Perspectives of Rehabilitation Services
in the City of Los Angeles
Betty Wilson
Director
City of Los Angeles Mayor's Office for the Disabled
Abstract
This paper looks at the development of awareness and sensitivity to the needs of the disabled community in Los Angeles, and addresses some of the problems that still plague this community. There is discussion of the diversity within the disabled community, and of the bureaucracy that discourages minorities from seeking out rehabilitation services. The paper ends by defining the goals and the mission of Los Angeles as it concerns persons with disabilities, over the next decade.
City Perspective
Los Angeles is one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world. Over 150 languages are spoken here. Within its boundaries reside an estimated 600,000 plus persons with disabilities and this population is growing with the "aging" of America and the City.
Brief History - Office for the Disabled
In 1975, the Office for the Handicapped was established in the Mayor's Office at the seat of city government with the authority to address the issues and concerns of the disabled community, city-wide. At that time, a 45-member body, the City Los Angeles Council for the Handicapped, was also established. This "grassroots" organization provided input to city government regarding issues of critical concern to persons with "handicaps."
The sociology changed in the 1980's, an awareness and sensitivity emerged in relation to persons with disabilities in this city and nationwide. The word "handicapped" was no longer preferred by the community of persons with disabilities. Words and phrases such as: "disabled," "physically or mentally challenged," and "persons with special needs," widely dotted the literature. Persons who are deaf and speech impaired no longer accept being referred to as "deaf and dumb." This social movement is not unlike that of the Civil Rights Movement where Blacks and other ethnic groups redefined themselves in more positive terms. An example of this can be seen in the reference change from "colored" to "Negro," to "Afro-American," to "African American." In other ethnic communities, terms such as "Latino," "Asian American," and "Native American," are widely preferred.
By the mid-eighties, the Office name was changed to the Office for the Disabled and the Council for the Handicapped became the City Advisory Council on Disability. Currently, the disabled community stresses that members of this minority group should be referred to as persons/individuals first, i.e., persons/individuals with disabilities. It will be a great deal when society evolves to a stage in its development where we all are called persons with no particular reference to disability, ethnicity, age, gender, or race, in our quest for a lifestyle compatible to all of us.
Recently, since 1989, a City Commission on Disability was established to address the concerns of the community in the areas of access to city services and programs. What has not changed in the sociology of the City is the disabled community's need for:
- Employment Training
Affordable/Accessible
- Housing
- Transportation
- Recreation
- Medical/Health Services
- Adaptive Equipment/Technology
Counseling (in languages other than English, including Sign Language) in the areas of:
- Rehabilitation/Psychology
- Family Therapy
- Substance Abuse
- HIV/AIDS
The City is aware of prevailing architectural barriers, and for eight (8) consecutive years the Mayor's Office for the Disabled has provided a statewide conference on barrier-free environments. The City, after a long hard fight, finally instituted a 504/ADA Compliance Unit in the Office to bring the City into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the 1973 Rehabilitation Act. The Compliance Unit consists of: a 504/ADA Compliance Officer; deaf Access Coordinator; and a Management Assistant with Sign Language Interpreter skills.
The perception of disability in culturally diverse communities has as many variations as there are variations in life styles. Examples of this are seen in the following:
- The deaf community sees itself as being culturally different from other segments of the population with disabilities because of their most preferred/widely used form of communication - Sign Language.
- Veterans with disabilities see themselves as a culturally different group where their common experience of war has resulted in immeasurable emotional disorder, hopelessness, and drug/alcohol abuse.
(A word regarding veterans: This group of individuals share an acquired "cultural identity". They have the experience of war which for many has left immeasurably disabling effects, many of which are hidden psychological or physical disabilities such as neurological and Post-Traumatic Stress disorders {PTSD}).
Persons with disabilities who are members of various ethnic groups have historically shied away from government/community-based services. The tendency to underutilize available services is due to language and institutional barriers - sometimes these barriers are literally in the "form" (the form(s) necessary to obtain/retain services). We, as service providers, also experience this "paper" wall which is an integral part of agency/organizational survival and is a requirement of the funding sources at any of the four levels of government. Our new Mayor, Richard Riordan, has promised to streamline this process. If this is effective it could have a positive impact on the quality of services city-administered programs will offer. Services could be more accessible to persons who have difficulty in reading/comprehending long, arduous/complicated forms or materials because of these disabilities and/or reading skill levels, regardless of their language. Looking toward the year 2000, the workforce is changing to reflect an increase in the number of persons who are: bilingual; single-parent breadwinners; women; older workers; and persons with disabilities which have all of these characteristics.
City Goals
- Compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the 1973 rehabilitation Act in all City-funded programs and facilities.
- Increase the number of qualified persons with disabilities in the City workforce.
- Initiate and continue OJT/Work Experience programs.
- Reduce architectural and attitudinal barriers that preclude participation in employment and in the governmental process.
- Outreach in various languages regarding services.
Our mission as professionals in the field of rehabilitation, human services, and employment/human resources is to prepare ourselves for the challenge of facilitating the process of assimilating this diverse segment of the population into the workforce of the public and private sectors.
This mission is achievable when it is recognized by service providers and government alike. Attitudinal barriers related to disability, whether on the part of the consumer, the professional, the family, or government entities are as detrimental to successful assimilation of persons with disabilities into mainstream living as are the architectural barriers.
The City shares your concern that this traditionally underserved population must be empowered to become self-sufficient and contributing participants in the enhancement of all our lives. We truly believe in embracing diversity: therein lies our strength. Maintaining Los Angeles as a model for programs and services that are to be placed internationally is our goal.
Hypertext formatting performed by Megan Dodson
Page last updated on March 20, 1997 by Mary Kaye Rubin