It can be a bit intimidating to think about advocating for the rights of people with disabilities, but it doesn't need to be. You are a person with a voice, and that's all you need! There are many different ways to get involved, such as contacting your elected official with your ideas and questions, participating in Disability Days at the Capitol, working on legislation, sharing your story, and working with others to improve their lives and those of others. Here's some specific guidance for you to consider:
1. Find the local disability coalition in your state and get involved. Try your local Arc, Center for Independent Living (CIL), or other disability organization. They will know who the coalitions are and you can link up with them. They may not be talking about all of the issues that you are interested in, but you can educate them about postsecondary education for students with intellectual disability (see this Think College publication on partnerships between college programs and CIL), and they can educate you on other issues of importance to people with disabilities. For instance, maybe they don’t realize that your state scholarship doesn’t apply to college students with intellectual disability (if it doesn’t) and you may not be closely following the legislation to rid your state of subminimum wage (if it hasn’t). Or they can help you find funding to expand college options for people with intellectual disability in your state, and you can help them expand supported decision making (instead of guardianship) for people with disabilities. (For that topic, you could share this Think College publication on alternatives to guardianship.) Connecting with others in the disability community makes advocacy more fun and it can be more successful to advocate together.
2. Connect students with the self-advocacy groups in your state. The members of your state self-advocacy groups are great role models for students. Use this search at Self-Advocacy Online to find a self-advocacy group near you. You can also contact your Center for Independent Living, or CIL.
3. Once you have found your people, look to your legislators. Do you know who they are? (You can search for them here.) Do they know who you are? Do they know what you care about? Particularly at the state level, they are likely members of your local community and in many states, they have jobs outside of the legislature when the session is over. That means either you know them (a local community leader), you know someone who knows them (you may send your kids to the same school), or you can get to know them pretty easily.
4. When you know who they are, tell them who you are and what is important to you. You live in their community. You vote. Tell them why college opportunities for people with intellectual disability are important to you and to your community. (You could share this handout with quick facts about postsecondary education programs.) Tell your story, by letter, email, Zoom or even better, in person. Visit them at the state capitol or in their local office. Get on their mailing list.
5. Share information with them. You can start with sharing the “Think Higher. Think College.” video. You are building a relationship. You want them to think of you when they have a question or a piece of legislation about disability. And if you don’t know the answer, someone in your coalition will. You don’t have to do it all alone.
You may choose to do just one of these things, or all of them. The important thing is to speak up for what you believe in, and help the entire disability community enjoy more inclusive lives. It can really make a difference!