Write-in Assembly candidate spotlights Disability Pride Month

July is Disability Pride Month that celebrates the 1990 passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and renews our awareness and commitment to including all people in our community. People with disabilities are especially vulnerable to being left behind. The ADA was passed to remedy and empower those with physical and mental challenges to overcome.

Since the passage of the ADA, evidence of empowering everyone to understand and act with empathy is everywhere, such as parking lots, building entrances, bathrooms, crisis hotlines, outdoor trails and spaces, educational accommodations, and public services. This summer, I joined volunteers to help Pike Autism Support Services with an “I Can Ride” Bike Camp at Delaware Valley School District and was inspired by the riders and educators who staffed the camp. Everyone needs a helping hand at some time.

Inclusion isn’t only about the disabled. We search for racial justice with prison reform and access to voting. Women’s reproductive health care has been threatened and is a human right and freedom that must be protected.

Veterans who have fought to protect our freedoms deserve our help during and after their service. Climate change is real that affects communities and creates refugees with heat waves, floods, and severe storms. Transitioning to clean energy is a major infrastructure change, but certainly vital to preserving our quality of life.

We want sensible government, not divisive politics. The 1990 ADA act is complicated and filing an ADA complaint is never easy. I will always be accessible, helpful and an advocate for people with disabilities and our elderly. More and more people with disabilities are voting. If you elect me as state representative, I will work hard to get things done for all people in the 139th PA House District.

Marian Keegan

Lackawaxen Township resident

Write-in candidate for Representative to the PA General Assembly 139th District