DEC especially would like to amplify Linn Benton NAACP’sCommunity Wide Vigil to Honor Mr. Tyre Nichols on Monday, February 20, 2023 at 5:15pm.
Please see details here:
The Linn Benton NAACP invites all members of our Willamette Valley community to a vigil to honor the life of Tyre Nichols on Monday February 20. The gathering will occur at The Grove Church, located at 241 W 1st Ave in Albany, Oregon, from 5:15 to 7:00 p.m. There is ample parking available on NW Broadalbin St. adjacent to the church. In-person attendance will be combined with online access to the event. The link to register for online access can be found on the Linn Benton NAACP website. In solidarity and respect we ask that everyone who attends in-person or virtually dress in all black attire as they are able.
Our gathering is an opportunity for all persons moved by this event to share our grief, and to demonstrate compassion as a community that cares for each other and the greater humanity of every individual. You are invited to come and go at any time during the vigil, as fits your personal schedule. There will be a short program toward the beginning of our time together for a few remarks.
Opportunities for Learning and Social Justice
Speak out in solidarity and support! Please call your friends, your reps, and your moms and encourage them to mobilize against the hateful and cruel anti-trans legislation that has entered our state legislature. There are currently at least 109 bills attempting to limit or ban gender-affirming care across 27 states. See more info here: Anti-Gender Affirming Care Bills & Map Update [02.08.23] (substack.com)
Please find a copy of the keynote flier for this year’s 38th Annual Pacific Rim International Conference and Disability and Diversity: here.
Check out this opportunity to work towards disability justice at the Paul Longmore Institute in California! https://mailchi.mp/sfsu/marchcafecrip-15114283?fbclid=IwAR3ubJv7NKqRSzI6lIeQ-TMzIEvM5k0rE3Ell4iK9VX3LBQhWfl69XE_lk8
그만큼 Disability Health & Employment Equity Coalition of Oregon is a group of stakeholders personally invested in the health and prosperity of the disability community. They need your help championing Senate Bill 576 during the 2023 legislative session by spreading the word and sharing your story.
As many of you know, Medicaid and the Americans with Disabilities Act help people with disabilities but also create a cycle of poverty and exclusion that contributes to poor health. Through state-level system and policy changes, Disability Health & Employment Equity Coalition strives to create equity in health and employment so the disability community can thrive and prosper in health and wealth.
Please join by supporting this legislation!
Share their work with your networks and request their support of this legislation.
Share your story of how systemic barriers have prevented you from health and prosperity.
Schedule a visit with your legislators and attend hearings to provide your testimony during the 2023 Legislature Regular Session.
If you have questions, please email info@disabilityequitycoalition.org. And join the monthly coalition meeting on the 2nd/4th Tuesdays of the month from 4pm-5:30pm.
Please see this call from OSU student, Meghann Fenn!
I am a doctoral candidate in Human Development and Family Studies. For my dissertation I am seeking current OSU students who are; at least 18 years old, and identify as having a physical disability to participate in a research study. The purpose of this research study is to assess how Oregon State University’s response to the pandemic affected the experiences of students with physical disabilities. For more information about this study, please contact me at:
Health, Wellness, and Navigation Support
This is an important webinar on Supplemental Security Income (SSI). SSI is a critical program which provides financial assistance for people who are aged, blind, or disabled and have limited income and limited resources. The ABLE Act offers the opportunity for millions of ABLE eligible people who have a disability to save without affecting SSI or other means tested benefits such as Medicaid. The ABLE Act builds on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), recognizing the extra, significant costs for those living with a disability. ABLE accounts empower people to save and invest to pay for qualified disability expenses that can provide for a better future and enhanced quality of life.
This webinar, Topics in SSI—ABLE Accounts and Supplemental Security Income, will provide information and training on:
· SSI and ABLE account basics
· How ABLE accounts can increase financial independence for those receiving SSI payments
· How ABLE accounts interact with SSI and Medicaid
· Resources and tools
Advocates working with older adults and people with disabilities, including SSI beneficiaries, should participate.
The webinar will take place on Wednesday, March 8, at 11:00am – 12:15pm PT/2:00pm – 3:15pm ET. You can register here: Webinar Registration – Zoom
Here is some information on SNAP benefits and food security: More than 720,000 Oregonians rely on the federal food Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to eat. In April 2020, after the pandemic hit and many people lost wages and jobs, federal authorities increased monthly SNAP benefits by nearly 70% to an average of nearly $450 per household a month. But in March, those monthly emergency funds will go away, reducing the average benefit to nearly $270 a month for about 410,000 households.
To sign up for SNAP, go to benefits.oregon.gov or call 800-699-9075 or TTY 71, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
To find food resources go to or call:
· Foodfinder.oregonfoodbank.org
· www.caporegon.org/find-services
· www.211info.org (211)
· www.adrcoforegon.org (855-673-2372)
DEC’s Wednesday Wellness support group that happens each week from 5-6pm is currently full. Stay tuned for other online opportunities for art and mindfulness.If youneed some community and support to feel more connected, grounded, and loved, you can still connect with DEC. Please email corvallisdisabilityjustice@gmail.com or text 404-825-4524. We are here for you!
Disability Culture and Pride Building
Come listen to “Black Disability Politics Now” on March 6, 2023 at 6:30 EST/3:30 PST. Join Sami Schalk and Vilissa Thompson for a conversation about their lives and work as Black disabled women writers in the disability justice movement. They will talk about themselves, their work, and the key issues they see for disability justice work in the future. Register here: Webinar Registration – Zoom
You can seriously jam out with DEC’s Magic Luscious Spirit Sounds Music Collective!
Every first and third Monday
DATES: March 6 and 20
TIME: 2:00 – 4:00 pm
LOCATION: In-person at Turn, Turn, Turn (8 NE Killingsworth St, Portland, OR 97211)
Join virtually over Zoom (click here to link)
Meeting ID: 814 6878 7797
Passcode: 053972
For more info, email Scott at music@disabilityequitycenter.org
Come get creative with DEC’s Moth Dreams Collaborative Art & Zine, an art meet-up and zine collective
Every first and third Wednesday
DATE: March 1 and 15
TIME: 2:00 – 4:00 pm
LOCATION: In-person at the Kennedy School in Portland, 5736 NE 33rd Ave, Portland, OR 97211
Join virtually over Zoom
Meeting ID: 974 9088 2507
For more info, email Kate at kate@disabilityequitycenter.org