SUMMER 2 0 1 9 - LAW 7 3 7 2 - 1 5 Disability Justice

by Dustin P. Gibson and Jamelia N. Morgan

@HijaDe2Madre

Disability Justice does not and cannot exist within the legal system, although the practices can help us build justice based systems that honor all of us. We offer this document as an invitation to build upon the work of creating more expansive ways of knowing how ableism has shaped the criminal legal system of the United States.

This class was conceptualized with an understanding that theoretical examinations of how the law is created and interacts with society are often prioritized over the lived experience of those impacted and working to create change. Holding that truth, we worked to center the experiences of Disabled people in the material and discussions. We were fortunate to be joined by Disabled scholars, attorneys and activists, who are working towards liberation.

Our hope is that the syllabus can be used inside and outside of classrooms to engage in [un]learning. The material alone is not enough. We encourage critical examination of the material, stories and active commitments to building community. Access Is Love is a collaboration between Alice Wong, Mia Mingus and Sandy Ho that aims to help build a world where accessibility is understood as an act of love. They've compiled resources to engage in this work at the Disability Visibility Project.

All of the syllabus material and images in this document are hyperlinked to either the source or a location to learn more about the references. A text only version of this document can be found at:

bit.ly/djlawsyllabus

Introduction from Kathy Flaherty:

I very much appreciated the invitation to participate in the inaugural offering of this class on Disability Justice. I am a disabled lawyer who has been practicing poverty law in Connecticut since my admission to the bar in 1997; I am currently the Executive Director of Connecticut Legal Rights Project, which provides representation to low income people living with mental health conditions to advocate for their expressed preferences and protect their civil rights.

I wish I had more classes like this when I was in law school. I appreciated the opportunity to learn from two people who live and breathe this work and have recently been in the trenches. The syllabus and materials brought disabled people and their experiences to life; this class was so much more than a theoretical discussion of the law. The multi-media materials offered new perspectives on the law and its impact on marginalized disabled people.

As someone who has been out of law school for more than two decades, what also impressed me was the life experience that the students brought to this class. It may be because this was an evening class offered during the summer, but it seemed to me that the students had a far more nuanced perspective on disability and the law than my classmates and I did in the early 1990’s. Table of Contents Structure:

Each class section begins with information on a Information person(s) who was centered in the class. Those 3 Access Resource & Intro stories are followed by the specific materials for

each class, which includes the songs at the bottom 4 Co-teacher Information of the page. References made in class discussions 5 Accessibility & Content and resource materials complete each class Warning Resources section. Course Objectives Course Description: 6 Class Assignments

7 Class Guest The course will consider how law has Acknowledgements constructed and defined disability and the 8 Class Slides role of law in shaping how disability has Classes been conceptualized, classified, and even criminalized. In particular, it will examine 9 Foundation: What is Disability? how the nexus between class, race, gender, and disability have shaped policing and 12 The Legacy of Eugenics incarceration in the United States. This 15 Institutionalization course will uncover the limitations of 18 Community Exclusion federal disability rights laws that guarantee

21 Disability Rights Movement: A equal access to and treatment of people History with disabilities in, for example, prisons, 25 Policing & the Criminalization of Disability jails, workplaces, and schools. In addition, the course will explore how, in some cases, 28 Policing & the Criminalization of Disability (Cont.) law and policies intended as protections

31 Prisons & the Fight to End have further marginalized people with Mass Incarceration disabilities. Topics will include slavery,

34 Carceral Ableism de/institutionalization, mass incarceration, civil commitment, police violence, school Closing discipline, social movements, housing, 37 Hashtags Suggest Citation accessibility, and both legal and non-legal advocacy efforts. CO-TEACHERS INFORMATION

DUSTIN P. GIBSON JAMELIA N. MORGAN

Twitter: @notthreefifths Twitter: @JameliaNMorgan Website: dustinpgibson.com Website: jamelianmorgan.com Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]

