DEAF WORKERS OF ORANGE COUNTY PROJECT -- DEAF WORKERS WEEKLY BULLETIN -- SEPTEMBER 4, 1999 Greetings, As the Labor Day Holiday approaches next week, and our attention is drawn to the celebration of workers with hearing disabilities, all is not well in our community. True, we have many labor driven issues to advance, better living wages for workers with hearing disabilities, improved job security for workers with hearing disabilities that have hearing aids or cochlear implants, the need for full-time jobs for people with hearing disabilities, health benefits that includes coverage for interpreter expenses, and the list goes on and on. But rarely do we focus on the underlying causes that result in the pressures we oppose such as the ideas pushed on by segregationist deaf organizations that make it difficult for employers to hire and fully accommodate workers with hearing disabilities. It's time that we put our eyes on those deaf organizations because they go against almost everything that helps workers with hearing disabilities enjoy and keep their jobs! We'll just start that next monday! Richard Roehm ---- SITE OFFERING FREE HEARING AID BATTERIES If you wear Hearing Instruments, even those made by one of these manufacturers : NU-EAR , Miracle Ear , Beltone , Siemens , Starkey , Argosy , Sears , Qualitone , Vanco , Magnitone , Electone , Zenith , Widex and Bosch. This special promotion is for you ! The Hearing Aid Batterymart, the first and only National retail center specializing in hearing aid batteries, invites you to respond to this special offer : You'll receive 1 Free package of hearing aid batteries for sending your Name , Address , Model of Hearing Aid and Battery Size to us and we'll send you a coupon for your free batteries. http://www.heartheworld.com/free_batteries.htm ---- OCDAC HAS A 2 DAY GARAGE SALE Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center will host a 2 day sale at 1004 North French Street starting September 4. Similar to our swapmeet sale but this time we will be splitting 50/50 of the funds raised between OCDAC and the Southern California Association of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. The money will fund some of our joint educational projects. ---- THE CAD LITIGATION PROJECT If you or know anyone who had strange and unusual problems with the California Association of the Deaf, we need to hear about it. If you have been a member and get no material or notices of meetings or any communications from the organization, we need to hear about it. If you ran for office within California Association of the Deaf, but you were stonewalled or prevented from participating in the election, we need to hear about it. Please send your experiences with the California Association of the Deaf to: SCADHH P.O. Box 1892 Tustin, California 92781-1892 Submissions will remain anonymous BUT that could change when litigation begins. ---- DISABLED HOTEL WORKERS, DEAF DANCERS MAKE GREAT STRIDES RNTV's story about the Hotel Abrona in the village of Oudewater showed how workers with mental and psychiatric problems can overcome their disabilities if given the chance by a patient employer. Reporter Kolijn van Beurden said that hotel manager Rien Lindeman "knows that his employees have their limitations, but also their possibilities. And that's what he wants to develop." The hotel is the first of its kind in the Netherlands, and it hopes eventually to provide jobs to 40 mentally disabled people while still turning a profit. The tale about the deaf dancers centered on the work of Alicia Sanchez, who has invented a form of hand language to show her dancers how to move to music they cannot hear. "With my hands I'm a bridge between the music and the deaf dancers," she told Telecinco reporter Maria Xose Lopez. "With my hands I do every step, everything they have to do. I show them everything ... They don't learn by magic. It's very demanding." Sanchez has been teaching deaf children for 32 years. "Day by day, they all try to obtain a world with no barriers," Xose Lopez said. Following her troupe's performance at the Spanish Traditional Dance Contest for deaf people, Sanchez said: "Even deaf people doubted our dancers were really deaf and only I and the tambourine player could hear." ---- PUBLISHERS CLEARING HOUSE SETTLES LAWSUIT CHICAGO (AP) - Publishers Clearing House will offer millions of dollars in refunds and revise its sweepstakes mailings to settle a class-action lawsuit concerning its advertising and marketing practices. The lawsuit claimed the company duped people into buying magazines and books by falsely leading them to believe they would increase their chances of winning. Under terms of the agreement, the company is required to send notices of the settlement to about 40 million households. Subscribers to magazines through Publishers Clearing House will get a chance to cancel their subscriptions and get a refund. Those who bought merchandise