By Cyndi Jones, Publisher
In my college chemistry class I learned that the three laws of thermodynamics could be summed up as: you can't win, you can't break even and you can't quit.
This is true of disability rights advocacy as well. It seems that we can never do the right thing! But then, what is the right thing?
If we write letters, we are ignored by the recipients and called wimps by the radicals.
If we complain, we are called whiners. If we sue, we are told we should've complained first or at least written a letter.
If we get thousands of people to respond to an issue, we overwhelm the system into paralysis. And if we don't get a mass of responders, we didn't show enough support.
If we demonstrate, we should have negotiated. If we negotiate, we should be reasonable. If we're reasonable, we should also be patient. And if we're patient nothing will change.
This is how the status quo works. Stall. Tell the newcomers, "You aren't doing it the right way. Go back to GO. Do not collect $200." Anything to maintain the status quo.
I remember when I was in Shriners Hospital in Los Angeles in 1965. I remember it because Watts was burning and we could see the smoke from the hospital windows. Within a few days, several fire alarms went off in the hospital. The older children comforted the younger ones, while the staff assisted the emergency personnel. This turned out to be a tactic of the arsonists, to get the firemen to respond to a children's hospital alarm first, creating a longer response time to Watts.
I have often thought about the frustration that created this scenario. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 had just been passed, so you would think that this would have bought some time for the "status quo" to reshape the future. One year is all it bought. The people wanted tangible proof that things were going to get better, and they didn't see it. Frustrations ran high and finally erupted.
Funny thing, the disability community has been patient for 7 years since the signing of the ADA. Our frustration is being vented in an orderly way, through the courts -- the "proper thing to do." And yet we are still accused of not proceeding "correctly." We're not talking burning here, we're talking litigating. The only problem is: we are winning and the status quo doesn't like to lose, especially to a bunch of disabled people.
I say, keep it up and re-double your efforts.
I pledge to you, and ask you to do the same, that I will not question your methods. Every one of us has a gift or talent for pursuing our rights in the way that feels best for him or her.
If you are a writer -- write. If you are a negotiator -- negotiate. If you are a litigator -- litigate. If you are a demonstrator -- demonstrate. If you are a cheerleader -- cheer us on. If you are a donor -- donate. Listen to your heart and follow it.
Don't look back or question yourself. Go forward.
Cyndi Jones is Publisher of MAINSTREAM.
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