Dustin Gibson is a community builder Jamelia N. Morgan is an associate that develops he[art]work to expand the professor of Law and Robert D. Glass collective consciousness of Scholar at the University of marginalized communities and address Connecticut School of Law. Her current the nexus between race, class, and scholarship focuses on issues at the disability. He works across classrooms, intersections of race, disability, and neighborhoods, kid jails, and adult criminal law and punishment. Her prisons to support people in finding research examines the development of home and engage in creating a world disability as a legal category, how law without jails and prisons. shapes disability as an identity in prison and jails, and the criminalization He works beside community members of dissent and non-normative identities and grassroots organizations to lead and expressions. campaigns and build coalitions to address community needs, end the Her additional research projects have criminalization of students -- explored the ways in which doctrinal specifically black disabled students -- tensions and political discourse over and builds power and support with race-conscious remedies influence how people currently in or transitioning out antidiscrimination claims and remedies of institutions. are conceptualized in court opinions involving voter discrimination and disability discrimination. ACCESSIBILITY & CONTENTWARNING

The content of the class, along with the required material and assignments will be presented using an array of materials, including text, video, and audio. We all share the responsibility of ensuring the material we present is accessible to everyone in the class. We will begin the first class with a discussion on effective communication and expectations. Thereafter, we will discuss periodically whether classroom communication strategies are working and make adjustments as needed.

Some of the content from this course is graphic and contains various forms of violence. Throughout each class, we will take breaks as necessary, with no less than two breaks during each class.

RESOURCES

Resources on rest from The Rest Stop, curated by Onika Reigns. Angela Davis on Radical Self Care. 4 Self-Care Resources for Days when the World is Terrible by Miriam Zoila Pérez Access Is Love, a collaboration between Mia Mingus, Alice Wong and Sandy Ho

COURSE OBJECTIVES

To explore and closely examine how the law 01 constructs and defines disability;

To gain an understanding of the historical 02 treatment of Disabled people in the United States;

To learn key laws and policies related to the protection, access, and inclusion of people with 03 disabilities in the United States—and the limitations of those laws and policies A T T E N D A N C E A N D P A R T I C I P A T I O N

In this course, we will learn from and teach each other. Students are expected to (1) come to class prepared and (2) be an active participant in class discussions. Given the smaller size of this seminar, student engagement, attendance, and active participation are weighed heavily. Your individual participation grade will be based on your attendance and engagement with the materials and your classmates. Respectful discourse will be required throughout all classroom discussions. (20% of final grade).

Note: All forms of participation are valued equally.

R E S P O N S E P A P E R S

Students are expected to submit 2 response papers during the course of the term. Response papers must engage in critical analysis of at least one selection, illustrating its strengths, weaknesses, and/or implications. In addition, your response paper may discuss whether you find the arguments in the selection(s) convincing and why, whether you had a positive or negative reaction, and connections between the selection and current events. The response papers are required to be 4-5 pages in length (double-spaced). (60% of final grade).

CLIENT CENTERED NARRATIVE

Select one Supreme Court opinion from the class assignments. Rewrite the facts presented in the case in a manner that applies the central tenets and themes discussed in the class. As you re-write, make sure to incorporate the social context with a focus on the dignity of the plaintiff. The narrative should be 2-3 pages. (20% of final grade). CLASSGUESTS :

JUDITH HEUMANN GREGG BERATAN TALILA "TL" LEWIS

ABRIEFLISTOFSOMEOFTHEPEOPLE WHOSEWORKANDLIVESHAVE CONTRIBUTEDTOTHEMATERIALOFTHE CLASSESANDSYLLABUS , INCLUDING ALL OF THE UCONN LAW 7372 - 1 5 STUDENTSANDTHEUCONNLAWSTAFF .

NOTE : THISLISTISINCOMPLETEASTHEREAREPEOPLEFROMTHEPASTAND INTHEPRESENTTHATHAVECONTRIBUTEDTOOURUNDERSTANDINGOF DISABILITYJUSTICEANDSHAPINGTHEWAYSWEVIEWAWAYFORWARD

