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Independent Living News & Policy from the National Council on Independent Living

Second CRPD Hearing in the US Senate: Thursday, November 21!

The second hearing on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has been rescheduled for this Thursday, November 21 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern in Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room G-50. Secretary of State John Kerry will be a witness in this important hearing, among others.

You made a difference! NCIL thanks everyone who attended the November 5th hearing, and the advocates nationwide who called, wrote, and used social media to send a clear message to the Committee!

Based on your incredible show of support, Chairman Menendez has scheduled the second hearing in a larger room to ensure that advocates can be present and show the Committee their support in person.

Take Action

Senators Menendez and Corker and the other members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee need to continue to hear that you support the CRPD, so they  understand that the disability community is behind this treaty and wants the process to keep moving forward.

They need to hear from the Independent Living Movement now, or we will not succeed. Visit the citizen action portal at  disabilitytreaty.org to call the target Senators on the Foreign Relations Committee. You can also contact Senator Corker at 202-224-3344 and Senator Menendez at 202-224-4744. 

  • More information: Visit the  hearing web page for a full list of witnesses and other pertinent details.
  • Webcast: This hearing is scheduled to be live webcast. Visit the  hearing web page to view the hearing live at the specified date and time.
  • RSVP: If you plan to attend the hearing in person, please  RSVP. This will help us tell the Committee that the disability community is behind this treaty.

Please share this message with your networks so they can join us in sending a message to the Foreign Relations Committee: the world is watching!

Thank you for your continued dedication to this important issue. Together, we will ratify the CRPD!

Comments

  1. Please support the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
    Thanks

  2. There are many good provisions in the UNCRPD. However, there are a few poorly worded portions that are detrimental to the rights of parents to make decisions in the best interest of the child. As worded the UNCRPD gives the state (i.e. the government) final say in matters pertaining to the education and care of a child with disabilities. (This is the first step to institutionalization. The government wants people working and paying taxes, not staying at home and caring for family.)

    Additionally, there’s nothing in the UNCRPD to BENEFIT those with disabilities in America beyond the laws we already have. The only changes that the treaty would cause in the US is for the judiciary to usurp power over parents.

    Lastly, the United States of America is the ONLY country in the world where a ratified international treaty becomes law INSTANTLY, because that is the way the US Constitution is written. For all other countries in the world, ratification is non-binding. It only signifies their *intent* to pass their own laws to comply with it.

    For these reasons, I cannot support the UNCRPD.