Project of PAVE

Project of PAVE
Partnerships for Action Voices for Empowerment

Welcome!

With a population of 1.5 million active duty military members, each day around the globe, there are an estimated 540,000 active duty sponsors each caring for a family member with special medical or educational needs. STOMP is the only National Parent Training and Information Center for military families providing support and advice to military parents without regard of the type of medical condition their child has.

Parents of children with special needs face many challenges. Service in the military compounds the problems of: anxiety and isolation, financial stresses, navigating services and lack of information. Our hope is to provide family members with a connection to others and information by bridging the gap as we seek to empower individuals. Our commitment is to provide training, information and support so that you may be the best advocate for yourself and family members. With this blog, we hope to share our experiences, stories, tips and information about the challenges we face and the joys of having special needs family members. By sharing in our hopes and dreams, gaining support from others that have walked this same path, we can better see the light at the end of the tunnel and that the future is bright.

Respectfully,
The STOMP Staff

STOMP Calendar




July 7, 2014

50 Years of Civil Rights, “We Shall Overcome” Discrimination



50 Years of Civil Rights,
“We Shall Overcome” Discrimination

Last week, as our families and friends joined together for BBQs, fireworks and Independence Day fun, there is yet another reason to celebrate. In 1964 Congress passed Public Law 88-352 (78 Stat. 241). For many of us, this may bring up small memories from history classes that discussed civil rights and thoughts of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech. Yet there is so much more for us to be thankful for as a nation, and particularly as parents who have children with special needs.

Last week, on July 2nd, marked the 50th anniversary since President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in honor of the late President John F. Kennedy. At President Johnson's side was Martin Luther King Jr, and this historic signing essentially began the revolution to end legal discrimination.


 Civil Rights legislation has truly changed the meaning of equality in this country which extends across multiple settings and also to our individuals with disabilities. In one of its earliest forms, the Civil Rights Act began to open the doors for better definition of discrimination and the acknowledgement that it would no longer be a part of the “American way of life.” 



As some of you may know, the basis for this piece of legislation was set out by President John F. Kennedy to end the segregation of African Americans. Title IV of the 1964 Civil Rights Act directly impacted the educational environment, providing for the desegregation of public education.

It was not without great resistance that this bill was signed, nor was it the first of its kind to attempt such an end to discrimination. One Senator tried to extend the definition of discrimination to also add a designation of by “sex” or gender. This keyword was soon amended and instead removed to avoid the bill being killed over further debate regarding gender discrimination. The focus was to create better rights for those on the basis of race.

"For every discrimination that has been made against a woman in this country, there has been ten times as much discrimination against the Negro," Rep. Edith Green, D-ORE

The 1964 passage created the foundation for the discrimination protections we also see in special education. Two provisions that aided in this effort were Title VI and Title VII.

Title VI prohibited discrimination based on any race, color, or national origin in programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance. This included the United States Department of Education and colleges which receives federal grants and funding. Title VII went on to prohibit the discrimination in employment based on sex, race, color, national origin, religion, and affiliations. Furthermore, it created protections from retaliation for those who file a complaint based on discrimination outlined in the law.

It was only a year later that President Johnson continued the Civil Rights revolution with the passage of the critical Voting Rights Act of 1965. This new piece of legislation gave federal protection against voting discrimination to minatory voters. 

As the definition of discrimination continued to embrace to other groups of people in new legislation throughout the years, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as well as others, extended this definitions specifically to individuals with disabilities. 

Our country celebrates its Independence on July 4th, but for so many true Independence as a group of people united as one, did not ultimately begin until July 2, 1964. We hope everyone had a wonderful Independence Day and enjoys the drastic gains made in this great nation for all Americans.

From all of us at STOMP, a belated but still important:

Additional Information:
ABC (2014). Five Things to  Know about the 1964 Civil Rights Act. (http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/things-1964-civil-rights-act-24403686
PBS (2014). LBJ: Lyndon B Johnson. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/lbj/player/
U.S. Department of Education (2014). Protecting Students with Disabilities. http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/504faq.html
U.S. Department of Justice. (July 2009). A Guide to Disability Rights Laws http://www.ada.gov/cguide.htm

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