Jules Williams, Linda Pogue, Theodore Porter, Leroy Moore, Kim Andrews, Mariame Kaba, Dr. Ruth Wilson-Gilmore, Cyrée Jarelle Johnson, Lateef McLeod, Azza Altiraifi, Leroy Moore, Milton Henderson, Cindy Williams, Theri Pickens, Bryan Stevenson, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Lydia X.Z. Brown, Harriet A. Washington, Burton Blatt, Erving Goffman, Dana Bishop-Root, Jen Msumba, Susan Schweik, Judith Butler, Ashley Yates, Angela Davis, Trudy Hamilton, Ravi Malhotra, The Harriet Tubman Collective, Deborah Danner, #NoCopAcademy, Kerima Çevik, Jeremy Woody, Robert "Saleem" Holbrook, Vanessa German, Devyn Springer, Imani Barbarin, Tourmaline, Kathleen Flaherty, Leyla Güven, Nirmala Erevelles, EbThen, Mia Mingus, Patty Berne, Lorrell Kilpatrick, Kitay D. Davidson, Allie Cannington, Mumia Abu-Jamal, Alice Wong, No New Jails NYC, Subini Annamma, Alison L. Aubrecht, Jensen Carabollo, Moya Bailey, Therí Pickens, Jess Benham, Chris Bell, Zoé Samudzi, Ruha Benjamin, Kylie Brooks, Shain Neumeier, Josh Williams, and many more.

Thanks to Yoshiko Dart who suggested material and thanks to the UCONN School of Law staff that made it possible for us to hold space. CLASS SLIDES

Note: The slides have very little information and content. They support the structure of each class, Most of the material covered in class is absent from the slides.

1 FOUNDATION: 2 THE LEGACY OF 3 INSTITUTIONALIZATION WHAT IS EUGENICS DISABILITY?

4 COMMUNITY 5 DISABILITY 6 POLICING & THE EXCLUSION RIGHTS CRIMINALIZATION MOVEMENT: A OF DISABILITY HISTORY

7 POLICING & THE 8 PRISONS & THE 9 CARCERAL CRIMINALIZATION FIGHT TO END ABLEISM OF DISABILITY MASS (CONT.) INCARCERATION

Images: 1. Yoshiko Dart 2. Fannie Lou Hamer 3. Junius Wilson Jr. 4. Lois Curtis 5. Judith Heumann 6. Teresa Sheehan 7. Mario Woods 8. Angela Davis 9. John Wilson & Talila "TL" Lewis Tracy Latimer

N O V E M B E R 2 3 , 1 9 8 0 - O C T O B E R 2 4 , 1 9 9 3

Tracy lived near Wilkie, Saskatchewan, Canada. She had a love for music and horses. Many people described her as someone that smiled a lot, especially when visited by friends and family. She was born with cerebral palsy and lived with chronic pain. At the age of 12, Tracy was murdered by her father Robert. In 2008, he was released on parole after serving 7 years in prison.

"Do Not see my disability as a deficit. It is you who see me as deviant and helpless"

- Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift, A Credo for Support FOUNDATION: WHAT IS DISABILITY?

Toyota Motor Mfg., Kentucky, Inc. v. Williams, 534 U.S. 184 (2002)

Darcy v. City of New York, F.Supp.2d (E.D. N.Y. 2011)

A Credo for Support, by Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift (Dedicated to the memory of Tracy Latimer)

Cyrée Jarelle Johnson, Disease Is Not A Metaphor

Revolutionary Left Radio, Disability Justice and Liberation w/ Lateef McLeod

Slavery to Mass Incarceration, Equal Justice Initiative, animated short film narrated by Bryan Stevenson, illustrated by Molly Crabapple

Ta-Nehisi Coates, Opening Statement during House Judiciary Committee Hearing on HR 40 and the Path to Restorative Justice 1 CLASS

Leroy Moore Jr - The Real Jim Crow (Poem & Statement To Reinstate Disability Component In History) FOUNDATION: WHAT IS DISABILITY?

CLASS 1 RESOURCES

ABA Report from the National Taskforce on Lawyer Wellbeing (Report)

Ableism/Language, Lydia X.Z. Brown (Blog Post)

The Case for Reparations, Ta-Nehisi Coates (Essay)

Disability Justice – a working draft, Patty Berne (Article)

Access Is Love, Mia Mingus, Alice Wong and Sandy Ho (Website)

Krip Hop Nation (Organization)

Collecting [a] home for Disability Justice in the Library, Dana Bishop-Root and Dustin Gibson in collaboration with Bekezela Mguni. Audio version by Imani Barbarin.

