Disability and Progress-January 30, 2025-Naveh Eldar, CEO of Arc of Minnesota!

[00:00:00] Speaker A: KPI or it. [00:01:00] Speaker B: Greetings and thank you for joining Disability and Progress, where we bring you insights into ideas about and discussions on disability topics. My name is Sam. I'm the host of the show. Thanks so much for tuning in. Charlene Dollars, my research PR woman. Hello, Charlene. [00:01:15] Speaker A: Good evening, everyone. [00:01:16] Speaker B: We had a beautiful day here in Minnesota and that doesn't always happen in January. So a little bit of housekeeping. Thank you for joining us. First of all. And if you want to be a part of our email list, you can email me at disabilityandprogress, all written out at samjasmin with an e.com and we will get you on the list and you'll find out what's coming up each week. So that's disability and progressamjasmon.com if you would like to be on here to talk about a disability topic or if you're an author or, or a musician that has a disability and would like to come on, you can also email me at that address and we'll do our best to get you on tonight. Episode is thanks to my Thor Maya suggested this. Tonight we are speaking with Nevaeh Eldar. Neve is the new CEO of Minnesota Arc and we're going to be talking about Minnesota arc. So thanks for joining us. Now. [00:02:20] Speaker A: Thank you very much for having me and thank Mai for setting this up. [00:02:24] Speaker B: Yes, indeed. It's good to have people suggest things. So thank you very much again for your time. First of all, start out by telling me a little bit about you and your background. [00:02:39] Speaker A: Oh, gosh, that could take the whole hour. I feel like born and raised in Ohio, most of my professional career was down in Tennessee, where I worked for a couple decades. I started working in a disability field on the mental health side. And I worked all over case management, supported housing, crisis intervention, psychosocial rehabilitation, lots of things. And I fell backwards into supported employment. [00:03:14] Speaker B: Wow. [00:03:14] Speaker A: So what happened was the program I was over, I was a supervisor at the time, and the program I was over was being combined with another program. And so they didn't need two supervisors, Right. And they said, well, the only supervisory position we have open is supported employment. And so I said, yes, I have a family to feed and I would like a job. So I stepped into it and within months, it was the first time I saw something that changed people's lives dramatically almost instantly. So, I mean, people who were shy, this is when they went to work, Right. So when they got into the workplace, integrated settings, competitive employment, that's the only thing we did. They came out of Their shells, they started talking more, they started socializing more. Just their self esteem spiked. We also worked with individuals who were unhoused and they were able to move into permanent housing. So it was just, it was wonderful for me. And so I decided there has to be a better way to do this. So many of the models that we used are based on educated assumptions of what's the best thing to do instead of research, which is why every couple years we change things. And so I found this model of support employment that came out of Dartmouth University that had over 15 years of research behind it. I talked my CEO into letting us completely transform our program and our outcomes just really spiked. And so I know this is a long story. I warned you before beforehand, I'm a talker. [00:05:03] Speaker B: That's okay. So that's what we do on this show. [00:05:06] Speaker A: I'm perfect, right? The perfect guest. And so a couple years later, the Tennessee decided that this was a model that needed to be done by every agency that got funds from them. Because again, it was like this research based golden standard model. They reached out to Dartmouth to do training and Dartmouth was like, hey, Nave has been at park center in Nashville doing this for three years now. So it will be great for you to connect with him. So they come, they meet me, we hit it off. They get permission from my CEO to help spread this, train this, develop this across the state of Tennessee. So this put me in front of every provider from Memphis to Johnson City. If you know Tennessee, it's very wide, east, west. And I was all over that state training. And also it's a model that was a bit of a culture shift as well. So there was. That was involved as well. And so I kind of built a name for myself, so to speak, across the state. I was speaking before legislators, I was doing talk radio and things like that. And then Tennessee became the first state in the country to put waiver services under managed care organizations. Please do not hold that against me. I promise you we did good work. And so they actually, I knew nothing about this. And it was called Employment and Community First Choices. So employment is the first word. And they needed somebody to head that for the state. They reached out to me and convinced me that I would remain a huge advocate. I did that work. Eventually I ended up being over three different IDD programs across the