NAD Urges White House to Make Disability Part of Diversity in Judicial
Nominations
The National Association of the Deaf joined the efforts of 104 other
national and state-based disability rights organizations, law firms, and
individuals, urging the White House to make disability part of its efforts
to achieve diversity in judicial nominations. The White House recently
published an “infographic” (see link below) describing the efforts to bring
diversity to the bench. The infographic discusses efforts to nominate
African Americans, Latinos, Asian-Americans, Native Americans, women, and
openly gay judges, but does not mention people with disabilities.
The makeup of the federal judiciary is extremely important to the rights of
individuals with disabilities, as it is to other civil rights. Too often,
court decisions have stripped individuals with disabilities of the rights
that afford them equal opportunities in their workplaces and communities.
“The NAD is not aware of any deaf or hard of hearing federal judges who use
sign language. With the increasing number of deaf and hard of hearing
attorneys in the United States, over 300 today, we want to see a signing
judge appointed to Federal court in our lifetime,” said Bobbie Beth
Scoggins, NAD President.
Read letter: (PDF format)
http://deafnetwork.com/wordpress/download/534/