[TELEGRAM] Hon. ELLIOT RICHARDSON, JANUARY 17, 1973. Secretary, U.S. Department of Health, Education & Welfare, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health, Education & Welfare, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health, Education & Welfare, Washington, D.C.: Only the urgency of the following situation would prompt me to address you at this time when I know you are extremely busy. I purposely avoided involving you up to now because John Twiname and Dr. Garrett are apprized of situation and doing everything they can to try to resolve our problem. They have full and up-to-date information relating to the $5,000,000 for construction of the National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults especially earmarked by Congress in 1972 rehab amendments vetoed by the President. Since the center is a permanent undertaking and since there is no opposition to it and taking into account that we are ready to proceed immediately with the letting of bids and delay would be costly we firmly believe that a representation to the President by outgoing and incoming Secretaries would resolve this problem promptly. It was as you said in your fine tribute to Mary Switzer yesterday, one of her great achievements; also in last will and testament the late beloved Helen Keller asked me to carry on her life-time dream for the deaf-blind. We have sufficient funds for six months to meet expenses of construction of center. What is needed immediately is the commitment by the Secretary of the five million dollars to be available for the construction. Our prayer is that the President would give the necessary authority to make the five million dollars available since it could not be accomplished even with the special action of the Congress on the basis that it is a permanent program authorized by agreement between DHEW and IHB. Prompt action now for construction of the center and if firm commitment were made within next sixty days we could proceed without any undue delay with the plans for construction. We know we are asking very special consideration but in doing so we are representing the interest of deaf-blind persons who have been waiting for more than one hundred years for a solution to their problem. The National Center will provide this with your continued help. PETER J. SALMON, Administrative Vice President, Industrial Home for the Blind. [From the Congressional Record, May 17, 1972] THE HANDICAPPED-WILLING AND ABLE WORKERS HON. PATSY T. MINK OF HAWAII Mrs. MINK. Mr. Speaker, a young constituent of mine, Wayne Valdez of Mc-1 Kinley High School in Honolulu, recently visited Washington, D.C., to participate in a national convention concerning employment of the handicapped. Wayne was the winner in Hawaii's "Ability Counts" essay contest sponsored by the Governor's Committee on Employment of the Handicapped. He was awarded the trip to Washington to participate in a national convention on the subject with other statewide winners. Wayne's winning essay is a perceptive analysis of the special problems which confront the physically handicapped in attempting to find gainful employment. Though a handicapped person may possess all the requisite skills, he is often denied an opportunity merely because of an irrelevant handicap. Wayne also conducted a random survey of the public concerning the attitudes toward handicapped people and found that ignorance and apathy regarding their problems and abilities often prevail. I applaud Wayne's articulate recognition of the capacities of the handicapped and the awareness that "ability counts" should be the determining factor in hiring these individuals. I would like to share with my colleagues the insights expressed in Wayne Valdez' winning essay: THE HANDICAPPED-WILLING AND ABLE WORKERS Daniel Inouye and Mrs. John Burns, well-known Honolulu citizens, have one thing in common, a physical handicap. Senator Inouye lost his left arm in World War II, but has represented Hawaii in the United States Congress almost since Statehood. Mrs. Burns, the First Lady of Hawaii, is confined to a wheelchair since a bout with polio, but has headed numerous charity drives. But what about the less famous people who are handicapped? Are they leading successful, productive lives? How do the handicapped feel about their disability? I have found the answers to these and other questions that apply to the physically handicapped in Hawaii. I have arrived at a general definition of a handicapped person from the data I compiled. A handicapped person is one who, because of certain physical disabilities, has had to make major readjustments in life. Handicapped people usually experience a sense of alienation because they know they are different and are afraid of being rejected by others. But they are human beings who want to and can lead normal lives. There are about 100,000 physically handicapped people in Hawaii. Most of them are not receiving any kind of aid from a rehabilitation center although there are 138 organizations that offer rehabilitative services that are usually free. An organization offering a good rehabilitation program is the Goodwill Industry of Honolulu, Inc. Its main purpose is to provide vocational training and paid job experience that will eventually give the handicapped person more self-confidence. This rehabilitation enables them to seek jobs never before open to them; it nutures independence. The handicapped with vocational training would be no better off if Hawaii's employers are not aware of their potential or are prejudiced against them. If employers can accommodate the handicapped, provide work for them, they will surely find the handicapped just as efficient if not more efficient than normal employees. The requirements of some jobs do not demand the full array of senses; Lyle McQuary a letterpressman at the Sturgis Print Company in Honolulu is deaf; his job does not require hearing. The handicapped must also make emotional adjustments. An interview with Mrs. Mildred O., a secretary at a Goodwill Industry office in Honolulu showed me she did not feel handicapped. Despite an artificial left arm, she has a job and says she leads "a normal life." She also feels that the public is not aware of her abilities or they might "give some sympathy." Mr. Donald L., a proprietor of a concession stand at Honolulu International Airport, feels that his blindness does not hamper him in his work. He knows the monetary units by size and texture, but depends on the customers' honesty to a certain extent. When asked if the public seemed sympathetic towards him, he said, "I just know what I hear and I can't tell from that." Mr. Henry K., is confined to a wheelchair, but he has a job with a Honolulu reality company's accounting department. He