After a smooth trip down on Monday, we got a good night's rest because we were starting early Tuesday. Traditionally, ADAPT's first day starts slow with a new person training, some issue updates and lightweight march in the afternoon - this was not the case this time.
With the new person orientation at 8 AM while leadership met to discuss the day's strategy, we were then getting in line at 9 AM - the earliest first day start in my seven years with ADAPT. Rochester has a great batch of new people with us including Christy Wilson, Greg Sullivan, the soon to be married Elise Burmeier, intern Aaron Lagrange and CDPAS attendants Renatta, Sabrina and Kenya. Bruce Darling is representing Rochester as a Day leader and Shelly Perrin and I are color leaders.
ADAPT was on the move about 10 AM. After a healthy walk across some torn up DC streets (my legs still feel the bumps and spasms) we arrived at our targets. While five of the six color groups descended upon the annual conference of the Public Housing Authority Director's Association the remaining group wedged itself into the office of the association of large housing authorities. This association represents cities like Boston, NY, Philly... And apparently Rochester!
At the PHADA conference, we strolled about 400 people into the Hyatt Regency through its parking garage. You'd think the door guys might get suspicious, but they held the doors for our whole group. Thanks guys!
ADAPT flooded into the lobby, which opens up to the second level as well as down to the meeting room levels. As the hotel staff scrambled, ADAPTers blocked the escalator between the first and second floors. ADAPT began to chant "we want Kaiser" - demanding that the Executive Director of PHADA meet with ADAPT.
We circulated a flyer to our folks, hotel guests and staff and conference attendees explaining our protest against PHADA. PHADA has failed to live up to promises to support ADAPT's "Access Across America" campaign. Housing Authorities have a great deal of ability to set local priorities for the use of funding and ADAPT has been pushing them to make accessible housing a top priority - especially for individuals wanting out of institutions!
Bruce and another ADAPT leader took the elevator downstairs to find Mr. Kaiser. After a great deal more chanting: Accessible, Affordable, Integrated Housing - and the blocking of several elevators - we learned that PHADA had agreed to meet. 15 ADAPTers met with PHADA to discuss ADAPT's demands for more accessible housing. After this preliminary meeting, it was agreed that there would be another more detailed meeting and a date was set - in writing.
ADAPT pulled back from the elevators and escalators, had our trademark McDonalds lunch, cleaned up and left. Back to the hotel we go for another meeting later in the afternoon.
The full group reassembled for a 4PM meeting with representatives from the Conference of Catholic Bishops. This was follow up from the protest in DC two months ago supported by phone calls and faxes from ADAPTers across the country. In our meeting, the Catholic reps spoke very positively of working with ADAPT now and into the future to fight for more community based services. Although they operate approximately 1500 nursing homes, they expressed their recognition of the moral obligation to make sure people are able to live where they want to live with the services they need. ADAPT will work with them, and remain vigilant.
With two protest locations and an additional meeting to boot, it always amazes me the number of directions ADAPT can be moving in at one time!
Free our people!
Chris Hilderbrant
Rochester ADAPT
Day two for ADAPT went well - almost disturbingly like day one. We had our leadership meeting at 8 AM and had all of ADAPT begin lining up at 9 AM. Once the group was all together in one giant, single file line of wheelchairs, we began to march.
Again we walked and again we arrived at our destination - a hotel, but not the same as on Tuesday. ADAPT came in quietly through the side door (not the parking garage this time) trying not to be noticed - and believe it or not, it nearly worked. Almost all of ADAPT was in before the hotel security guards were on scene trying to shut the doors. With ADAPTers holding the doors open and security trying to yank them shut, while other ADAPTers raced by, it became pretty intense. Eventually, the security stopped trying to stop us and we were all in!
We were at the conference meeting of the American Association of Health Plans, a group that does a ton of Managed Care insurance plans. As State governments and possible the federal gov't look more and more to forcing people into managed care plans, ADAPT confronted the managed care plans about how can managed care implement consumer direction?!
Inside the hotel, we assembled in the lobby and began chanting loudly! ADAPT chanted for a meeting with the Executive Director - Karen Ignogny (sp?). After a great deal of time on this chant, we switched it up to play with the theme of the day's action - Cash Cows! The new chant was "We're not your cash cows - meet with ADAPT now!" Several ADAPTers wore cow costumes and we spread shower curtains that we had markered black spots onto around the lobby. Fake money was tossed down onto us by an ADAPTer who had snuck to the second floor balcony.
The Police took our demands to the leaders on the managed care conference. Soon ADAPT was negotiating with the conference's reps, reviewing our concerns and our demands. After a good deal of negotiating time, a future meeting was set and ADAPT was done with the managed care group - for now...