state for this mco, which is Blue crossfit Shield of Tennessee. And at that point, I felt too removed from the community, right. I was like, I'm used to being out there talking to people and changing hearts and minds and all of that. And so I started withering kind of internally and I put feelers out. And I have a friend who worked for the ARC of the United States who recommended I apply for this position. And I did, and here I am. [00:07:29] Speaker B: You know, I have to say, I know this is gonna sound prejudice, but I'm gonna say it anyway. And I am an equal opportunist of insulting. So I don't always think of the south as very progressive when it comes to disabilities, and I can say that about a couple northern states of us, too. So it's not just that. It's not just, if you're from there, you're prejudice about that. But I don't always think of them as progressive. So that is interesting to me that Tennessee would be a place where you felt like that was a really good. You know. [00:08:06] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, it is so interesting you said that, because, again, I was born and raised in Ohio, so I kind of had these biases as well, which is. I talk about bias a lot, like, in the work that I do. And I actually use this as an example of. We all have bias, Right? Sure, Absolutely. And, I mean, I was shocked at. Can I. Can I say something that may insult some listeners? [00:08:31] Speaker B: If we get the phone calls, I won't be here. So it's all good. [00:08:35] Speaker A: Yeah. So if calls come in, I can give you examples. But there are many ways that Tennessee is more progressive in this space than Minnesota, and I was surprised to find that out. So, yeah, so they are very progressive, a really strong group of passionate people, and they're extremely collaborative there. So I know other states have come in and, like, been shocked at how much, like, people that normally would be considered competitors, that we were working so closely with each other, because what was important to us was the work and not where we worked, if that makes sense. And so I think that's something that's also that I really appreciated while working there. [00:09:18] Speaker B: So you came to the Great White north and decided to be a CEO at ark? What in the world? [00:09:25] Speaker A: What? [00:09:26] Speaker B: I mean, you came here, so this must have been quite a change for you. [00:09:34] Speaker A: It was. It was a change in a lot of ways in some surprising ways as well. But I will say this. So obviously, let's just put it out there. The biggest change is the weather, right? [00:09:47] Speaker B: Well, yeah. [00:09:48] Speaker A: So, like, I was in Morehead to see some of my staff and do some meetings last week, and it was minus 24 when I left. So these are not temperatures I haven't seen since. I was, like, I don't know, 10 years old or so, because, like I. [00:10:02] Speaker B: Said, I grew up, well, even in Ohio. Where in Ohio? [00:10:05] Speaker A: Northeast Ohio. So very close to Lake Erie. [00:10:08] Speaker B: Okay. [00:10:08] Speaker A: Don't forget that Akron, Cleveland area, though. Yes. [00:10:11] Speaker B: You get that lake effect. So you don't quite get the temperatures like we do yet. We have a ton of lakes. We still get the temperatures. [00:10:18] Speaker A: Right. So we'll hit the negative, you know, 10, 15, but it'll be for like a day. It's not like here. It, like, kind of lingers for a while. Right, Right. So, yeah. But I will say my family has truly embraced it. Last week we went to a festival that was out on the lake, and then we went for a walk to see Minnehaha Falls. And so, yeah, we've been. We've been trying to enjoy this. [00:10:43] Speaker B: So you haven't been here long? October. [00:10:47] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:10:50] Speaker B: You know, tell us. Well, first of all, for all those who don't know about Minnesota arc, who are they? And tell us a little bit about them. [00:11:02] Speaker A: Yeah. So again, it's why I'm here. I relocated my family, so I have two adult children, but our son came with us. My daughter is probably on her way. She just graduated from the university from Florida International in Miami. Oh, wow. And so she's thinking of going to grad school here. And then, of course, my wife. So it's like, why come here? So great about the ARC of Minnesota to move. So there's a few things. So in all the work I did, when I think it's always about, like, community and integration and living this full, healthy, independent life, making mistakes and all of that. And I have had the honor of, like, the program I just talked about was one example that to date has served about that model of. Of self employment. I mean, of support employment has probably served about 15,000 Tennesseans at this point. Right. And it's something that I help build. So I've been involved with really big things. But you always knew that the only reason this is happening is because of the work of the arc. I have done years of work with the arc, both on a statewide and a national level. And the ARC is an organization that his from day one. Now, remember, it started in 1950. And for the listeners, where did