2019 Anti-Filicide Toolkit, Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Claiming Disability: Knowledge and Identity, Simi Linton (Book) Charlie Follett

D I E D O N M A R C H 2 8 , 2 0 1 2 A T 8 2 Y E A R S O L D

At age 14, Charlie was involuntarily sterilized by the state of California after being forced into an institution. He later served in the United States Army in Korea. Charlie was never given a personal apology or any form of reparations from the state of California. He never had children. We he died, he didn’t have enough money to cover the cost of his burial.

"What really teed me off, is that, they killed my last name."

- Charlie Follett, 2012 CNN Interview THELEGACYOFEUGENICS

Buck v. Bell, 274 U.S. 200 (1927)

Skinner v. State of Okl. ex rel. Williamson, 316 U.S. 535 (1942)

Harriet A. Washington, Medical Apartheid (Chapter 1, Southern Discomfort: Medical Exploitation on the Plantation)

Michael Williams, Hitler's Holocaust blueprint: A new book reveals how the Kaiser's Germany used concentration camps in Africa to advance their theories of racial supremacy

2 CLASS

Blind Willie Johnson - Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground THELEGACYOFEUGENICS

CLASS 2 RESOURCES

Imbeciles: The Supreme Court, Eugenics, and the Sterilization of Carrie Buck, Adam Cohen (Book)

Why Clarence Thomas Is Trying to Bring Eugenics Into the Abortion Debate (Article)

Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty, Dorothy Roberts (Book)

Sick From Freedom: African-American Illness and Suffering during the Civil War and Reconstruction , Jim Downs (Book)

mississippi appendectomy, Serina Sebring (Blog)

Memory and “memory”, Zoé Samudzi (Article)

Women Are Being Sterilized In American Prisons (Video)

A Brutal Chapter In North Carolina's Eugenics Past (Audio + Text) Jensen Carabollo

At age 15, Jensen was forced into an institution by the foster system and trapped there for almost 6 years. He worked w/the Center for Disability Rights to gain his freedom after graduating high school. Jensen now lives independently and fights for the freedom of others. He works as a mentor at the Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester, NY and is an advocate and activist.

"When I was 15 years old, I was forced to live in an institution. I was told I'd only have to be there a month. I ended up living there five years, ten months, and five days."

- Jensen Caraballo, 2016 Rooted In Rights Film INSTITUTIONALIZATION

City of Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, 473 U.S. 432 (1985)

UNSPEAKABLE, the Story of Junius Wilson, Narrated by deaf performer CJ Jones, Produced by Rick Tejada-Flores & Ashley James

Burton Blatt & Fred Kaplan, Christmas In Purgatory: A Photographic Essay On Mental Retardation

Erving Goffman & William B. Helmreich, Asylum: Essays on the Social Situation of Mental Patients and Other Inmates (Chapter 4, The Medical Model and Mental Hospitalization 1)

Southern trees bear a strange fruit Blood on the leaves and blood at the root Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees Pastoral scene of the gallant South The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth Scent of magnolia, sweet and fresh Then the sudden smell of burning flesh Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck For the rain to gather,3 for the wind to suck For the sun to rot, forCLASS the tree to drop Here is a strange and bitter crop

Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit INSTITUTIONALIZATION

CLASS 3 RESOURCES

Unspeakable: The Story of Junius Wilson, Susan Burch (Book)

Locked Up and Castrated for a Crime he Wasn’t Convicted of, A Deaf Man Spends 67 Years Trapped in an Insane World, Stan Swofford (Article)

ADAPT (Organization)

Lives Worth Living (Documentary)

No Cages, High Wages: A Renewed Call For Cross- Movement Solidarity Between Unions And Disabled People, Jessica Benham & Dustin Gibson (Op-ed)

The Principle of Normalization In Human Services, Wolf Wolfensberger (Book)

Valuing Lives: Wolf Wolfensberger and the Principle of Normalization (Documentary)

New York ARC v. Rockefeller, 357 F.Supp. 752 (1973)

• Deviancy, Dependency, and Disability: The Forgotten History of Eugenics and Mass Incarceration, Laura I. Appleman (Article) Natasha McKenna

JANUARY 9 , 1 9 7 8 – FEBRUARY 8 , 2 0 1 5

Natasha lived with diagnoses of schizophrenia and bi polar. Her disabilities were used to "justify" her death at the Fairfax County Jail in Virginia when 6 officers wearing bio-hazard suits restrained, shackled and tased her during an extraction while she was naked. Although she was 5’3”, 130 lbs, the officers described her strength as “super human”. Her death was ruled accidental,with the cause being “excited delirium.”

