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Two dead at Lexington, KY church after suspect shot a state trooper - suspect killed; SD pleads with Trump administration to release education funds; Rural CO electric co-op goes independent; New CA documentary examines harms of mining critical minerals; ID projects receive $76,000 in grants to make communities age-friendly.

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FEMA's Texas flood response gets more criticism for unanswered calls. Attorneys for Kilmar Abrego-Garcia want guidance about a potential second deportation. And new polls show not as many Americans are worried about the state of democracy.

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Rural Americans brace for disproportionate impact of federal funding cuts to mental health, substance use programs, and new federal policies have farmers from Ohio to Minnesota struggling to grow healthier foods and create sustainable food production programs.

Americans with Disabilities Act Turns 30

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020   

DENVER -- It's been 30 years since disability-rights activists saw President George H.W. Bush sign the Americans with Disabilities Act into law. The civil rights legislation prohibits discrimination based on ability.

Christiano Sosa, executive director of The Arc of Colorado, said that what has come to be known as the "curb-cut effect," changes required under the ADA to remove barriers for full participation in society, have benefited everyone.

"When curbs were cut for people in wheelchairs," she said, "pretty soon, people with strollers walking their babies were able to benefit from those cuts in the sidewalk."

Critics of the ADA argued that the costs of improving accessibility would be too high and hurt businesses. After the legislation stalled in Congress, dozens of disability-rights activists shed their crutches and wheelchairs and crawled up all 100 of the U.S. Capitol building's front steps.

The ADA was signed into law four months later.

Darla Stuart, executive director of the group Think+Change, said the costs of changes to include people with disabilities in public spaces and businesses turned out to be no more expensive than costs associated with living in nursing homes or other institutional settings.

"Additionally, for many people with disabilities, having access to the community, they became tax earners," she said. "They got jobs and they started earning funds that helped them manage their life."

Closed captioning, another innovation fueled by the ADA for people with hearing disabilities, also benefited fans at sports bars and participants in Zoom meetings.

Smart devices including Alexa and Siri, and picture-based keyboards widely used by restaurants, can be linked to innovations in Augmentative and Alternative Communication, also made possible by the landmark disability-rights law.


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As of 2022, the Kit Carson Electric Cooperative in Taos, New Mexico, has reached 100% daytime solar energy, something operators say would not have been possible under their contract with Tri-State Generation and Transmission. (Adobe Stock)

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By Ilana Newman for The Daily Yonder.Broadcast version by Eric Galatas for Colorado News Connection for the Public News Service/Daily Yonder Collabora…


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Nearly 1,000 New Mexicans have already accessed a new online portal which provides transparency about how much the cost of prescriptions and medical p…

Social Issues

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Uncertainty about the current job market is influencing high school graduates' choices for a career. Parents are generally the go-to for guidance…


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Social Issues

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Social Issues

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Almost 3.5 million Texans utilize the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to purchase food. The budget reconciliation bill recently signed …

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Environment

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Environmental advocates are urging Washington state lawmakers to require cargo ships to plug in while in port. The Port of Seattle will require all …

Environment

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A new documentary looked at ways to reduce the human and environmental harms stemming from the mining of "critical minerals." Without minerals like c…

Environment

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Wisconsin's agriculture industry could see both wins and losses under the new federal budget. Climate change isn't a priority for the Trump …

 

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