In the News - June 2013

Every month I compile a list of the stories I post on Down Wit Dat's Facebook page. They are stories of activism, of inclusion, of advocacy, of education, of hope and awareness.  Every day advocacy was a theme this month, as were reflections on motherhood.

Legend:

AUDIO	indicates an audio clip
APPEAL	indicates an online petition or plea
BLOG	indicates a blog post
EVENT	indicates a scheduled event
LINKS	indicates links or resource materials
PHOTOS	indicates photos
STUDY	indicates a study or discovery
THREAD	indicates an online discussion thread
VIDEO	indicates a video or movie

VIDEO	Restraint and Seclusion: Hear Our Stories
VIDEO	#justiceforethan
BLOG	My Not-So-Great Story: A Personal Experience with the NDSS & The Buddy Walk. Guest Post by Stacey Calcano
APPEAL	Attorney General of Maryland, Doug Gansler: Launch an independent inquiry into the death of Robert Ethan Saylor
BLOG	Proof that Tolerance is Usually Just a Matter of Education...
BLOG	In the News - May 2013
VIDEO	The Autism Project: Mothers with ASD ask why scientists are missing girls
	When the perfect baby you adore suddenly becomes a stranger: One mother describes how she fell into a black hole when her son was diagnosed with Down's Syndrome
BLOG	Communication and Support Through Hard Things
BLOG	Respect
BLOG	Multiple Choice Test –
EVENT	Peel students with disabilities participate in inclusive track and field event
BLOG	Just your average moms next door
	Exclusive screening of Finnish music and disability documentary for Cork
	The Global Plight of Disabled Children
BLOG	On the Question of Humanity
BLOG	Without Love
BLOG	A Dog By Any Other Name
BLOG	“Time to Listen”: Autism and the simplicity of relationships
APPEAL	Action Alert: Contact Governor O’Malley of Maryland to Demand an Independent Investigation Regarding the Death of Ethan Saylor - See more at: http://www.ndss.org/About-NDSS/Newsroom/Recent-News/Action-Alert-Ethan-Saylor-Update/#sthash.2UoMhRDE.dpuf Call to Action:  Contact Governor O'Malley of Maryland to Demand an Independent Investigation into the Death of Ethan Saylor
PHOTOS	100 Words: The Life Of A Sibling With Disability
VIDEO	I Am Not Invisible – Official Film Site
	Dying girl intubated as she awaits lung transplant
BLOG	What is this "Normal" of Which You Speak?
	Nearly 1 In 3 With Autism Have ADHD Too, Study Finds
BLOG	We Are in This Together
	Feds Call For Expanded Community Living Options
BLOG	Rep. Chris Van Hollen (MD) Celebrated as Ds Advocate
VIDEO	Workshop skills for people with disabilities
BLOG	Like a Person Like A Person
BLOG	Non-Speaking People Who Type
BLOG	a letter to my son
BLOG	Potential, Disability, and Human Worth
	Jobless Rate Rises For People With Disabilities
	Real Hope for Syria
APPEAL	Call to Action: Va. Lt. Governor Candidate E. W. Jackson
	Can We Please Get Our Facts Right?
BLOG	The Simple Humanness of Jude
	Facebook Hate Speech Problematic, Advocates Say
APPEAL	Call To Action: Frederick County Sheriff Department Accreditation Committee
BLOG	Don't be a Dick*
VIDEO	Birch School Investigation
	Supreme Court Steers Clear Of Special Education Dispute
	“A Doorway to a New Life”: A Conversation with George Estreich About Down Syndrome, Writing, and the Stories that Make a Family
BLOG	The Murder of Alex Spourdalakis
BLOG	Autism, language, and othering
BLOG	Hug your child tonight
BLOG	Holding Onto Light
VIDEO	U. research giving hope of better treatment for patients with Down syndrome
	No, It’s Not Okay for Bill Maher to Make Fun of Special Needs Children, Even If They’re a Palin
	Raising a Child with Special Needs: What About Your Needs?
	Do Medical Textbooks Intentionally Offer Outdated Descriptions of Down Syndrome? and Other Questions for George Estreich
	We need answers in my brother’s death
BLOG	The (prom) politics of pity
BLOG	Dear expectant parent with a prenatal Down syndrome diagnosis
	The photo that broke a mother’s heart
EVENT	Seedlings for Justice
BLOG	By George
BLOG	Guest Blog - Terri Saylor Wilson (aka. Aunt Terri)
	What I Know About Fatherhood Now That I Have a Teen With a Disability
	Don't label people with Down syndrome
	Amusement Park Faces Backlash Over Disability Access
BLOG	The Discourse of Police Brutality - 14-year-old attacked for a "dehumanizing stare."
	Learning disability charity: abuse went unreported for too long
BLOG	It’s Not Your Fault
	My battle with motor neurone disease – Neil Platt's last interview
BLOG	His Name was Alex Spourdalakis
	Frederick County’s silence cannot be the last word on two deaths
VIDEO	Putting the ‘R’ Word To Rest
BLOG	Junior High Tactics
APPEAL	Put a stop to institutions such as Winterbourne
	Taylor woman charged with starving son to death
BLOG	I’m Removing My Prenatal Testing Halo.
BLOG	I’m Just a Mom – Not a “Special Needs Mom.”
	Mom With Disability, Child Held Captive For Years, Feds Say
BLOG	Slippery Slope
BLOG	Where Have You Been, Barbara Walters?
	Mom: Happy noises get New Bedford girl tossed from theater
VIDEO	Some workers at Goodwill paid as little as 22 cents an hour
	Inclusive Schooling: Are We There Yet?
BLOG	Muddying the Water: Alleviating Pain ≠ “Recovery”
BLOG	Community and Identity
BLOG	Bigotry and #Autism Advocacy- The (undefined) line we all think we avoid crossing
	People With Disabilities Open Up About Hate Crimes
BLOG	Stop
BLOG	Love Simply, Just Because
VIDEO	Carly Fleischmann: Video about autistic Toronto teen wins international acclaim
BLOG	Sweet Spots
BLOG	Consent is King
	Special needs assistant cuts protest descends into FF heckles
APPEAL	Have You Contacted the Governor of Maryland?
	Obesity Impacting More With Disabilities
BLOG	Tired of Labels
	Building Networks for a ‘Good Life,’ Even After the Caregiver Is Gone
BLOG	A Cognitive Crip Strikes Back: A Big Picture of the Disability Problem
BLOG	Raising Ghosts
BLOG	We Are Like Your Child
BLOG	Disability and Society’s Role
	The “R-word” has been banished…new criteria for intellectual disability
BLOG	Driven to Distraction

This month:

June seems to have been even busier than May.  Slowly, I've been filling our home on Tumblr:

Downwitdat.tumblr.com

I've been able to welcome new friends on our Facebook page, Group and Twitter as well:

Down Wit Dat on Facebook

Down Wit Dat - The Group
Down Wit Dat on Twitter

 
...And that's the news.  Keep the stories and information coming!

Happy Canada Day to all, both at home and away.