1. Your Right to Vote by Steven Powe
Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

2. The Human Right of Voting
People with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. (ADA 1990)
It is your civil and human right to vote!
You have the right to be accommodated at the polls
Big Print
Have the ballot read to you (or be provided with a voting machine that reads to you)
Wheelchair/mobility aid accessible voting/polling place
You have the right to register to vote.
No one can deny you the right to register to vote.
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

3. Voting Rights Continued
You have the right to vote even if you have a guardian.
To have the right to receive assistance from a person of your choice
You have the right to the same opportunities as everyone else, including access to the place you vote, voting, having privacy, voting independently
You have the right to an alternate means of voting on Election Day if no accessible location is available
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

4. Why is it Important to Vote
Voting makes you feel included and is a chance for your voice to be heard.
It is important to learn about the people you vote for, and to vote for people that share your values and beliefs.
You should learn where the voting places (called the polls) are for where you live
You should not be afraid to vote!
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

5. Video about Voting by Rooted in Rights
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

6. Questions for YOU Have you voted before?
Do you know where the closest voting poll is to your home?
Do you know what voting district you live in?
Do you know how to register to vote?
Would you need accessible equipment to vote? Do you know how to ask for it?
Do you know how to ask for support if you need it?
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

7. Case Study #1
Nick and Marie want to vote, because they want their voice to be heard. Their staff says, “You do not know how to vote” and refuses to take them to the polls.
Is that a human rights violation? Why or why not?
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

8. Case Study #2
What if their staff did end up taking them to the polls, but said that they had to stay with them and watch while they voted, so they couldn’t vote in private?
Is that a human rights violation? Why or why not?
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

9. Case Study #3 What if their staff told them who they had to vote for?
Is that a human rights violation? Why or why not?
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

10. How do you register to vote?
Online or in person through your Department of Motor Vehicles.
Through your local Board of Elections (BOE) office and other government agency offices.
At your polling place on election day. (Not all states do this.
By filling out the voter registration form and mailing it to the BOE.
Organize a voter registration at a self-advocacy meeting.
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

11. With Gratitude to SARTAC & AIDD
“This publication is supported in part by a cooperative agreement from the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Administration for Community Living, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities policy.”
This toolkit was created with the help of the DC Department on Disability Services and Project ACTION!.
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

12. About SARTAC
“The Self Advocacy Resource and Technical Assistance Center (SARTAC) seeks to strengthen the self-advocacy movement by supporting self advocacy organizations to grow in diversity and leadership. The resource center is a project of Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE), the oldest national self-advocacy organization in the country. SARTAC is a Developmental Disabilities Project of National Significance, funded by the Administration For Community Living  – Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD). The information in this manual was written to provide guidance for self Advocates and their allies to assist in understanding policy issues affecting their lives. It is not to be used to determine a person's legal rights or an organization's legal responsibilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended; the Americans with Disability Act of 1990, as amended or any other federal, state or local laws written to protect the rights of people with disabilities.”
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)

13. For more information: Steven Powe at stevenpowe985@yahoo
For more information: Steven Powe at or Rebecca Salon
Thank you all so much for coming. If you have any ideas on making this training better take some time to write them down or talk to me before you leave. You can also Rebecca and I at a later date if you can think of anything.
Your Right to Vote A Resource from the Toolkit for Serving on a Human Rights Committee by Steven Powe (May 2018)