NYC Disabled Community Faces Hardships After Attack The September 11 terrorist attacks on New York City's World Trade Center will have broad effects on the disabled community, according to online disability community iCAN's news service. In the wake of the disaster, many people with disabilities who live in lower Manhattan were cut off from the supplies and services on which they depend. For example, paratransit service was disrupted, and businesses such as pharmacies and repair shops were closed or inaccessible. The National Council on Independent Living contacted the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the White House after the attack to ask that the needs of the disabled be considered. The White House issued guidelines to all federal agencies to make sure they addressed these concerns. "We don't expect that FEMA is just going to readily understand what some of the complicated issues are," said Marcie Roth, director of advocacy and public policy at the National Council on Independent Living in Arlington, Va. In the wake of the attacks, many home health care workers had trouble getting to some clients. The independent living centers had unconfirmed reports that some personal attendants were unable to reach people with disabilities, said Laura Hagen, executive director of the Capital Area Center for Independence in Albany, NY. "There's a concern that emergency personnel may not be letting [home health care workers] through because they're not family or they don't live there and may not understand what attendant services are or what they need," she said. Hagen added that some aides who tried to get into lower Manhattan were turned away by emergency personnel who said they were not authorized in the area surrounding the World Trade Center. Citymeals-On-Wheels, which provides food for the homebound elderly, saw service disrupted when meal vans could not make it into the city after the attacks. Several local restaurants called the agency to offer to help, and volunteers offered to deliver the meals in their neighborhoods. Citymeals-On-Wheels has seven centers below 14th Street, said program coordinator Alison Leavitt, and of those only one had to close September 11 without providing meals. On an average day, the agency works with 120 centers to provide 16,000-17,000 meals. Leavitt said 100-200 clients did not get meals on either Tuesday or Wednesday. All the agency's clients were contacted and emergency supplies were distributed to those in the most need. Many people with disabilities were not able to make it to medical appointments either because they were unable to find transportation or were afraid to leave their homes. The cutoff areas included residential districts affected by the attack. City officials warned people with lung disease about the dangers of breathing in the smoke and dust generated by the rubble from the collapsed towers. CIDNY, the Manhattan center for independent living, has its offices in lower Manhattan. The center's staff went back to work shortly after the terrorist attacks. In addition to addressing the needs of the disabled, the center asked area hospitals to refer people who were disabled because of the attack to them. As part of the relief efforts, Congress approved $40 billion-which includes money originally earmarked for other programs and plans such as prescription drug benefits. In addition, because of the diversion of funds, disability leaders see little hope of MiCASSA, a bill that would provide community-based services, being enacted. "Forty billion dollars might affect some of the reforms we thought were going to start happening," Roth said. "For the independent living centers there was not a thin dime in new money in the budget that's been recommended at this point. We've been working hard all year to get some additional money." Learning-Disabled Woman to Have More Time for Bar Exam In August, the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a learning-disabled woman has to have twice the normal 2 days to take the New York State bar examination, according to an article by Mark Hamblett in the New York Law Journal. Marilyn Bartlett, whose 8-year fight with the New York State Board of Law Examiners has included an appeal to the US Supreme Court and two appearances before the 2nd Circuit Court, convinced Judge Sonia Sotomayor that she has a disability that should be accommodated under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ruling in Bartlett v New York State Board of Law Examiners came after a second trial in February. Sotomayor found that Bartlett "is substantially limited in the major life activity of reading when compared to most people." Bartlett, who is severely dyslexic, has failed the bar exam five times. On one of her tests, she did receive some accommodations by the state board, according to the Journal. Bartlett did, however, perform well on the LSAT, the law school entrance examination; obtained both a college and a law degree; and can speak but not read German. While in school, she relied on study groups, dictation, people who read to her, and courses that were graded on written papers and not time-limited exams. Sotomayor said that the Board showed a "preoccupation with test scores," and a "distrust of clinical judgments," that seemed to be driven, in part, "by misperceptions and stereotypes about learning disabilities." She added that although the Board's concern about protecting the integrity of the bar was a laudable goal, it could not be biased against the learning disabled. "Plaintiff's experts have convinced me that the extra time provided to learning disabled applicants merely levels the playing field and allows these individuals to be tested on their knowledge; it does not provide them with an unfair advantage," Sotomayor said. Following the original 1997 trial, Sotomayor found that Bartlett was entitled to accommodations under the ADA because she has a "physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities." In addition to being given 4 days to take the test, Bartlett will be allowed to use a computer and has permission to circle multiple choice answers in the examination booklet. Both the New York State and Multistate Bar Examinations will be presented to her in large print.
