The Kanchi Blog

Posted on

26th October 2012

in

Art, Media, Design,Business,Disability,Education

Interesting Facts this Week:
• UK: There has been a £500 million drop in disability support in England since 2010.
• USA eople with disabilities may not be able to vote in the American election.
• IRL: Orla O’Sullivan, a deaf-blind music teacher, has been recognised for her brilliant talents.
• IRL: The Government is to take legal advice on the mobility allowance for people with severe disability, Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore has told the Dail.to an allowance for people with disabilities.

1. Disability Living Allowance Plans Will Push Disabled People Into ‘Poverty Debt And Isolation’
Around 500,000 disabled people are expected to lose out when the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is scrapped, a new report has claimed. There has been a £500 million drop in disability support since George Osborne’s 2010 Emergency Budget, according to the report, authored by The Hardest Hit, a coalition of 90 disabled people’s organisations and charities.
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2. Deaf-blind music teacher honoured
A deaf-blind music teacher who developed a unique method of teaching others has been recognised for her inspirational work. Orla O’Sullivan, from Frank field in Cork, has taught scores of students, from beginners up to diploma level. O’Sullivan uses a purpose-built classroom in her home for hearing and non-hearing pupils. She believes all schoolchildren should be given the option to learn music, regardless of disability.
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3. Voting Rights Denied To People With Disabilities
With just two weeks before Election Day, laws in more than half of states mean that some people won’t be able to cast a ballot simply because they have a disability. Constitutional provisions in about 30 states allow the right to vote to be denied to individuals with mental disabilities if a court has determined that they are “mentally incapacitated.” In some states, such a determination can be automatic if a person is found to need a guardian to handle money or make medical decisions, for example.
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4. The Government is to take legal advice on the mobility allowance for people with severe disability, Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore has told the Dail.
The move follows the ruling by the Ombudsman that the State has acted illegally in refusing the allowance to people over 66 years of age. Mr Gilmore said they would seek further legal advice on the issue and wanted to resolve the issue in a way that was “reasonable, sustainable and does not cause undue distress” to people receiving the allowance.

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5. Apple v Android: the winner is… the disabled community
Robin Christopherson investigates how competition to reach the disabled market has become a win-win situation for users.
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