You have to know where you have been in order to know where you are going.
Last month we talked about the early years of our organization and our guardianship program where the advocates before us took pride in working to move adults from institutional settings to community settings with appropriate support. For many of these adults it was the first time they felt they had a voice in terms of when they would get up in the morning, what they would eat, wear and how they would spend their free time. At the same time advocates were working with adults who were raised at home, some attended “special” programs in a public school, some attended a separate school, and some were only “allowed” to attend school for a while… Everyone’s journey was different. Some remembered being bullied, called names, and each experienced adversity. People First was established in the mid-sixties as a grassroots movement to empower self-advocates with disabilities to have a voice in addressing issues of equality. People first language puts the person before the disability.
People First Mission Statement
The mission of People First is to help empower all people who have disabilities. To work with people to help them understand, support, and respect our rights and abilities to be fully included in our communities. To improve our skills and leadership, learning about rights and responsibilities and work on legislation to improve our quality of life. To provide opportunities to learn new skills and be involved in Self-Advocacy. To share common concerns, to come together and work as a strong team and have people everywhere recognize we are PEOPLE FIRST!
In looking through our archives we are not able to pinpoint the first time that Denver self-advocates came together. However, our walls are graced with photographs of determined adults coming together for different activities, the first People First Conference, the Close the Doors Campaign for Freedom:
Wear a yellow ribbon to remember the people who are still locked in institutions against their will. We believe that all institutions, both private and public should be closed. All people regardless of the severity of their disabilities should live in the community with the support they need.
Clarence, Michele, Charlene, Phil, Carlos, Paul, Doris, and Vickie, to name a few, led the charge. Advisors worked to keep up with trips to the Colorado State Capitol to testify in favor or opposition of legislation. There were writing campaigns and trips to Washington to demand that national leaders forward the human rights of individuals with disabilities. Self-advocates paved the way for today’s youth. Today, some youth remind us to use people-first language, but many proudly state their disability first and their pronoun/identity second. Today our youth and adults forward disability justice.
Disability Justice: a social justice movement which focuses on examining disability and ableism as they relate to other forms of oppression and identity such as race, class and gender.
