Every day in America, almost two million people are incarcerated in jails and prisons. Although disability and Deaf communities have received less attention in conversations about mass incarceration, well over half of people behind bars have at least one disability.

In this webinar hosted by Activating Change, presenters will provide an overview of the mass incarceration of people with disabilities; discuss how ableism, audism, and racism intersect resulting in vast disparities; and unpack some of the specific harms and injustices faced by people with disabilities and Deaf people when they encounter the criminal legal system.

Our Presenters

Jordan Landry

Jordan Landry is an advocate for disability equity and criminal justice reform and serves on the Joint Legislative Jail Standard Task Force for Washington State, the King County Board of Elections Disability Advisory Council, Washington Secretary of State’s Community Advisory Council, and the Washington Coalition for Police Accountability.

His advocacy was spurred after he, a blind man and a veteran, was arrested on two counts of first-degree assault against two Seattle police officers. He was then incarcerated in jail pre-trial for 42 months and 9 days before being fully acquitted by a jury of his peers. Jordan is a veteran of the Army and served in Operation Enduring Freedom. He has a degree in Communications from Houston Community College.

Kaitlin Kall

Kaitlin Kall is a senior program associate with Activating Change and is part of the team focused on ending the criminalization and incarceration of people with disabilities and Deaf people. Kaitlin’s work centers on equitably reducing the number of people impacted by jails and increasing sexual safety and opportunities for healing in confinement facilities.

Prior to the formation of Activating Change, Kaitlin worked at the Vera Institute of Justice for ten years. Kaitlin graduated from Wesleyan University. 

Exploring Healing Among Survivors with Mental Health Conditions from Black, Indigenous, and Other Communities of Color

Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) face disproportionate amounts of trauma – including domestic and sexual violence. In addition to the present-day trauma experienced by Black and brown communities, these communities also experience historical trauma and community displacement. These intersecting traumas create barriers to healing and have a significant impact on mental health and overall wellness.   

In many ways, BIPOC communities have had to look out for themselves and for each other to simply survive systemic racism. Culture, community, and connection are pillars that support and uplift BIPOC individuals when the dangers of oppression and systemic racism threaten their communities. BIPOC communities have been powerful, unyielding, and revolutionary in combating these attempts to diminish their worth and value.  

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Join Olga Trujillo, Activating Change, as they facilitate a discussion to answer this question and more with Jolene Engelking, National Tribal Sexual Assault Resource Center Coordinator for the Minnesota Womens’ Sexual Assault Coalition and Lata D’Mello the Assistant Director of Monsoon Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity. Together, they will explore the ways in which culturally specific and Tribal programs use community building and other unique approaches to help BIPOC survivors heal.   

Presenters

Enhancing Your Prosecutions

Providing effective accommodations and modifications to survivors with disabilities requires prosecutors to have knowledge of typical accommodations. It is also helpful for prosecutors to build relationships with disability providers in their community as this will help them to access those accommodations in a timely manner. This two-part webinar series for prosecutors will provide essential information to reduce barriers and promote more prosecution cases involving domestic and sexual violence against people with disabilities.

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In part 2 of this webinar series, Olga Trujillo of Activating Change and Jonathan Kurland of AEquitas will explore the needs survivors with disabilities have when participating in a prosecution. They will identify accommodations prosecutors can provide and disability service providers that can serve as partners to help meet the needs of survivors with disabilities.

Presenters

Understanding Domestic and Sexual Violence in the Lives of People with Disabilities

Twenty percent of people in the United States — 1 in 5 — have a disability. People with disabilities are nearly 4 times more likely than people without disabilities to experience violent crime, including domestic and sexual violence. The rates are even higher for people with certain types of disabilities: I/DD, Psychiatric, etc. People with intellectual disabilities, for example, are 8 times more likely to experience sexual assault in their lifetime. In addition, people with disabilities experience unique dynamics of abuse. For instance, abusers often target and break auxiliary aids and adaptive equipment as a power and control tactic. In the aftermath of victimization, survivors with disabilities find barriers in every stage of their journey for justice. This two-part webinar series for prosecutors will provide essential information to reduce barriers and promote more prosecution cases involving domestic and sexual violence against people with disabilities.

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Join Olga Trujillo of Activating Change and Jonathan Kurland of AEquitas as they explore the unique complexities of violence against people with disabilities and Deaf people, barriers to access to effective criminal justice responses for survivors with disabilities and Deaf survivors, and opportunities for change. This webinar will provide foundational information for prosecutors, including a deeper dive into disability, unique dynamics of domestic and sexual violence in the lives of people with disabilities, and specific tactics used by abusers.

Presenters

In the aftermath of victimization, survivors with disabilities find barriers in every stage of their journey for justice. This two-part webinar series for law enforcement will provide essential information to reduce these barriers and promote more effective investigations of cases of domestic and sexual violence against people with disabilities.

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Join Olga Trujillo of Activating Change and Mike LaRiviere representing the National Sheriffs’ Association for this webinar as they review the range of needs survivors with disabilities have when filing a report and participating in the investigation of gender-based violence crimes. They will also review the accommodations patrol officers and investigators can provide and identify the types of disability service providers that officers and investigators can partner with to help meet the needs of survivors with disabilities during the investigative stage. 

Presenters