We had our McDonald's lunch and then rolled out. ADAPTers marched across the Capital and up Capital Hill, or as my arms like to call it - "You want us to push up THAT HILL?" Finally we reached the top of Capital Hill and boy were my arms tired (from holding onto the back of a powerchair that flew up the hill). Kudos to Arlene and Renata for pushing Charlie all the way up the hill! We then went to the Rayburn Senate building.
In Rayburn, there was a hearing held by the ADA Oversight Committee of Congress. ADAPT went to show our support of the ADA and make sure our friends in Congress know we're there - and to make sure that those who would weaken the ADA know that we'll be there!
Back to the hotel we went form an evening to enjoy, some sleep, and back in line by 9 AM Thursday!
Free our people!
Chris Hilderbrant
Rochester ADAPT
Hey All,
First thing, if you want to see pictures from the action or read perspectives besides my own, visit: http://www.adapt.org/freeourpeople/aar/excuse/
We began Thursday very much the same way as the past couple days - 8 AM leadership meeting and a 9 AM line up. Once all of ADAPT was all set to go, we began our morning march. It was gray and drizzly and the weather forcasts predicted the same al day - and they were right for a change. A short distance and a few familiar turns later, we were at one of ADAPT's most visited locations ever - HUD Headquarters - Housing and Urban Development, the home of Section 8 and various other vouchers and housing programs.
As ADAPT approached the HUD building, police and security hurriedly surrounded the front doors the "Police Line - Do Not Cross" tape around the nearby building pillars. And although we had no plans of actually blocking the front doors, it sure was nice of them to block off theirm own doors for us. As ADAPTers continued to stream into the courtyard and fill in the areas in front of the doors, somethingn strange happened. HUD reps invited ADAPT leaders to come inside to discuss what was going on. What was going on is that our people need housing and need it bad - and HUD has failed to deliver that or even keep their word on smaller promises.
As leaders went in to meet with HUD, our forces started chanting to send the message to all those inside and walking nearby, we need "Affordable, Accessible, Integrated Housing (NOW!)". Various other chants rippled through the crowd and Anita Cameron led us all in several songs. One personal new favorite chant was started by Nancy Salandra... "What do we want: VOUCHERS! Just back the truck up and drop 'em off!" This helped raise some spirits as the time dragged on and the rain kept falling. And frankly, a dumptruck full of vouchers would be a nice start to fixing our housing crisis.
Eventually, ADAPTers emerged from inside HUD with the Assistant Secretary of HUD. Together they announced what had been agreed upon today, including HUD Secretary Jackson sending a letter to all Housing Authorities encouraging them to take advantage of HUD rules that allow vouchers to be locally targeted to people with disabilities and especially those that are stuck in institutions due to the lack of housing.
Not bad, when you consider that this waqs not to be our primary action of the day. We had no plans of really getting into details with HUD, we were mostly going to gather, chant, and do some street theater to raise pressure on HUD. We did all that and got some concessions as well! Then, while the rain continued, we lined back up in our color groups and marched.
This time the path and destanation were less familiar, but the end location was one we had visited before Republican National Committee Headquarters. With Bruce Darling posing as a Republican party loyalist in order to enter the office before the rest of ADAPT arrived, we were able to get many ADAPT people into the office, something we had not accomplished before. You know you're going to be looking for a new job when youm work in the US Capitol, provide security for some of the biggest movers and shakers in the nation, and you can't prevent 50 people in wheelchairs from cramming themselves into the office.
While this crew held down the office, the rest of us encircled the building, blocking all exits including the parking garage. In the back alley, I climbed to the top of the same small staircase and doorway I had blocked last time we were here. Ruben carried my chair up the stairs for me and there we sat ourselves. Dorrie Budd said it was like 'old home day', because we had spent so many hours there in 2000 while blocked the building off so well we forced a George W. Bush fundraiser ($1000 / plate) to be postponed.
Having been unsuccessful in efforts to meet with the Republican leadership and get their support for MiCASSA, Money Follows the Person, and accessible housing, it was time that ADAPT kicked it up a notch. with the building surrounded by wheelchairs and the internal office occupied by wheelchairs, the Republican leadership was quick to concede that it was time to meet with these people in wheelchairs. Bruce came out of the office, I think he had stopped pretending to be a Republican loyalist by this point, and announced to the group that we got what we wanted. He read the letter committing to a meeting between 15 ADAPT members and then RNC Chairman.
We celebrated and marched back to the hotel. Two successes in one day and time leftover in the evening to get to know our brpthers and sisters from across the nation, can it get any better?
Yes, we could finally FREE OUR PEOPLE!
Chris Hilderbrant
Rochester ADAPT