it start? Minneapolis, Minnesota. That is where the arc. [00:12:31] Speaker B: I did not know that. [00:12:32] Speaker A: There you go. That is where the ARC was very first founded and started in 1950. [00:12:38] Speaker B: And what does ARC stand for? [00:12:40] Speaker A: So right now it stands for nothing. It is not an. It is not an acronym of any. Any kind. But it's did start for something, and it's a word that we no longer find appropriate. And so it went through. It was an acronym. It was in the beginning, and then it changed its meaning to another acronym, which also time has not smiled kindly on. And so now it's just arc. Although, anyway, we'll get to that later. So from the beginning, I mean, when you look at some of the things the ARC has done, done, we're talking about moving people, children from institutions into the homes, you know, like, fighting for this, fighting for education in the school systems. I mean, and there were times when, I mean, everybody knows the stories, right? I mean, individuals were living in institutions, just not being even treated on a human level many times. And I can't say that was every everyone, but it was a lot. It was too many of them. Right. These were documented. These were seen. And so it was the ARC that was always on the forefront of making that change and fighting that fight for just basic human rights. And so, like I said, when I was in my last position, I felt so removed from being impactful on the community that the dream job would have been working for an arc. And so when my colleague, like I said, who worked for ARC United States told me about this position, we thought about Minneapolis and St. Paul, and we're like, they're beautiful cities. They're great cities. We actually have a few friends who live here already, and they love it here. And so, yeah, we took that step and that leap so that I can be over a team of passionate, passionate individuals whose sole purpose is to ensure that the people with intellectual and developmental disabilities have everything that they deserve, including the right to make poor choices. [00:14:53] Speaker B: Isn't that hard to watch? [00:14:55] Speaker A: You know, it's like anything else. It's hard to watch, like, my brother make poor choices. It's like, why are you dating that woman? Type of thing. But, hey, that's his right, and that's everybody's right. Right. Like, I always joke that some of our greatest memories are some of the worst decisions that we've made, you know, from. Like, we shouldn't have been doing that. [00:15:15] Speaker B: Right. So you have had a lot of background in a lot of different areas. How do you feel like this helped you in your now CEO role? [00:15:27] Speaker A: Yeah. So, you know, so much has prepared me for this that kind of lined up, I think, perfectly. And I guess the board and the hiring committee thought so as well. One is just, like, literally working with people with disabilities for over 20 years, like, not sitting in the office, but, like, literally sitting with individuals Helping them plan, helping their dreams come true, helping advocate for things, helping them have a voice in having expectations. You know, we always rise to expectations. So it's like when somebody is sitting in front of you and believes in you and believes that you can do these great things, to see them, you know, feel empowered and all of that. So I have that work working with families, countless families, working with systems and governments and is. And the thing I learned at my last job is the business side of it, to be honest about it. You know, I worked for a very, very big organization. 6,500 employees in total. Of course, I wasn't over all of them, but, you know, on that side of it, I mean, we are a business. Everybody. We have to keep lights on. We have to pay staff, we have to. To do. To do the programs that we want to do. We need funding for it. And so that experience helped me understand how to prioritize and look at budgets from a strategic point of view. So it all kind of married together to put me where I am. [00:17:09] Speaker B: I think I heard you use a term of idd, Intellectual and developmental disabilities, right? [00:17:19] Speaker A: Yes. [00:17:19] Speaker B: I just want the listeners to know in case they are like, what's ID'd? [00:17:23] Speaker A: I know, I know. Try so hard not to do that. [00:17:27] Speaker B: It's totally okay. You know, people do it every day and they don't even think about it, you know, because they're just in that. In that language, in that position. And it's just everyone who's with you knows that. Right, Exactly. The vey. I was just curious. You know, we talk about ARC of Minnesota, so I presume there's other arcs, like, does every state have an arc or how many are there? [00:17:52] Speaker A: Not every state has an arc. There was a. There's been an ARC in every state at some point, but now all of them are not there. So the model is there are local chapters, and then there's also statewide chapters. So we're the ARC of Minnesota, and so we're a statewide chapter. And actually, a couple years back, there were several local chapters that folded into us. So there's only one local chapter still in