can return the goods and get a refund. See http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560888947-9b1 ---- CALL FOR DEAF ACTORS American Conservatory Theater 30 Grant Ave., Sixth Floor San Francisco, CA 94108 The American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) is looking for actors to be invited to audition for this season's production of A Christmas Carol . The show runs from November 27 through December 26. Actors with a classical training background and stage experience are invited to submit their resumes and head shots along with contact information as soon as possible to : Meryl Lind Shaw Casting Director American Conservatory Theater (address above) Actors must be willing to join Actor's Equity, if necessary. Auditions will be held September 11, 12 and 13. Interpreters will be available as needed for auditions, rehearsals and performances. Please direct questions to the Casting Office at (415)439-2407V or email Kathleen Clark, Casting Assistant at: Kclark@act-sfbay.org. ---- JOINING DEMOCRATS WITH DISABILITIES CLUB People may join Democrats with Disabilities very easily. We'd love to have you. Dues are $5-disabled-not working $10 -disabled -working $25 -walkies- $35- family $100 dollars-lifetime sponsor can't pay-no problem...you are a hardship member We'd like dues to offset and defray costs of mail-outs and lobbying expenses obviously. Francie Moeller and I are co-chairs Maggie Dee is our acting secretary Delia Todd is the Treasurer Please send us: Adress, Phone, Fax, Email and we will find out your Assembly, Senate and Congressional District if you can't provide it to us but please try to do so first. You must be a Democrat to join, but we can allow associate memberships . Francie and Maggie must provide me some advice on this . send checks to Larry Buchalter 2309 Blake Street Apt 111 Berkeley, Ca 94704-2854 if you need to call me , please email first Larry Buchalter Berkeley California lawrenc6@ix.netcom.com ---- STATE'S REPUBLICAN PARTY IN FINANCIAL, POLITICAL TATTERS MODERATES BLAME DIVISIVE GOP CHIEF By Carla Marinucci, Robert B. Gunnison, Chronicle Political Writers DONATIONS, SUPPORT DRY UP The California Republican Party is in such political and financial disarray that some leading Republicans say the GOP's chances for success are threatened in critical elections next year, from president down to the state Legislature. The party that propelled Ronald Reagan to two terms as governor and then to the White House is broke. It also is plagued by staff defections, ideological struggles and worried party professionals who fear for their political future. The turmoil comes as the party -- headed by Silicon Valley software executive John McGraw -- prepares for its statewide convention September 24-26 in Anaheim, an event expected to draw as many as 1,200 delegates. While major presidential hopefuls Elizabeth Dole and Steve Forbes will address the key GOP gathering in the nation's most populous state, front-runner George W. Bush has declined, citing scheduling conflicts, McGraw said Friday. But Bush will not be the only absentee: The California Congress of Republicans, a moderate GOP group, has announced that it will hold an ``alternate'' convention in an Anaheim hotel across the street. ``The concern is that he (McGraw) has tightened the hold on the party, to where it's a dictatorship,'' said Bob Larkin, a member of the GOP executive committee and a McGraw critic. Many major contributors, insiders said, have closed their checkbooks because they have been antagonized or offended by McGraw's policies or by the chairman himself. ``A bunch of fruit cakes'' is the way one longtime GOP hand described the current party administration. With seven months before the crucial March 7 presidential primary, such warfare in a state that serves as a lucrative source of money for political candidates nationwide portends troubles that could damage GOP candidates, from the presidential to the legislative levels. At stake next year in the state are 80 Assembly districts, 20 state Senate districts and 52 congressional seats. In addition, Democratic U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein is seeking re-election in what is certain to be a high-profile race. ``I spend virtually all day, every day, worrying about how I'm going to elect Republicans,'' said McGraw, in an interview last week. ``The plan I've laid out for the party, and articulated to the donors, is a very simple, back-to-basics policy. The first first and foremost goal is registering voters.'' But Larkin, a member of California Congress of Republicans, said moderates, women and minorities have been virtually shut out of party leadership by McGraw, who has stated that abortion, even more than taxes, should be the ``number one issue'' for Republicans. Some conservatives, like 1998 U.S. Senate candidate Darrell Issa, are siding with the moderates and withholding donations -- because