Why I Won't Donate to the Red Cross - Because I Care About People with Disabilities, and Respect Their Civil Rights

By Marc Dubin, Esq.
Former Chair, Disability Advisory Council, American Red Cross, Miami-Dade/Keys Chapter



I used to advocate that one should support the Red Cross. I used to believe in the Red Cross. I used to Chair the Disability Advisory Council of the Miami-Dade/Keys Chapter of the Red Cross. Those days are over.

I told the Red Cross that as a former Senior Trial Attorney for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, I believed that they needed to change their policies to come into compliance with the mandates of the ADA. I’m still waiting.

I asked the Red Cross to provide support services in their shelters, provide accessible beds to people with spinal cord injuries, and assist with transfers and other activities of daily living. After all, the Justice Department says:

“Shelter operators should provide support services in mass care shelters to accommodate people with disabilities who are not medically fragile but need some assistance with daily living activities unless doing so would impose an undue financial and administrative burden. Such assistance can be provided by medical personnel or trained volunteers….Modify sleeping arrangements to meet disability-related needs….To maximize efficiency, shelter operators typically provide one standard type of cot or mat for use by shelter residents. However, some people have disability-related needs for cots to be modified or may need to sleep on cots or beds instead of on mats placed on the floor.” http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterprog.htm


They said no. They said they don’t interpret the ADA the same way as the Justice Department and I do. I prosecuted violations of the ADA for over 12 years for the Justice Department, from 1992-2005. The Justice Department, on the 17th Anniversary of the passage of the ADA, issued technical assistance materials that tracked my analysis perfectly, and yet, the Red Cross continues to disagree. Look at the Justice Department Guidance and see what you think. Look at these links:
http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7emergencymgmt.htm
http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7emergencymgmtadd1.htm
http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterprog.htm
http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterchk.htm

On emails from the Red Cross, I observe the following tag line: “The Red Cross is not a government agency; it relies on donations of time, money, and blood to do its work.” I wonder why they fail to understand that when they provide sheltering services on behalf of a County, they are obligated to seek funding and support from the County, and need not rely on donations. I find myself wondering why the Red Cross asks for donations, and diverts donations, when the legal obligation to provide shelter in a non-discriminatory manner remains the obligation of the County as well as the obligation of the Red Cross. I want the taxes I pay to pay for the sheltering services, not my donations to the Red Cross. Let them use the donations to serve others – why is the County not paying, and why is the Red Cross not demanding that they do so?

I’m still waiting.

I want the County and the Red Cross to commit to paying for sign language interpreters when necessary to ensure effective communication, as mandated by the ADA. The Justice Department technical assistance says:
“In emergency shelters, most information is conveyed through oral announcements. Shelter operators must ensure that people who are deaf or hard of hearing have access to this information in a timely and accurate manner. In some circumstances, qualified sign language or oral interpreters may be required by the ADA.” http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterprog.htm

I’m still waiting.

I want the County and the Red Cross to commit to providing people with autism a quiet place in the shelter. The Justice Department’s technical assistance says:
“Consider low-stimulation “stress-relief zones.” The stress from the noise and crowded conditions of a shelter – combined with the stress of the underlying emergency – may aggravate some disability-related conditions, such as autism, anxiety disorders, or migraine headaches. Without periodic access to a “quiet room” or quiet space within a larger room, some people with disabilities will be unable to function in a shelter environment. In locations where a school gym serves as the emergency shelter, a nearby classroom can provide the necessary relief from noise and interaction that some shelter residents and volunteers with disabilities will need. Other shelter residents and volunteers may want a break from the noise and crowds. But quiet spaces are limited, they should be made available on a priority basis to people whose disabilities are aggravated by stress or noise.” http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterprog.htm

I’m still waiting.

I want the County and the Red Cross to commit to providing people with power wheelchairs with a way to recharge their batteries, at a reasonable number of shelters, and to tell the disability community where these shelters are located. The Justice Department’s technical assistance says:
“Many people with disabilities depend on battery-powered wheelchairs and scooters for mobility. The batteries in these mobility aids must frequently be recharged, or they will stop functioning. Without these mobility aids, many people with disabilities will lose their ability to move about, they may be unable to participate in some services offered by the shelter, and they may need to depend more heavily on assistance from others. When possible, provide these individuals the opportunity to charge the batteries that power the equipment they use for mobility and independence.” http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterprog.htm

I’m still waiting.

I want the County and the Red Cross to commit to providing a way for people with disabilities who need to refrigerate their medications with a way to do so, by either providing refrigeration or ice chests. The Justice Department technical assistance says:
“Whenever possible, provide refrigeration for certain types of medication. Many people with disabilities need medication that must be refrigerated. Shelters need to have a safe and secure refrigerated location where medications can be stored and accessed when needed.” http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7shelterprog.htm

I’m still waiting.

I want the County and the Red Cross to identify the most accessible shelters, and tell the disability community where they are located. If it is asserted that all of the Red Cross shelters are accessible, I want to know how they reached that determination. The Justice Department technical assistance says:

“Until all emergency shelters have accessible parking, exterior routes, entrances, interior routes to the shelter area, sleeping and recreational areas, dining facilities, and toilet/bathing rooms, identify and widely publicize to the public, including persons with disabilities and organizations with expertise on disability issues, the locations of the most accessible emergency shelters and the accessible features they provide.” http://www.ada.gov/pcatoolkit/chap7emergencymgmt.htm

I’m still waiting.

I want to know where all of the Special Needs shelters are located, and want that information disseminated to the disability community. I feel that the current policy of only informing those who register for a Special Needs shelter does not serve the interests of the disability community, as it deprives those who do not register of vital information. I want that policy changed.

I’m still waiting.

And, I want the Red Cross to commit to not discriminating on the basis of disability. Their statement of principle states that the Red Cross “makes no discrimination as to nationality, race, religious beliefs, class or political opinions”. Why not commit to not discriminating on the basis of disability as well?

Congress has given the Red Cross a special responsibility, and Americans, including Americans with disabilities, have given them millions of dollars. The Red Cross knows of the Justice Department’s guidance – when will it comply? When will it take action to reform itself? When will it force the County to do so, or refuse to collaborate? When will communities and community leaders demand that counties, and the Red Cross chapters that provide sheltering on their behalf, honor the civil rights of people with disabilities?
Is the disability community expected to patiently wait, yet again, as everyone else is served, but they are not? The disability community and its allies remember all too well what happened to people with disabilities in New Orleans. It is time to change, and time to comply with the law. Overlooking the needs of one group so that others can be served is not good policy.
Until the changes are forthcoming, I’m withholding my donation.

And I want my blood back.

Marc

Marc Dubin, Esq.
Director of Advocacy
Center for Independent Living of Broward
Director of Advocacy
Center for Independent Living of South Florida
Co-Chair, Florida Bar Disability Law Committee
Former Chair, Disability Advisory Council, American Red Cross, Miami-Dade/Keys Chapter
Former Senior Trial Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section 1992-2005
(In that capacity, I was responsible for nationwide enforcement of the ADA on behalf of the United States).