does not feel handicapped because he has a Master's Degree in accounting and feels he is as qualified as anyone. He also commented that he learned to accept sympathy as unavoidable. These people and many others have learned to accept their handicap. They have gained self-confidence and are capable of doing efficient work. But is the public aware of their capabilities? I conducted a poll selecting 50 people at random at the Ala Moana Shopping Center. First, I asked, "Who are the physically handicapped?" The general response was "I don't know" or "People who can't work." Second, "Are you aware of the rehabilitation services offered in our state?" The answers were, for 100 per cent," "No." The last question was "Do you think the handicapped are capable of competing with non-handicapped people for the same job?" The answers varied from "Yes, depending on the job" to "No, they're hopeless." Although a general conclusion cannot be drawn from this survey, I cannot help but feel that if this is a sample of the public awareness of the handicapped, the attitude of the majority in the community must be apathetic. The image of the handicapped seems to be one of a helpless individual. Until the public changes its apathy to concern, the citizens can be of little help in meeting the needs of the handicapped. I feel that the public of Hawaii has much to learn. The people must first become interested and enthusiastic in order to give the handicapped equal job opportunities and the recognition they deserve for their accomplishments in various fields of labor. Once the community is alerted and awakened much help can be directed toward a better happier life for the handicapped person. TESTIMONY BY MRS. GLORIA WRIGHT, COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR RETARDED CHILDREN Mr. CHAIRMAN, The National Association For Retarded Children appreciates the opportunity to present this statement in support of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act pending before your Committee. Our Association was represented before the Labor and Public Welfare Committee last year when Mr. Milton Ferris presented testimony on behalf of the pending Vocational Rehabilitation legislation. We also supported the bill which subsequently was reported by a Conference of the Senate and House and passed unanimously by both bodies. We wish to state at the outset of this testimony that we continue to support the Rehabilitation Act as it passed in the 92nd Congress. In 1965 the Labor Department endorsed the estimate that only 3% of the six and one-half million retarded are estimated to be incapable of some form of productive work efforts under present conditions. And yet, in its testimony last year the Administration presented data indicating that less than one percent of the current Vocational Rehabilitation caseload is severely handicapped by mental retardation. Under present law there is a presumption in the rehabilitation field that if a counselor does not close a case into employment he has not succeeded and has not benefited a client. For this reason there is a tendency to "play it safe" by creaming off the least handicapped and excluding or bypassing the more handicapped from the service system. The Bill pending before your Committee would go far toward eliminating the premature rejection of applicants who could benefit from rehabilitation services by directing the state agencies to give priority to serving "those individuals with the most severe handicaps" in their basic vocational rehabilitation program. The 250,000 members of The National Association For Retarded Children viewed this provision as one of the most significant steps toward habilitation of retarded clients since 1954 when mentally retarded people first began to receive significant services under the Vocational Rehabilitation program. Moreover, we believe the provision to be the beginning of accomplishing the real intent of Congress in this law which is to prepare citizens, even those with severe handicaps, for gainful employment. Additionally, the National Association For Retarded Children is most supportive of the provision in the Conference Bill concerned with non-vocational services. Presently, the burden of proof is on the applicant to demonstrate that he has an employment potential in order to benefit from the array of rehabilitation services. We view this as an inequity to those severely handicapped individuals who could and should benefit from those services. We have long contended that the severely handicapped should have access to a comprehensive rehabilitation program through which both "vocational" and "supplementary" rehabilitation services are made available according to the client's needs. In no way do we see the legislation before you diverting the vocational rehabilitation program from its basic vocational objectives. To the contrary we believe passage of this Act would signify the real breakthrough that Congress has been striving for since the inception of the concept of using vocational rehabilitation to enable citizens to lead more meaningful and productive lives in our society. On November 16, 1971, President Nixon made a commitment to return onethird of the 200,000 people now in public institutions to community life. Neither those citizens, nor those hundreds of thousands who are already in the community, but who are being excluded from vocational rehabilitation programs, will ever become employed citizens until the present vocational rehabilitation law is modernized and ceases to discriminate against the severely retarded. To say more would be repetitive of our testimony before the last Congress which we respectfully call to your attention. In closing we are confident that it is not necessary to point out that the present Act has already been extended by continuing resolution twice. The National Association For Retarded Children considers passage of this law at the earliest possible date to be imperative. Vocational Rehabilitation programs across the country are in turmoil. Programs are operating on the basis of the continuing resolution at levels of expenditure not to exceed the 1972 fiscal year rate. This is causing havoc, particularly since the grantees had been informed by HEW last year that they might spend at the rate of the President's recommendations which was the amount of the supplemental appropriation bill. Now, the Administration says that they cannot utilize the supplemental funds because the bill for which the funds were appropriated was vetoed. This dilemma has brought programs across the country to a standstill at the expense of hundreds of thousands of handicapped citizens. We urge that your committee report this bill for the earliest possible consideration by the Congress. |