Minnesota, which is in Duluth, and it's the ARC Northland. So that exists. But across the United States, There are nearly 700 chapters. [00:18:31] Speaker B: Oh, wow. [00:18:31] Speaker A: And the chapters are kind of divided into two different categories. You have your provider chapters, and so those are the chapters that, like, do services like assisted living or employment services or transportation, like those types of services. And then you have your more advocacy type chapters, which almost every statewide chapter is an Advocacy chapter. So we do a lot of legislative work, a lot of education, a lot of self advocate training in movement. So that's more our model. [00:19:10] Speaker B: So I'm glad that you're here now because you're so green to this, this, you know, that of the time you've spent here. So you kind of, you still have that riled up, you know, I'm going to make a difference thing, right? You're only about five months into, you know, your new CEO position. I'm wondering what your thoughts are so far. [00:19:34] Speaker A: Well, the first thing is, you know, everybody was worried. First of all, I'm a very blunt person. So I am not always the most, you know, like politician type. Answering, trying to be careful. So when I, when I came, I was a very unknown entity. Everybody in the state of Tennessee that works in this area knows me both on the mental health and the intellectual and developmental disability side. But when you come here, very few people know me. Actually there was a team at the University of Minnesota who I had worked with some that I became good friends with, but outside of them, I was a completely unknown entity. So the team that I came to, I'm sure was nervous about who is this person. But conversely, I was leaving an extremely passionate, intelligent, hardworking team. And so I was also worried, right. I'm sitting there going, okay, I hope this team is good. I hope they're serious, I hope they're hardworking and they have exceeded my expectations. I mean, they are just absolutely phenomenal, top to bottom. And right now we have zero openings, which makes me happy because it means they're happy. You know, when you have nobody leaving, it means that they're happy where they are. [00:20:56] Speaker B: That is so true. [00:20:58] Speaker A: And so I think that that was, you know, I learned, you know, that this team, again, that the team was like really good at what they did. They just needed leadership. They didn't need to be micromanaged. Right. They had that covered. They just needed big picture and business type things taken care of. [00:21:17] Speaker B: So what are your long term vision? What's your long term vision for AHRQ Minnesota? How does it different from now and how do you plan on accomplishing that? Plan? [00:21:29] Speaker A: Yeah. So we are really leaning into disability justice, which is making sure that people with disabilities of every kind are the ones leading the work, that we do have a voice, are involved on every level. So if you look at my board of directors, we have several people that have both intellectual and developmental disabilities and other type of disabilities. When you look at our committees, our board committees, there's Always people from the community, or almost always people from the community that have disabilities, Disabilities. And then we're working to become a home for all people. So for those in the audience who don't know, I am a black male, I am a man of color. And that's important in the sense that I think I'm the only head of a statewide chapter that's of color. I don't think I know for sure of color in the country. Right. So the ARC has historically been a white middle class organization. Our services are free. But like, that's like, if you, you know, that's what you see, that's who typically comes to us. And so we want all communities to feel like this is your home. We are here for you. Right? So if you are indigenous, if you are Somali, if you are Hmong, then this is, we are your home. And we want you to become a member of ours. We want your voice, we want your thoughts, we want your leadership, all of it. And so when you make a change like that, it doesn't happen overnight. [00:23:05] Speaker B: No, it doesn't. [00:23:06] Speaker A: And so that's something that we are strategically and very intentionally working on. And on the other side of that is we are the ARC of Minnesota. But I think a lot of our focus tends to be towards the cities, the Twin Cities. [00:23:24] Speaker B: That's true. Probably. [00:23:26] Speaker A: It is, it is. And we feel it, and the greater Minnesota feels it. So it's also, I told you earlier in the interview that I was up in Moorhead the other week. I will be traveling in different places. Mankato is in a couple weeks, and then I'll be in Rochester. You see how I'm learning my geography. This is the way. And I think St. Cloud will be after that. But I'm going in person, meeting our allies and stakeholders in those communities to let them know how much they mean to us, how much we are there for them and their needs, and to hear what are their unique needs, because they may have different issues in this part of the state compared to that part