of McGraw's policies. ``There were opportunities for the party to prove that, in the absence of leadership by a governor or a senator, they could be inclusive . . . they have failed to do that,'' said Issa, a millionaire businessman who has been a generous party contributor and a member of the state GOP's executive board. He said big donors are begging off, citing what he calls ``concerns with our money being spent wisely.'' The state GOP's political director, Debbie Rohrbach, resigned recently, telling Associated Press that ``problems in the organization need to be addressed.'' Mary Khayat, the GOP finance director, quit in June and two other finance department employees have also resigned in recent months. McGraw got off to a rocky start earlier this year by supporting efforts to end California's winner-take-all presidential primary. The effort ultimately failed, but the episode strained relations with backers of Bush, who anticipated that the winner-take-all format would help the Texas governor. Afterwards, insiders said, plans fell through for Bush to appear at major fund- raising events to help the California party, worsening the financial picture. In addition, Bush's more moderate stance on issues has rankled conservatives who overwhelmingly dominate the California GOP party structure --and hold especially fast to a strong anti-abortion position. ``He (McGraw) took on the Bush campaign,`' said Larkin. ``That's why the money has stopped coming in. When you (alienate) the guy who can save the party, the best you can get is an angry president who doesn't need the California Republican Party. The worst you can get is a Democratic president.'' Records at the Secretary of State's office show the state GOP with cash on hand of $131,000 and outstanding debts of $310,000. By contrast, Democratic party records show $1.8 million cash on hand, and debts of only $24,000. McGraw argues that the state GOP is not in such bad shape, and that he assumed leadership as the state GOP was coming off the worst loss in California history after the last election -- when Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Lungren lost to Democrat Gray Davis in a landslide. ``We have to raise money, and I'm out there doing it every day,'' he said. McGraw said he has heard the charges of an exclusionary GOP -- but he insists that he has never closed his door to any Republican. ``I have never excluded anyone from this party. Everyone's welcome,'' he said. ``At our upcoming convention, we are not taking up the platform . . . we're doing a back-to-basics convention, focusing on training our folks to register, to make sure we get out the vote. . . . And we've registered 40,000 new voters so far.'' Some GOP leaders insist that McGraw has done a formidable job in a trying year. ``I don't think there's any concern at all,'' said Gerry Snyder, a member of the state executive board, and one of the highest-ranking women in the California GOP. Assembly Republican leader Scott Baugh of Huntington Beach has a special stake in the party's future as he tries to increase the number of GOP lawmakers in the elections next year. Democrats control both the Senate and Assembly. ``Every organization has some growing pains and the state party is working through these issues,'' he said. But Sheila Carroll, a longtime Republican Party worker in the Central Valley, said she's fed up. She told party leaders ``to take my name off them (fund-raising) list until they have more moderate candidates.'' And Democrats are all but salivating at such troubles. ``There's no reason (California Republicans) should be in debt,'' said Democratic party chairman Art Torres. ``It's the largest state in the union, and in the same breath, George Bush has raised $37 million . . . they've always been the richest party, and they've had the ability to raise money. Something's wrong with their organization.'' But Nicholas Bavarro, a Central Valley GOP leader who challenged McGraw for the party leadership earlier this year, said critics and Democrats aren't giving McGraw a fair assessment. ``McGraw realizes, after the last convention, that we need to bring the party together,'' he said. That's why when the GOP meets next month in Anaheim, ``you won't hear the (issues) I call GAG -- gays, abortion and guns,'' Bavarro said. ``We're not going to crash the plane. We're going to land it, and everyone will go home safe.'' ---- NEZ'S CYBER MALL SUPPORTS THE DEAF COMMUNITY Nez's Cyber Mall is a fundraiser project that will help support the newly created Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center. This mall has been designed with accessibility in mind. All commissions generated by sales activity within this mall will be used to support the Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center. Nez's Cyber Mall can be found at: Http://www.i-sphere.com/eyedeaf/deafmall.htm ---- GOVERNOR'S PRESS OFFICE ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR