Noah Upchurch, Advocacy Specialist & Self-Advocates of Indiana Administrator
In April, some of us at The Arc of Indiana and Self-Advocates of Indiana had the opportunity to attend the Disability Policy Seminar in Washington D.C., along with 700 other disability advocates from across the country. Here are some reflections from me, Shawn Fulton, Advocacy Engagement & Education Manager; and Melody Cooper, Self-Advocate Specialist.
Shawn: I’ll list some of my key takeaways of the Disability Policy Seminar. The first was the opening session which me and Noah were asked to be apart of, talking about the importance of what “Nothing About Us Without Us” means and the importance of talking to your legislators. Another thing was meeting with the legislative aides of the different legislators, in particular Representative Carson’s legislative aide and how much research she did on Self-Advocates of Indiana and understanding the issues we were talking about. The other thing I appreciated was not only did people with disabilities open the conference but we also closed it as well.
Noah: I also share Shawn’s opinion about how impressed I was about the inclusion of self-advocates in the conference, it really felt like our opinions were valued and our voices respected. This was my first time at the conference, something that I was not alone in given there hundreds of new attendees. The atmosphere was really energetic and passionate and I think it really shows how much fire we have in the disability community and when we band together, our fire and passion are amplified even further. I also really enjoyed going to Capitol Hill for the first time and meeting with the legislative aides, it was an amazing experience I will never forget.
Melody: Disability Policy Seminar is honestly one of my favorite events every year. I really enjoyed all the sessions at the conference and talking with all the other self-advocates from all across the US about how we each live our independent lives. I knew going into the conference that it was so important to talk about Medicaid. I also really liked educating legislators on how important Medicaid is to my life and to people important to me.
Photo: Becky Shields, Advocacy & Research Manager; Shawn Fulton, Advocacy Engagement & Education Manager; Melody Cooper, Self-Advocate Specialist; Noah Upchurch, Advocacy Specialist & SAI Administrator; and Tom Crishon, Chief Legal Officer, at the Disability Policy Seminar.