JulyisDisabilityPrideMonth

What is Disability Pride Month?

Disability Pride Month is a chance for people to honor everyone’s uniqueness as a “natural and beautiful part of human diversity”

How did it get started?

In 1990, The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed which created a law that prohibited discrimination against people with disabilities. That same year, Boston held the first Disability Pride Day.

In 2015, NTC Mayor declared July Disability Pride Month for the Americans with Disabilities Act’s 25th anniversary

How can I show my support?

Support companies that are actively showing inclusion within their marketing and employees they hire

Advocate for accessibility. Avoid using “bigger” stalls in public restrooms (some stalls are not much bigger, and for those in wheelchairs or who have service animals, it can be a tight squeeze)

DO NOT park in handicap parking if you are ablebodied. It makes it very hard for those in chairs to be able to enter their vehicles if there are other cars parked illegally/incorrectly.

Notice places that do not have ramps for customers to enter, sinks to be able to reach from a wheelchair/being lower to the ground and places that do not have automatic doors.

Educate yourself. This could come in all kinds of form & social media being a big one! You can follow disability activists and accounts that are educational It is as simple as searching for “disability pride month” or “disability ally”

Celebrating 2 Years

IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Action) groups are meeting monthly. Get involved!

If you would like to attend one or more group meetings, or have ideas to share, please contact Mackenzie Wilcox (mackenzie.wilcox@westernvawater.org)

A new way to learn

This new learning management software has one main goal: facilitating the education process for our employees. Trakstar Learn educates, upskills, and trains employees wherever they are through digital learning and development, training management, and online courses. Trakstar Learn will allow us to track and report on learning across the organization. We look forward to trainings and certifications that will happen through this platform!