{"id":19425,"date":"2012-07-29T05:45:47","date_gmt":"2012-07-29T10:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/?p=19425"},"modified":"2012-07-29T06:24:17","modified_gmt":"2012-07-29T11:24:17","slug":"group-sues-city-of-austin-businesses-for-allegedly-discriminating-against-people-with-disabilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2012\/07\/29\/group-sues-city-of-austin-businesses-for-allegedly-discriminating-against-people-with-disabilities\/","title":{"rendered":"Group sues City of Austin, businesses for allegedly discriminating against people with disabilities"},"content":{"rendered":"

Group sues City of Austin, businesses for allegedly discriminating
\nagainst people with disabilities
\n<\/strong>
\nBy Juan Castillo
\nAMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF<\/p>\n

July 26, 2012<\/p>\n

A state advocacy group for people with disabilities said Thursday it is
\nsuing the City of Austin and more than two dozen businesses in the city
\nand across the state, accusing them of discriminating against people
\nwith disabilities by denying them access to public amenities.<\/p>\n

The lawsuits in Austin are directed at signature facilities that are
\ningrained in the city’s unique culture and that people with
\ndisabilities can’t fully enjoy, the plaintiffs said. They said the
\nlawsuits were timed to coincide with the 22nd anniversary of the
\npassage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and that they seek
\ncompliance with the law and aim to build a city culture of
\ninclusiveness for all.<\/p>\n

“Let’s keep Austin weird, but above all, let’s make Austin an inclusive
\ncommunity,” said Joe Berra, an attorney for the Texas Civil Rights
\nProject, which filed the suits on behalf of several plaintiffs. Adapt
\nof Texas, an advocacy group for people with disabilities, joined in the
\nlawsuits.<\/p>\n

“The (law) should not be an afterthought or a burden for architects,
\ndesigners, developers and city planners,” Berra said. “It is a moral
\nimperative to make our community inclusive.”<\/p>\n

The civil rights project said it filed 32 lawsuits in Austin, Houston,
\nBurleson, Longview, El Paso and the Rio Grande Valley by the end of
\nThursday and expects to file one more suit in Austin on Monday. The
\nlawsuits name 12 defendants in Austin, Berra said.<\/p>\n

Lawsuits against the City of Austin accuse it of failing to provide
\naccessible parking in the downtown business and entertainment districts
\n\u2014 specifically on Sixth Street, as well as on South Congress Avenue \u2014
\nand of failing to provide accessible routes and ramps throughout its
\ntrail system, equal access to pools, and adequate signs to alert people
\nwith disabilities to accessible paths and entrances in city parks.<\/p>\n

“The City of Austin has yet to be served with this lawsuit; however, we
\nare continuously working to ensure Austin is a livable city for all of
\nour residents,” the city’s Law Department said in a statement Thursday.<\/p>\n

At a news conference held on the sidewalk in the 1500 block of South
\nCongress Avenue, Jennifer McPhail with Adapt of Texas, described her
\ndifficulties gaining access to the city’s hike-and-bike trails and to
\nDeep Eddy Pool.<\/p>\n

“We’ve been patient long enough. I want access to the trail just like
\nanyone else,” said McPhail, who uses a wheelchair and is a plaintiff in
\none of the lawsuits against the city.<\/p>\n

Watching the news conference from her wheelchair-accessible van, a
\nplaintiff in another lawsuit, Doris Standlee, said she was there to
\nshow the inaccessibility of parking in the South Congress area, which
\nis lined with restaurants and eclectic shops. Even if she were to find
\nan empty parking space, her wheelchair ramp would lead right into a
\nstreet curb, she pointed out.<\/p>\n

“I can’t even imagine being inside one of these shops,” Standlee said.<\/p>\n

One suit targets the Statesman Capitol 10K, which is run by the Austin
\nAmerican-Statesman. In the lawsuit, plaintiff Robert Menard, who uses a
\nwheelchair, objected to what he said was a requirement that would-be
\nparticipants in wheelchairs prove that they have completed a 10K race
\nin less than 50 minutes, as well as a rule allowing only use of racing
\nwheelchairs, which Menard said he could not afford. He said the rules
\ndiscriminated against him and prevented his participation in the 2012
\nrace.<\/p>\n

Eddie Burns, vice president, chief financial officer and business
\nmanager for the Statesman, said the newspaper had not been served with
\nthe lawsuit and did not have a comment.<\/p>\n

Other lawsuits named local restaurants, cab and bus companies and large
\nretailers.<\/p>\n

Contact Juan Castillo? at 445-3635<\/p>\n

Source:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.statesman.com\/news\/local\/group-sues-city-of-austin-businesses-for-allegedly-2422989.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Group sues City of Austin, businesses for allegedly discriminating against people with disabilities By Juan Castillo AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF July 26, 2012 A state advocacy group for people with disabilities said Thursday it is suing the City of Austin and more…<\/p>\n

Read more →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[114,600,3472,21,8474,2336,2987,35,908,511,14450,1912,20,14449,14455,9719,3195,14456,5677,14453,14454,14451,17,7500,14452],"class_list":["post-19425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deaf-news","tag-ada","tag-advocacy","tag-americans-with-disabilities-act","tag-austin","tag-austin-american-statesman","tag-burleson","tag-city-of-austin","tag-community","tag-culture","tag-disabilities","tag-eddie-burns","tag-el-paso","tag-houston","tag-juan-castillo","tag-keep-austin-weird","tag-lawsuit","tag-longview","tag-public-amenities","tag-rio-grande-valley","tag-sixth-street","tag-south-congress-avenue","tag-statesman-capitol-10k","tag-texas","tag-texas-civil-rights-project","tag-wheelchairs"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p752R-53j","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13534,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2011\/03\/13\/barbara-jordan-media-award-winners\/","url_meta":{"origin":19425,"position":0},"title":"Barbara Jordan Media Award winners","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"March 13, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0Barbara Jordan Media Award winners This year\u2019s winners of the Barbara Jordan Media Awards have really raised the bar of excellence; we saw some incredible entries come from the submissions \u2013 stories from professionals (and students) that meet the highest criteria of accurately and positively reporting on individuals with disabilities,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":22583,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/04\/11\/barbara-jordan-media-awards-winners-announced\/","url_meta":{"origin":19425,"position":1},"title":"Barbara Jordan Media Awards Winners Announced","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"April 11, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR OF TEXAS RICK PERRY For Immediate Distribution Governor\u2019s Press Office: 512-463-1826 April 9, 2013 Lucy Nashed: lucy.nashed@gov.texas.gov Press Release Josh Havens: josh.havens@gov.texas.gov Barbara Jordan Media Awards Winners Announced AUSTIN \u2013 The Governor\u2019s Committee on People with Disabilities has announced the winners of the 30th Annual Barbara\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Medallion_FB_Color","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/Medallion_FB_Color-213x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7227,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2009\/07\/22\/cowboys-stadium-welcomes-people-with-disabilities\/","url_meta":{"origin":19425,"position":2},"title":"Cowboys Stadium Welcomes People with Disabilities","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"July 22, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Cowboys Stadium Welcomes People with Disabilities More than 350 guests, some with wheelchairs, walkers and guide dogs, toured the Cowboys Stadium and learned how architects designed the $1.1 billion venue with accessibility in mind. 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