Welcome to the May 2008 issue of the Real Choice Newsletter

In this Issue

	It's Time to Stop Wasting Lives and Money - Free People at Howe Developmental Center
	Howe Press Conference
	Pass the Petitions Please
	Awards Received

Upcoming Events

Illinois Report Card Press Conference - May 30

Petitions

Demonstration - June 23

About REAL CHOICE

The Campaign for Real Choice in Illinois is people with disabilities organizing for freedom and choice. We are a grassroots, citizen action organization consisting of people with disabilities and their supporters. For more on the Campaign, go to realchoiceinillinois.org
 

Pass it on

Know anyone who might be interested in our newsletter? Click here to forward this email to up to 5 friends at once.

It's Time to Stop Wasting Lives and Money - Free People at Howe Developmental Center

Howe Developmental Center is a state-operated institution in Tinley Park, Illinois. There are about 350 people with developmental disabilities who live there.

This institution has been cited by health and welfare authorities for serious and prolonged violations of health and safety standards. Examples include:
• Leaving individuals in urine soaked clothing,
• Failing to provide enough food and drink, and
• Falsifying physician documentation.
Investigations into the deaths of 20 residents at Howe revealed many instances of grossly substandard care. 

If that isn’t bad enough, Howe is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice for violations of the Constitutional rights of its residents to be safe and free from harm.

Conditions at Howe got so bad that the federal government pulled its funding for the institution in April 2007. This means that Illinois taxpayers now have to make up $30.5 million dollars annually in lost matching federal dollars to keep Howe's doors open. The total cost of operating Howe to the taxpayers of Illinois is now over $1 million PER WEEK.

Think about it. Instead of meeting their individual needs in their own neighborhoods, all this money is being spent to place people with disabilities in a substandard facility that severely restricts basic freedoms and exposes them to dangerous conditions.

The residents at Howe deserve better. They deserve to receive all the care they need while living in a neighborhood of their choosing. That would allow them to enjoy the freedoms that the rest of society enjoys and would be more efficient and cost-effective for the taxpayers of Illinois.

We are working with people with disabilities, family members, and supporters to bring public attention to this issue and push the state to implement a plan that would enable people at Howe to return to the community with all of the needed supports. Once people at Howe are allowed to move, we believe the institution should be closed and the money currently expended on its operation should be used to provide the supports that are needed for people with disabilities to live in a neighborhood of their choosing.

Please join us in efforts to enable people with disabilities to live real lives in the community!

 

Howe Press Conference

The Campaign for Real Choice in Illinois will join the Community for All Coalition on May 30, 2008 for a Press Conference regarding Howe Developmental Center. The Coalition will reveal its "Report Card" on the quality of the Illinois Developmental Disability Services System generally and specifically on services at Howe Developmental Center.

The Press Conference will be held at 11:00 am on May 30, 2008 at the American Legion Post #615, 17423 South 67th Court in Tinley Park, Illinois. The location is in the heart of downtown and within walking distance of the Train Station. The event will serve as a kickoff for the effort to free the people at Howe.  

We would appreciate your attendance and support for this event. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us.

The next event in this effort will be on June 23, 2008 in Chicago. Stay tuned for more details!  We hope to see you on May 30.
 

Pass the Petitions Please

We have created a petition of support for closure, which we are circulating throughout the state.  The petition will help to unite and organize those opposed to the current situation at Howe. Click here to download the petition.

Please sign the petition.  You can also help by printing a copy of the petition and gathering signatures from people around your community. WE DO NOT NEED SIGNATURES. WE ONLY NEED NAMES of individuals who support this cause.

The state should not be allowed to continue providing substandard care.  Please help us to Free the People at Howe!

Awards Received

The Coalition of Citizens with Disabilities in Illinois honored the Lead Organizer of the Campaign for Real Choice in Illinois, Jennifer Knapp, with its "Barbara Pritchard Award." The Award is presented annually to an outstanding person in Illinois who always plays an integral part in team advocacy efforts but rarely seeks the spotlight for themselves.  Jennifer was honored during the Coalition's 2008 annual conference on May 5th.

The American Bar Association Commission on Mental and Physical Disability Law has awarded the 2008 Paul G. Hearne Award to Campaign for Real Choice in Illinois Co-founder, Lester Pritchard. He will receive the Award at the 2008 ABA Annual Meeting on Monday, August 11 in New York City, NY. The Paul G. Hearne Award is presented each year to an individual or organization that has performed exemplary service in furthering the rights, dignity and access to justice for Americans with disabilities.