Alliance For Full Participation Newsletter calls for employment opportunity

One of the partnerships that the Ability Alliance of West Alabama has is SABE(Self Advocates Becoming Empowerd) which is a national organization that represents the rights of people with intellectual disabilities to work and to actively participate in their communities. A partnership of SABE's is The Alliance For Full Participation which aims to create work opportunity for people with developmental disabilities,and it has launched a new campaign called "Real Jobs-It's Everybody's Business." The AFP goal is to double employment rate for people with disabilities by 2015. Employment is the prime focus for the organization which is a part of the Self Advocates Becoming Empowered national organization for rights of people with intellectual disabilities.
Real jobs mean that there are real paychecks involved and employment work shops will not be as useful anymore as done before. Preferable employment allows individuals to afford housing, food, clothing, and the supports necessary for them to live and to work in the communities that they choose to live in. This is a goal we can all identify with although the employment rate for people with intellectual disabilities is very unsatisfactory and is at approximately 22% compared to 79% for typical Americans. Therefore people who could live on their own are sometimes forced to depend on the support of others to make their choices for them.
Employment opportunity being a major problem for people with intellectual disabilities places burden on governments, community development, social services, and on Medicare/Medicaid. Discovery of more employment opportunity means not only do people with intellectual disabilities benefit but so does the communities surrounding the individuals finding employment contributing to economic growth. The Alliance for Full Participation's campaign begins at the state level that combines the efforts of businesses, governmental officials, family members, advocacy organizations, service providers, and other community members. Please visit their website for more information about their campaign.

www.allianceforfullparticipation.org