of the state. And so kind of like one of our big focuses is this bringing in, like I said, even to a greater level, because we already do it, disability voices and leadership, and then also bringing in all people, which includes, I told my staff, you know, we have minority. Like, our work is to advocate for a minority group. Right. Disabilities is a minority group. But now we have geographic minority groups. So people that live in a place and they're like, nobody listens to us because we're in the little corner over here. So we Want to make sure that we. That we're making sure that we're getting their voices as well. [00:24:52] Speaker B: You know, it's so funny because you talk about, you know, wanting to make arc. Not that it isn't, but it feels like a more open place for different races and things like that. And I feel like that in the Twin Cities, that's what you're going to get, because I see all different types of races and whatnot, you know, in Minneapolis, St. Paul. And I feel like the further out I get, it's more white. [00:25:21] Speaker A: Right? [00:25:22] Speaker B: So. [00:25:23] Speaker A: And both are fine, and both are great. Right? It's like if the community. Like, we need to give what the community needs. So, like, here in the Twin Cities, there's a big. Just as examples, there's a big Somali population. There's a big Hmong population. So we have our documents translated into Somali and Hmong. Right? So this is like part of our journey to letting these communities know that we see them and that we're here from them. And it was never intentional to exclude anybody. It was just, again, being a person of color. When you look at an organization and you don't see yourself reflected anywhere in it, you just pause before you go to it. There's like, this sense of, am I welcome? And if you're questioning that, then you just don't go, because our services are open and free to everybody. So it's just a matter of letting those communities know that we want them to reach out to us. Right. [00:26:21] Speaker B: Do you know, I think about this being a person who teaches and have a lot of different ethnicity or race of people that come to me that have disabilities. And in some of those disabilities, the culture is so different. The minute you have a disability and some ethnicities, you are just not as good as, you know, all your people. [00:26:56] Speaker A: That's right. [00:26:56] Speaker B: And so I'm wondering what you do for education in that respect. [00:27:02] Speaker A: Really Good question. So you're absolutely right. And so we do a few things. One is just conversations, right? To get to know the communities and what's important to you and what do you need and how do you operate? And those are, like I said, those are the type of things that take time. And then to make sure that even, like, in our staff, that they see themselves reflected in our staff. And then so another part of disability justice is recognizing people's intersectionality and their identity. So it's not just you can be a disabled person who's also in the LGBTQIA community, who's also Hmong, all those things. Right. And so you are, you experience that through that unique lens. And so we also have to recognize that this is a whole person that is dealing with all of this at the same time. And so we have trainings, we have regularly scheduled trainings to help us understand exactly what you're talking about, understand how to respect and how to approach and how to, or just even to understand a specific culture. So they will come in and teach us and explain things to us and then we adjust ourselves appropriately. [00:28:26] Speaker B: What are a few things that you're prioritizing right now. [00:28:32] Speaker A: Outside of the things that I mentioned? Like I said, the disability justice, the community, making sure the community across the state, even the rural areas, are feeling that we see them and are looking for them. We also have a legislative agenda, which I told you some of the things earlier that the ARC as a whole, not just the ARC of Minnesota, but the ARC as a whole has done. But even here in Minnesota, it was one of the ARC chapters that filed a lawsuit against the school system for not letting children with disability get educated in the school, in the public school system. And they won that a couple years earlier than the federal because it became a federal regulation. Right. So again, the ARC has always done legislative type work. More recently during COVID they had policies in place that said if you are elderly or have a disability, you go to the end of waiting lines for like ventilators, for example, which was absurd. And so the ARC fought that along with some others. But we were at the forefront. Like if you looked in the newspapers, you would see the ARC with so and so and so and so are filing lawsuits. And so we do this type of work as well. But some of our legislative agenda items this year are the protection of Medicaid is huge. So we're really focused on trying to prevent the cutting or cutbacks in any kind of Medicaid. [00:30:08] Speaker B: Good luck with that. [00:30:09] Speaker A: Yes, thank you. We need all the good thoughts and advocacy. If you're