INTERNS THIS FALL The Governor's Press Office is Seeking Interns for the Fall Semester. Earn Credits While Working at the Capitol in beautiful Sacramento! We are looking for a few dedicated individuals to work and learn in the press office. Duties Include: - Issue/ Legislation Research - Drafting Press Releases - General Office Duties - Filing - Answering the Phone - Helping with Press Events - Helping with Daily Clips - Assisting Reporters Good Communications skills is a plus, no experience is ok! Interested? Please Call Shannan Velayas at 916-445-4571 ---- CONTROLLER'S OFFICE HAS INTERNSHIP OPENING The State Controller's Office is seeking a hard working and dedicated individual to work in its legislative unit. Located in the heart of California politics, Sacramento, earn college credits and get paid! Duties to include: * Write and present briefs concerning legislation and legislative procedures to State Controller's office, Legislative and Governor's Office staffs * Research and write briefs on matters of concern to the Controller's office * Assist in preparation in legislative bill analyses * Write support and opposition letters to legislators and state agencies * Handle legislative office concerns * Other special projects assigned Requirements: * Excellent written and verbal communication skills * Basic computer skills and knowledge of the Internet * Familiar with State Government and legislative procedures * Must be enrolled in college as undergraduate or graduate student Salary will commensurate with current course work and experience. Please e-mail resumes to kcramlet@eo.sco.ca.gov or fax at (916) 445-6379. If you have any questions, please give me an e-mail. ---------------------- Letters from readers: If anyone has a ComShare 750 to unload, please contact David at millernca@aol.com . (A ComShare 750 is the splitter that I need for my phone. The ComShare 750 will send all voice calls to the voice anwser machine and send all TTY calls to the TDD answer machine.) David Koonce millernca@aol.com ---- Hello, I am writing you today to obtain some invaluable feed back from who I would consider to be the experts in the subject of accommodating the needs of the hearing impaired in movie theatres. I am the Senior Vice President, Human Resources Counsel for Regal Cinemas, Inc., the largest movie theatre chain in the world. Currently, all of our theatres provide assistive listening devices that provide some benefit to the hearing impaired. However, we are trying to come up with a solution for those hearing impaired individuals who receive little or no benefit from these devices. We have been testing the rear window captioning product and I must state that it does not appear to be user friendly. The viewer has to consistently shift focus from the screen to the mirror attached to their seat. Not only can this be distracting, it is also cumbersome. The feed back I have received to date primarily shows me that the hearing impaired community accepts the rear window captioning because they have little other choice. It seems to me, at least at this point of my research, that the preferred method would be for open or closed captioning, just as is provided on television. I would greatly appreciate any input or comments you would have on this subject. Resju@aol.com ---- I am organizing a statewide Compliance Review of the California Courts for noncompliance with the ADA to be performed by the Department of Justice. The basis of the Compliance Review is ADA Title II Complaints filed by organizations representing six million Californians affected by disabilities, and most importantly, ADA Title II Complaints filed by individuals who have been denied equal access to court proceedings because they were not accommodated effectively nor in a timely manner. By 1995 all 58 County Courts were to have a program in place which makes available appropriate auxiliary aids and services to be utilized by the courts as reasonable accommodations during court proceedings for Californians with disabilities. In March, I performed a statewide telephone survey of the 58 California County Courts (please open attachment). All the courts have a haphazard program for the hearing impaired. Not one of the 58 county courts have a program which makes available appropriate auxiliary aids and services for any other disability. The Superior Court of all 58 California Counties is in violation of the ADA. In 1994-1995 the California Judicial Council hired a national survey company, CommSciences at (323) 937-7607. The contract agreement between the Judicial Council and CommSciences.was for $100,000 taxpayers dollars which included a comprehensive telephone survey of the California public (1,200 people), a mail survey to court users (6,000 survey forms were mailed), and qualitative interviews with 183 people. One report gives analysis/results of the surveys and interviews. Additionally, CommSciences