotection…. No prior experience or legal background is necessary. The deadline to sign up is October 13. @CommonCause @AsianLawCaucus @lccrsf Disability Rights California has partnered with these organizations many times in the past and has contributed to the questionnaires poll monitors use, including the questions about voting access for people with disabilities. One of the things poll monitors do is evaluate the physical accessibility of voting locations, and their feedback has helped to make voting locations across California more accessible to people with disabilities. Check out the website or email info@californiaelectionprotection.org to learn more. #ElectionDay #November3 #PollMonitor #VotingAccessibility #CaliforniaElectionProtection . . Image Description: Bold Text: Become a poll monitor. Help make voting accessible! Logo text: California Election Protection. Three logos with text: Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, Common Cause, Asian Law Caucus. Two cut out photos below with sign in the middle with text: Vote Here Today! Left photo of a man wearing a black hat and sunglasses taking notes on sheets of paper on a clipboard. Right photo of a man in a motor wheelchair with short hair, a mustache, and is wearing sunglasses and a black outfit.
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Join us for a virtual teach-in where we'll explore the differences and connections between mental health and substance use systems of care, the unique challenges faced by people living with both, and why community, peer support, and belonging are so essential to healing. Learn more and register at the link: disabilityrightsca.org/event… Carolina Ayala will be joining us as our Speaker as she shares her life experiences at the intersection of trauma, substance use, mental health challenges, incarceration, and ultimately, recovery. In this conversation, she will share pieces of her own journey and how those experiences led her to found The Happier Life Project, Riverside County’s first Recovery Community Organization. We hope people leave with a deeper understanding that recovery is possible, hope matters, and every person deserves the opportunity to build a life they love. #DisabilityRightsCA #MentalHealth #Recovery #Incarceration #VirtualTeachIn . . Image Description: A large watercolor painting of several shadowed figures all holding hands. There's a break in the middle where one figure has raindrops dripping over them. A figure to the left holds out a rainbow umbrella to block the other figure from rain. Header Text: Virtual Teach-In. Title Text: Open Minds: Understanding Substance Use, Mental Health, and the Power of Community. Text: September 30, 2026 at 11:00AM
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Check out this op-ed from Other Words advocating for In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) and other safeguards for people with disabilities and their loved ones. "I’ve built our lives around providing care to our child, but the federal government is now dismantling the already under-funded supports that make this possible." Check out the full op-ed at the link: otherwords.org/my-daughter-b… #DisabilityRightsCA #OtherWords #IHSS #HR1 #MedicaidCuts #HCBS
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Join us THIS MONDAY! Learn more about the California Memorial Project by visiting the link: disabilityrightsca.org/event……
The Peer Self-Advocacy Program and the California Memorial Project will soon host its 24th Annual Remembrance Ceremony. This special gathering is an opportunity to come together in honor, reflection, and hope as we remember and uplift our peers with mental health, intellectual, and developmental disabilities who lived—or currently live—in state institutions and locked facilities. Too often, their lives, voices, experiences, and humanity have gone unseen, unheard, and forgotten. Please join us, either virtually or in-person, as we celebrate the strength, resilience, and humanity of our peers and continue advocating for communities where every person is respected, valued, included, and free to live with dignity, choice, and hope. Learn more by visiting the link: disabilityrightsca.org/event… At the link, you will be able to access the virtual ceremony at the noted date and time below. Virtual Ceremony When: Monday September 21, 2026 at 1:00 PM (ASL Interpreter, Spanish Language Interpreter and Live Captions available) In-person at Manteca When: Monday, September 21, 2026 at 10:30 AM Where: Parkview Cemetery 3661 French Camp Road Manteca, CA 95336 In-person at Stockton When: Monday, September 21, 2026 at 10:30 AM Where: Valley Mountain Regional Center (VMRC) (Memorial rock/water area) 702 N. Aurora St. Stockton, CA 95202 In-person at Norwalk When: Monday, September 21, 2026 at 1:00 PM Where: DSH-Metropolitan James Hall Auditorium 11401 South Bloomfield Ave Norwalk, CA 90650 In-Person at Patton When: Monday, September 21, 2026 at 10:30 AM Where: DSH-Patton 3102 Highland Ave Patton, CA 92369 Together, we honor the memories of those lost, acknowledge the experiences of those currently living in institutions, and reaffirm our commitment to a future beyond stigma, discrimination, neglect, mistreatment, ignorance, and judgment. As California continues to face growing reliance on involuntary hospitalization and forced treatment as responses to society’s challenges, it is more important than ever that we gather in solidarity to raise awareness, restore dignity, and advocate for the rights, freedom, and self-determination of all people. #DisabilityRightsCA #CaliforniaMemorialProject #Virtual #IDD #StateInstitutions
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Check out the latest episode of DRC's The Game Plan! Antoine Hunter is our guest in this episode, who brings a passion for dance and D/deaf culture to The Game Plan. For Antoine, dancing isn’t just a career, or passion; dance is how Antoine finds a place in the world. Antoine is the founder and artistic director of the Urban Jazz Dance Company and has been a force of creative leadership in the Bay Area for years. We hope you enjoy this special conversation with Antoine, just in time for Deaf Awareness Month! @thegreatdancer @emony21 Watch the podcast on YouTube with ASL, at the link: disabilityrightsca.org/lates… You can also access the audio version of the podcast on the platforms below! Substack: disabilityrightscalifornia.s… Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas… Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/14g… Amazon Music: music.amazon.com/podcasts/e6… #DisabilityRightsCA #TheGamePlan #Podcast #DeafAwarenessMonth #UrbanJazzDanceCompany #AntoineHunter . . Video Description: Podcast video clip of Mx. Antoine Hunter signing and speaking over a video call. Antoine is a two-spirit, Black individual with long dark locs tied back and a dark beard with some gray. Antoine is wearing a jacket with the Urban Jazz Dance Company logo. Eric is briefly on camera, he is a Black man with a shaved head and wears glasses. Bottom logo text: The Game Plan A Disability Rights California Podcast.
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Video Transcript: [ANTOINE] So I was in high school where I felt even more segregated from this world. But it wasn’t until my high school dance teacher said that everyone needed to create a dance together in their teams. Nobody wanted to work with me. Nobody. So my teacher said, go here and create your own solo. See, I had a strong feeling, I’m not going to force it. So I did a dance solo by Whitney Houston, Whitney Houston “I will always love you.” [ERIC] Yeah. [ANTOINE] Yeah so, something happened during the instrumental break point. I felt like the lightning was coming in. The water was just shifting me and the the wind. The earth was shaking, and I was just moving my body. I forgot there were people in the room. And when the music stopped, my classmates were just pausing and I felt something really was wrong. And my teacher had that expression of just like, “See?” you know, she asked, everybody “What did you feel from his dance?” I saw them say, “It looked like someone was cold, alone, trying to connect, looking for love.” And I was like, “Wow, that's right. That’s exactly what I was trying to express.” And I learned there dance was another way to communicate. Another way to connect with people.
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