"You promised me that you wouldn’t kill me. I didn’t do anything."

- Natasha McKenna, Some of her last words COMMUNITYEXCLUSION

Olmstead v. L.C. ex rel. Zimring, 527 U.S. 581 (1999)

Erin Kerrison, Talila A. Lewis, Jennifer Murphy, & Dionna King, Coercive Treatment — Moving Beyond “For Your Own Good” (Panel 2: Drivers of Coercion—Vulnerable Populations, Stigmatization, and Economics)

Jen Msumba, My Life Inside The Judge Rotenberg Center- Skin Shock | Aversives | What It Was Like

Lisa Riordan Seville, et al, New York’s Boarding School of Hard Knocks

4 CLASS

Maya Angelou, Caged Bird COMMUNITYEXCLUSION

CLASS 4 RESOURCES

Living Archive & Repository on the Judge Rotenberg Center’s Abuses, Autistic Hoya (Archive) Disability Integration Act: DIA (Informational Website) Olmstead: From the Case Toward Real Transformation (Video) Disability Visibility Project (Website) #CripTheVote (Blog) Drug Policy Alliance (Organization) Autistic Self Advocacy Network (Organization) Bottom Dollars, Rooted In Rights (Documentary) National Council on Independent Living (Organization) Case look-up for Drummer, et al. v. State of Connecticut (class action lawsuit): Psych Patients In Connecticut File Class Action For Civil Rights Violations, Kathleen M. Flaherty (Blog Post re: case) Case look-up for forced ECT case More info re forced ECT case: CT Post Article 1 | CT Post Article 2 | Patch.com Article | MadinAmerica Article Lois Curtis

Lois was institutionalized for most of her young life, starting at age 11. In the early 90’s, she was placed in a personal care home that lacked resources and sent back to the state “hospital”. After meeting attorney’s willing to take her case, she became the plaintiff in a suit which led to the freedom of thousands of Disabled people. Lois is now free and lives in Decatur, GA where she has continued her passion of art, become an advocate and participates at community centers.

"Hello to all the people living in institutions, I remember you. Give me a prayer. Sometimes I feel good about my life. When I feel bad about my life I name my country, sing the gospel, and bring my mind back home. I will sing with you again. Have a beautiful day. Love, Lois" Milton "Skip" Henderson

S E P T E M B E R 1 6 , 1 9 6 1 - M A R C H 5 , 2 0 1 9

Milton lived and died in the historic Hill District of Pittsburgh, PA. After acquiring a spinal cord injury in the 90’s, Milton dedicated the following decades of his life to the independence of people w/disabilities. He assisted in freeing people from institutions and worked to support them in the community. This spring [2019], he was found dead a few blocks away from his home.

"We fought to get on the sidewalk, now they make us fight to get down it."

- Milton Henderson DISABILITYRIGHTSMOVEMENT: AHISTORY

Tennessee v. Lane, 541 U.S. 509 (2004)

Arlene Mayerson, The History of the Americans with Disabilities Act: A Movement Perspective

Susan Schweik, Lomax's Matrix: Disability, Solidarity, and the Black Power of 504

Ravi Malhotra, Shelby, Race, and Disability Rights

Public Space: Shared Spaces with Judith Butler

5 CLASS

Elaine Kolb, We Will Ride DISABILITYRIGHTSMOVEMENT: AHISTORY

CLASS 5 RESOURCES

The Making of the ADA (Video)

Justin Dart speaks at a Forum for Leaders on the ADA (Video)

Judy Heumann Fights for People with Disabilities, Drunk History (Video)

Judy Heumann, TED Talk (Video)

Notes Toward a Performative Theory of Assembly, Judith Butler (Book)

Bradley Lomax – Revolutionary Black Nationalism and #Disability Power, Day In Washington (Podcast)

The Power of the 504 (Documentary)

Ed Roberts: Free Wheeling (Documentary)

Black history of 504 sit-in for disability rights: More than serving food – when will the healing begin?, Leroy Moore (Article)

• Law and Contradictions of the Disability Rights Movement, Samuel Bagenstos, (Book) Deborah Danner

DIED ON OCTOBER 1 8 , 2 0 1 6 AT 6 6 YEARS OLD

Deborah was murdered by an NYPD officer in the bedroom of her apartment in Bronx, NY. She was naked and defending herself with a small bat when she was shot and killed. The officer that killed her was not convicted of any crime. Diagnosed with schizophrenia, she wrote essays and poems about her experience. She was also an IT specialist that prided herself on her intellect and education.