out there, make sure that you're calling your legislators and letting them know how much it'll impact you or your loved one if Medicaid is cut in any kind of a way. A little bit of a controversial issue. It's not controversial for me, but. But it is in the state of Minnesota is sub minimum wage. So it is still legal to pay people with disabilities below the minimum wage. Minnesota, I think, is like the third biggest utilizer of sub minimum wage allowances in the country. And so it is part of our legislative agenda to do away with sub minimum wage. And this is earlier I Talked about Tennessee. Tennessee got rid of it three, four years ago. And it was actually out of practice probably two or three years even prior to that. So that was one example that I said I was surprised when I came here. Not that they had it, but like, how much it was being utilized. And the fact that, you know, here's this red state that has already gotten. Who's already like, not allowed that to take place anymore. Another one is inclusive playgrounds. Also, parents being more involved with the IEP process, the individual education plan process, especially parents that either have a disability or English is not their first language. They have been having barriers, engaging fully in that process. And so we have some work around that as well. [00:31:56] Speaker B: I want to step back and talk about something Neveh that you brought up, and that's the subminimum wage. And can you talk a little bit more about what are we talking about when you say subminimum wage and give some of the pros and cons of that? If you can find some pros? [00:32:20] Speaker A: Yeah, I am not going to give you any pros. And I know that this is again, in this state that's somewhat of a controversial. I'm a libra. And so to be balanced, I will give some pros that other people state, but I think that they are inaccurate and I can share with that as well. So subminimum wage started in 1938, I believe, and it was put in place to encourage people with disabilities to be able to work. That was the concept. It's like, nobody's going to hire this group of people, but if they can pay them less the minimum wage, then that would help. And so disability groups pretty much across the board have been trying to get it banned for decades and decades. The only groups of people in the United States who can be paid less than minimum wage are prisoners and people with disabilities. So that kind of like puts things in perspective as well. Yeah. And you can like literally get paid like a dollar an hour. It's. It's. I don't know what to say about it. [00:33:34] Speaker B: Is there no, like, no. Consistent. [00:33:38] Speaker A: No. [00:33:39] Speaker B: Okay. [00:33:39] Speaker A: No. And this is one thing that even people who support sub minimum wage, it makes them a little uncomfortable is the fact that there's not even a minimum that you can pay. You know, there's no basement to it. So like I said, if you wanted to pay somebody 5 cents an hour, you could pay them 5 cents an hour. So another problem is with this model, you typically are working at a location with all other people with a disability, and there's Usually like a contract involved. Like to give an example, let's say I need pens put together. And so they just bring a, a ton of pens and you'll put them together and we'll pay you a penny per pen. So if you do something like this or they'll do it per hour. And so there's no integration in the community. They stay impoverished because they're not making any money. There's no choice because they're not being asked what do you want to do? Like everybody else in the world or what kind of area do you want to work in? And there's no benefits, there's no anything. So I don't. But the people who support it to be a little bit. It's not even fair because I think it's unfair that it exists. But the people who support it, they truly believe in their hearts that if you take subminimum wage away that there are individuals that will not find a job. So something is better than nothing. That's kind of like the argument. But if you look at states that have gone away with it, employment rates have actually gone up. When you train staff on how to do proper supports and find a proper job, you find that you can have somebody who normally the people who are advocating to keep it would say would never get a job. Such as I can tell you right now, there's a young lady I worked with who she had quadriplegia. So there was very limited use of her arms and legs. She did not communicate verbally. She needed to be repositioned every two hours or, you know, she would get sores or damage to her spine. And so there were all these kind of limitations. And she has been working for probably seven years at a dentist office greeting people, helping people fill out forms. And she has a job coach with her, but no matter where, there's always staff working. Right. So if that's what she needs to work in the community, then that's what we should provide. So there's. I spoke to a provider recently because on the federal level they're trying to get rid of this, but we're not sure if the new administration is going to strike that down because it started at the end of