Civil Rights and the Waiting List Campaign

Throughout the course of the semester, the common theme of our readings has been that “All men are created equal.” We’ve looked at this fundamental American principle with regards to the rights of African Americans and women, but we can also look at it from another standpoint—the rights of those with developmental disabilities.

At their perspective times, activists who supported the civil rights of “minorities” faced tremendous opposition because there were people who truly thought that their own civil rights were not on the same par of those lacking the same equalities. Unfortunately, even in the era we live in today where the common consensus is that all people really are created equal, there still remains a stigma of people with developmental disabilities. People, who think that these unique individuals don’t deserve the same civil rights as you or me, don’t think so because they know all the facts; they think so out of ignorance.

The Waiting List is a civil rights issue because, specifically to the state of Maryland, certain inhabitants aren’t receiving the funds and services necessary to maintain a basic lifestyle. Many to most people with or have a family member with a developmental disability struggle day in and day out to make ends meet, either financially or emotionally. Granted, while funds are limited in today’s economy, it is unacceptable to think that these people, citizens who pay taxes are not put as a top priority in the eyes’ of the Maryland government. For example, the denial of the Alcohol Tax shows that powerful lobbyists place more stake in a product than over fellow human beings!

Aside from fiscal constraints, people opposing the Waiting List Campaign do so out of ignorance or indifference. When they see someone with a developmental disability, they automatically note the physical difference; they notice what they can’t do. Because they focus all their attention on of how these individuals are unlike their own self, they fail to take into account the vast number of things they have in common, most basically, the simple right of being treated as a human being, one that is no different from you or I.

One of the things that the Waiting List ensures is the awareness of the issue of funding for people with developmental disabilities. The organization realizes that many people may have misconceptions about the developmental disabled community, but it focuses on positive avenues for people within their communities to get educated, get involved, and make a difference in their lives of their neighbors. Without campaigns such as the Waiting List to support people who are generally passed over by “more important” stakes in government funding, citizens with developmental disabilities would never reach their full potential…nor would they realize that they have those basic civil rights at all.