Show Your Commitment to Justice & Liberty Around the World, America
If the United States does not ratify the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, it contradicts our commitment to human rights around the world.
Dear Senators:
We, American citizens who are deaf-blind, join our fellow citizens with disabilities, including disabled veterans who fought to protect our great nation and preserve human life, dignity and liberty, in support of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. When America enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), it showed the world that the United States is a beacon of liberty and equality and that Americans of all political persuasions do not permit political beliefs to prevail over the nation's enduring commitment to the rights of every child, woman and man around the world. And when our elected members of Congress once again stood united by enacting the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, American showed the world that it remains a global leader on disability rights.
But America's leadership is under serious threat because some believe we should not embrace disability rights around the world by ratifying the Convention. They cite concerns about the potential for the Convention to undermine the rights of parents of disabled children to provide home schooling. Others point to the Convention's endorsement of abortion, even if it accepts nations that outlaw the practice as parties. But the truth is, the Convention simply seeks to extend the ADA beyond the borders of America by recognizing that persons with disabilities have the same rights as everyone else in the entire world. For this reason, we respectfully reject these unfounded claims, and urge that all Americans put aside their political beliefs in support of disability rights around the world. After all, we are "one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Please ratify the Convention and stand for the rights of persons with disabilities in our country and around the world. Rejecting the Convention will call into question America's claim to support human rights around the world, and will send a message to every child, woman and man that we do not care about disability rights outside the United States of America. Thank you.
We, American citizens who are deaf-blind, join our fellow citizens with disabilities, including disabled veterans who fought to protect our great nation and preserve human life, dignity and liberty, in support of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. When America enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), it showed the world that the United States is a beacon of liberty and equality and that Americans of all political persuasions do not permit political beliefs to prevail over the nation's enduring commitment to the rights of every child, woman and man around the world. And when our elected members of Congress once again stood united by enacting the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, American showed the world that it remains a global leader on disability rights.
But America's leadership is under serious threat because some believe we should not embrace disability rights around the world by ratifying the Convention. They cite concerns about the potential for the Convention to undermine the rights of parents of disabled children to provide home schooling. Others point to the Convention's endorsement of abortion, even if it accepts nations that outlaw the practice as parties. But the truth is, the Convention simply seeks to extend the ADA beyond the borders of America by recognizing that persons with disabilities have the same rights as everyone else in the entire world. For this reason, we respectfully reject these unfounded claims, and urge that all Americans put aside their political beliefs in support of disability rights around the world. After all, we are "one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Please ratify the Convention and stand for the rights of persons with disabilities in our country and around the world. Rejecting the Convention will call into question America's claim to support human rights around the world, and will send a message to every child, woman and man that we do not care about disability rights outside the United States of America. Thank you.
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