"We are all aware of the all too frequent news stories about the mentally ill who come up against law enforcement instead of mental health professionals and end up dead."

- Deborah Danner, Living With Schizophrenia, 2012 POLICING & THECRIMINALIZATIONOF DISABILITY

City and County of San Francisco, Calif. v. Sheehan, 135 S.Ct. 1765 (2015)

Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989)

Critical Resistance, Policing in the United States 1845- Present

Deborah Danner, Living with Schizophrenia

We Can't Breathe: The Deaf & Disabled Margin of Police Brutality

Talila A. Lewis, et al., Honoring Arnaldo Rios-Soto & Charles Kinsey: Achieving Liberation Through Disability Solidarity

6 CLASS

Nina Simone, Baltimore POLICING & THE CRIMINALIZATIONOFDISABILITY

CLASS 6 RESOURCES

Disability Solidarity: Completing the “Vision for Black Lives”, The Harriet Tubman Collective (Article)

I’m Not Your Inspiration, Thank You Very Much, Stella Young (Video)

Critical Resistance (Organization)

The Ugly Laws: Disability in Public, Susan M. Schweik (Book)

Us Protecting Us (Organization)

Unraveling the Fraying Edges of Zero Tolerance, Rachel Herzing (Article)

The Woodland Hills High School-to-Prison Pipeline, Dustin Gibson (Article)

• Racializing Disability, Disabling Race: Policing Race and Mental Status, Camille Nelson, (Article) Michael Brown

MAY 2 0 , 1 9 9 6 – AUGUST 9 , 2 0 1 4

Mike was an 18-year-old high school graduate that was just days from attending college when he was murdered by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson. Mike has been described by many as gentile and funny. He liked watching “Family Guy”, “Grown Ups 2” and listening to hip-hop. The uprisings and protests after his killing changed a generation forever.

""Our days are marked by the days since Mike Brown was murdered."

- Ashley Yates, 2014 POLICING & THECRIMINALIZATIONOF DISABILITY (CONT.)

City and County of San Francisco v. Sheehan, Amicus Brief, ACLU, et al.

Nirmala Erevelles, Disability Incarcerated (Chapter 5, “Crippin’ Jim Crow: Disability Dis-Location and the School to Prison Pipeline)

Christopher Slobogin, et al., Law and the Mental Health System: Civil and Criminal Aspects, pp. 831-848

#NoCopAcademy, Schools for Kids, Not Cops

Mother/Activist, Kerima Çevik, Tells Why Police Crisis/Disability Training Is Not The Answer

7 CLASS

Marvin Gaye, What’s Going On POLICING & THE CRIMINALIZATIONOFDISABILITY (CONT.)

CLASS 7 RESOURCES

Forced Intimacy: An Ableist Norm, Mia Mingus (Blog Post)

Intersected and Autism Wars, Kerima Çevik (Blogs)

Know the Laws in Your State, Treatment Advocacy Center (Guide)

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, Michelle Alexander

Beyond Suspensions: Examining School Discipline Policies and Connections to the School-to-Prison Pipeline for Students of Color with Disabilities, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (Report)

Disabled Youth Are More at Risk of Being Incarcerated, Rachel Anspach (Article)

Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code, Ruha Benjamin (Book)

• Prison Abolition and Grounded Justice, Allegra McLeod (Article) Janice Dotson-Stephens

DIED ON DECEMBER 1 4 , 2 0 1 8 AT 6 1 YEARS OLD

Janice was a 61-year-old great-grandmother. She lived with multiple disabilities and was often institutionalized. She weighed 290 lbs in July 2019 when she was arrested. Only 5 months later, she weighed 154 lbs at the time of her death. She was being held on $30 bond after being arrested for “trespassing”. Her family’s attorney described her as being “ignored to death”.

“Our legal system and the way our country is run is based upon discrimination.”