the last administration. The Department of Labor was planning to do away with it. And so they have a public comment period where anybody can write in. So I caught one of my friends who worked for a provider in Tennessee, but they're an agency that's in four different states. They had sub minimum wage work for 10 years. They got rid of it. On their own. And then they went to only integrated work for eight years after that. So they had, like, a lot of experience on both ends of it. And he said, there is nobody in any of the states that they're in that wants to go back to subminimum wage. They said kind of like what I said at the beginning when I said, it's amazing to see how people grow and light up and become more confident. He was like, it was amazing to see how much more engaged and happy they were and how they pushed themselves to do good work when it became a job that they wanted in the community and where they were getting paid properly. So there you go. [00:37:43] Speaker B: You have a background in employment. [00:37:47] Speaker A: Yes. [00:37:47] Speaker B: So besides subminimum wage, tell me some of the other biggest challenges that people with disabilities face in employment. [00:37:57] Speaker A: I mean, you know, it's stigma, right? [00:37:59] Speaker B: Yes, it is. [00:38:00] Speaker A: It's the people who oppose getting rid of sub minimum wage are family members and typically and providers who provide that service. Right. [00:38:11] Speaker B: Why family members? [00:38:12] Speaker A: Because. And this is where I have to check myself. This is where I have to say nave we have to be reasonable. Because these family members have been told for their whole life that their child, their son or daughter was not capable of working. And they've been told that by the education system, by therapists, by doctors, and they believe them. Right. And so, like, when I talked about that research model that came out of Dartmouth University, one of the biggest things that came out of that research was how many people went to work that doctors said would never go to work. It is like the doctors do not know who can and can't work because the doctors are basing it on bias. And so it's like it's this truly institutional bias. I spoke to a lawyer, Jonathan Martinez was his name, and he was the first lawyer to win a case to get somebody with an intellectual disability away from guardianship from their parents. The person sued their parents to get out of guardianship, and he won. First time in the country. And he's like this legal historian, right? And he was telling me that since, literally since man has written law, which was in ancient Greece was the first time, I believe is what he said, there have been laws taking rights away from people with disabilities. And so we're talking about millennia of discrimination against people with disabilities. And so when you have all of that history telling you they can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, it's really hard for the parents to think you're wrong. They can. Right. And so because they're doing it out of love and out of protection, it's like I want, you know, I'm afraid that they're not gonna succeed or I'm afraid they're gonna be rejected or I'm afraid they're gonna be abused. And so it's out of protection, but that protection is really taking away their rights is what it's doing. [00:40:22] Speaker B: So at the risk of getting you in trouble, I think you don't seem very afraid of it. We have quite a political change that happened. [00:40:39] Speaker A: Yes. [00:40:42] Speaker B: I don't foresee good things for people with disabilities in the next four years. I think it's going to be a really rough road. [00:40:49] Speaker A: Yes. [00:40:49] Speaker B: And I'm wondering how you plan on addressing legislators and what are you yourself kind of bracing yourself to take on, Right? [00:41:12] Speaker A: Yeah, we're bracing ourselves, take on everything that we have to. I don't know if you can stop a tidal wave, but we're going to try. So one of the things that I do is I talk to my team and I remind them that I'm coming from a red Republican state. We are a non partisan organization. I do not care if you are independent, if you're a Democrat, if you're Republican, I don't care. And I know for a fact I've worked with, again, Alaska is a Republican state. South Carolina is a Republican state. Tennessee is a Republican state. They've all done away with sub minimum wage for people with disabilities. So there are people on both sides of the system that understand that this is a human rights issue. So I'm saying all that to try to keep myself out of trouble with people thinking that I'm being partisan because I'm not. Because if any president was trying to take away the rights of people with disabilities, we would have a problem. So what are we doing? We're gathering stories because of constituents, so that they can hear how these actions will impact them. Because if you can look a person in their eyes and hear how much you are going to be negatively impacting their life, then it's harder for you to do than when you're sitting in your office just staring at a piece of paper. So we're gathering as many