did a review of the relevant literature, worked on ALL aspects of the six (6) public hearings, attended all the public hearings and wrote another report summarizing and analyzing the testimony. In sum, they submitted two (2) reports. The two Final Reports require Acrobat Reader to open and are quite lengthy. PUBLIC HEARING REPORT: Access for Persons with Disabilities http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/programs/access/documents/dis_hear.pdf ACCESS TO THE CALIFORNIA STATE COURTS: A Survey of Court Users, Attorneys, and Court Personnel http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/programs/access/documents/dis_surv.pdf The Subcommittee to the Judicial Council wrote: Summary of Survey and Public Hearing Reports of the Access for Persons with Disabilities Subcommittee of the California Judicial Council's Access and Fairness Advisory Committee http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/reference/summarydisabilities.htm Please note that it is posted on the Internet in htm format. The three final reports are available from the Judicial Council at no cost. The Publications Hotline is (800) 900-5980 press #2 and leave your request on the recording. The conclusion of the survey results are outlined in 19 detailed recommendations in the Summary Report made by the Subcommittee to the California Judicial Council. These 19 recommendations would improve Access and Fairness in CA Courts: Recommendation 1 - ADA Education, Recommendation 2 - Education about Disabilities, Recommendation 3 - Referrals to State Bar and Law Schools, Recommendation 4 - Assess Available Resources, Recommendation 5 - Financial Resources, Recommendation 6 - Physical Access, Recommendation 7 - Communication, Recommendation 8 - Transportation, Recommendation 9 - Environmental Sensitivities, Recommendation 10 - Attitudes, Recommendation 11 - ADA Coordinators, Recommendation 12 - Programmatic Access. Recommendation 13 - Recruitment, Hiring, Promotion, Recommendation 14 - Accommodations for Court Personnel, Recommendation 15 - Jury Service, Recommendation 16 - Specialty Courts, Recommendation 17 - Research, Recommendation 18 - Case Outcome Study, and Recommendation 19 - Compliance Review. None of the 19 recommendations listed in the Summary have been implemented by the Judicial Council in the California Courts. The courts remain inaccessible to six million Californians affected by disabilities. To remediate this public injustice, as well as noncompliance of the CA Courts please fill out an ADA Title II Complaint which can be printed from the website http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/t2cmpfrm.htm Organizations representing Californians affected by disabilities, please state that there is no program in place which makes available appropriate auxiliary aids and services to be utilized by the courts as reasonable accommodations for disabled Californians during court proceedings except for the hearing impaired. Most importantly, individuals please explain on an ADA Title II Complaint Form the incident(s) during court proceedings when you were not reasonably accommodated, subjected to prejudicial judicial demeanor, judicial bias, or non-statutory decisions by the court. To avoid the possibility that these important complaints do not get lost in piles of complaints received daily at the Department of Justice, please both FAX (202) 307-1198 SUBJECT: CA COURTS and mail (the following address is different from the address listed on the complaint form) the signed original ADA Title II Complaint to: John Wodatch, Chief Disabilities Right Section Civil Rights Division US Department of Justice 1425 NEW YORK AVENUE NORTH WEST Washington, DC 20035 SUBJECT: CA COURTS And retain a copy of the complaint for your records. To date, organizations representing 30,000 Californians affected by disabilities have filed ADA Title II Complaints with DOJ and eighteen individuals have filed Complaints describing the incidents in which they were not reasonably accommodated by CA Courts during court proceedings. By filing ADA Title II Complaints with DOJ outlining your experiences of noncompliance of the CA Courts you are supporting this undertaking, as well as making a profound difference in the future conduct of the California Courts towards six million Californians affected by disabilities. Your assistance is appreciated, Carin Memmer ============================================================== DEAF WORKERS OF ORANGE COUNTY Orange County, California Richard Roehm President Internet : Deaf@activist.com Deaf_Workers_OC@usa.net Website Nesmuth@worldnet.att.net Http://www.i-sphere.com/eyedeaf/dwoc.htm =============================================================== Feel free to redistribute this newsletter in it's entirety and if you are planning to add a mailing list as a subscriber then let me know for my records. 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