- Sandra Bland, 2015 PRISONS & THEFIGHTTOENDMASS INCARCERATION

Compl., Peter P., et al. v. Compton Unified School District, et al. (C.D. Cal. May 18, 2015)

Compl., Andrews v. Harper, Case 2:19-cv-00670-LPL (W.D.Pa. Jun. 10, 2019)

Angela Y. Davis, Are Prisons Obsolete? (Chapter 5, The Prison Industrial Complex)

Michael Barajas, ‘Ignored to Death’ in the Bexar County Jail

8 CLASS

2Pac - Changes PRISONS & THEFIGHTTOENDMASS INCARCERATION

CLASS 8 RESOURCES

Prison Policy Initiative (Organization)

Abolitionist Law Center (Law Firm)

People’s Law Office (Law Firm)

Coalition to Abolish Death by Incarceration (Organization)

Let's Get Free: The Women and Trans Defense Committee (Organization)

Hep C: A New Death Row, Mumia Abu Jamal (Audio + Text)

The Only Way to End Racialized Gender Violence in Prisons is to End Prisons: A Response to Russell Robinson’s “Masculinity as Prison", Dean Spade (Law Review Article)

• Caged In: The Devastating Harms of Solitary Confinement on Prisoners with Disabilities, Jamelia Morgan (Report)

• Jailhouse Lawyers Speak (Organization) Theodore Porter

Theodore was sentenced to the death penalty in 1986 in PA where solitary confinement is mandatory for all people sentenced to the death penalty. His sentenced was vacated in 2003, but he has remained in solitary confinement. His real name is Theodore, but he has been referred to as Ernest since 1986, which is his late brothers name.

"The sole purpose of solitary confinement is to break people."

- Albert Woodfox, 2017 CARCERALABLEISM

Porter v. Penn. Dep’t of Corr., 2018 WL 5846747 (W.D. Pa. Nov. 8, 2018)

Dustin Gibson & Talila Lewis, The Prison Strike Challenges Ableism and Defends Disability Rights

Rachel Kushner, Is Prison Necessary? Ruth Wilson Gilmore Might Change Your Mind

Jane Doe, Transgender teen Jane Doe letter to Gov. Malloy

Jeremy Woody, The Isolation of Being Deaf in Prison

Robert Saleem Holbrook, Control Units: High Tech Brutality

9 CLASS

Sam Cooke, Chain Gang CARCERALABELISM

CLASS 9 RESOURCES

• Addressing the Criminalization of Disability from a Disability Justice Framework: , Abla Abdelhadi (Article)

• HEARD: Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of the Deaf (Organization)

• Reflections on Representing Incarcerated Clients with Disabilities: Ableism in Prison Reform Litigation, Jamelia Morgan (Article)

• Prison Strike 2018 (Demands)

• Survived and Punished (Organization)

• Prison labor is modern slavery. I've been sent to solitary for speaking out, Kevin Rashid Johnson (Article)

• Justice in America - Episode 20: Mariame Kaba and Prison Abolition (Podcast)

• Love Front Porch, TEDxPittsburghStatePrison, Vanessa German (Video)

• A New Yorker's Guide to Building Community Care by Closing Rikers with No New Jails, NoNewJailsNYC DISABILITY JUSTICE IS...

A PRACTICE OF EQUITABLE HONORING THE WHOLE ACTIVE LOVE INTERDEPENDENCE HUMANITY OF EVERY PERSON - KI'TAY D. DAVIDSON - ALLIE CANNINGTON - TALILA "TL" LEWIS

HASHTAGS

DEAF IN PRISON | DISABILITY SOLIDARITY | DISABILITY JUSTICE | CRIP THE VOTE | ABLEDS ARE WEIRD | ABLEISM EXISTS | THINGS DISABLED PEOPLE KNOW | CRIP TAX | PRISON STRIKE | SPOONIE STORIES | AUTISTIC WHILE BLACK | STOP THE SHOCKS | CRIP LIT | DEAF ED | AUTISTICWHILEBLACK | ANCIENT ABLED PROVERBS | EVERYDAY ABLEISM

SUGGESTED CITATION

Dustin P. Gibson & Jamelia N. Morgan, Disability Justice LAW 7372-15, University of Connecticut School of Law, Summer 2019.