stories as we can. We are advocating directly to legislators. I have a director of public policy who is every single day working on this and meeting with legislators. And she pulls me into key meetings, especially when there's some that may not support our side, but they're open to listening. And so we make sure that we are talking to them and we have colleagues that kind of align more politically on the other side. And we see differently on many issues such as sub minimum wage. Right. But when we align, like on Medicaid, for example, it's like we have to work together. This is a time that it's going to be so negatively impactful on people's lives that we have to show even us that are normally kind of on different sides of the fence, we all agree that this needs to be protected. And so we are doing, you know, everything we can. I know her name is Tina. She's probably not listening, but if she is. Hi, Tina, you're doing great work. She's doing a press conference tomorrow on how Medicaid is going to negatively or how disrupting Medicaid in any way is going to negatively impact the disability community. So we're doing newspapers, radio spots, direct contact with legislators, getting people with disabilities to use their voice to speak directly to their legislators, which is the most powerful thing that we can do. [00:44:31] Speaker B: I understand what you're saying, and I think in my viewpoint or my eyes, there are always subtle differences, right, between politics, Republican or Democrats. There's subtle changes, subtle difference, some bigger than others, of what happens. But when you look to leadership, I'm worried about if the leadership promotes disrespect, disregard, more violence or more whatever that trickles down to everyone. And I worry about the minorities or the disability people that they're going to catch the brunt of that. [00:45:28] Speaker A: Absolutely. I mean, today is a perfect example, right? This morning there was a press conference. There was this horrible tragedy of a plane crashing into a military helicopter, I believe. And what does the president say this was due to people with disabilities that were hired by under DEI practices or whatever other nonsense he stated. It's not true. It's not based on any fact. It's irresponsible. It increases bias, it increases everything. [00:46:05] Speaker B: And that's exactly what I'm talking about. [00:46:07] Speaker A: It increases anger, it increases cause now people are like, look what you did. And it's like mind boggling how irresponsible such a statement is and how uneducated such a statement is that, yeah, I don't have words for. And like I said, I don't care if it was a Democrat who stated it, who said it, or a Republican who said was wrong. Leadership, leadership just to be leadership. Yeah, yes, I'm in trouble now. But it is what it is. And so I will say the ARC of the United States released a statement, we supported that and recirculated it. Many national disability groups released a statement condemning those comments that he made. And that's what we're going to have to continue to do. I mean, like I said, we're nonpartisan, which is absolutely true. But when the disability community is attacked, we will defend. And when rights are trying to be taken away, we will fight. So that's who we are. That's why we're here. [00:47:15] Speaker B: What are a few things that you want our community to know about people with disabilities? [00:47:22] Speaker A: Intellectual and developmental disabilities, in case people aren't aware. So intellectual and developmental disability in general is. Some examples are individuals with down syndrome that are autistic, cerebral palsy. These are just some examples of intellectual and developmental disabilities. And what do I want you to know? I mean, it's what I say about, you know, when I do my trainings, when I used to do trainings, like with. With providers around employment, which is everybody. Everybody wants the same thing, right? Like, people with disabilities, they want to love and be loved. They want to feel butterflies in their stomach from going on a date. They want to. If they want to work, they want to be seen as valuable and they may not want to work. Just like there are people without disabilities that don't wanna work. Right? [00:48:17] Speaker B: Boy, we've all known some of those. [00:48:19] Speaker A: Well, and I used to. I used to. My daughter used to swim in a very affluent area, and there were many spouses that didn't work and would be going to yoga during the day and stuff. So if that's what you wanna do, that's what you should do. But people with disabilities are. They're people and they grow and they make mistakes and they laugh and they love things and they hate things. And like anybody else, they should be supported. And they will achieve more in every phase of their life if they're supported like anybody else. If my parents. If I grew up hearing my parents tell me constantly that you can't go to college and you'll never be successful. You think that I'm going to be successful like that? Unfortunately, especially when you hear it from such a young age. We believe what we're told. And so capable, loving, independent. All of it. All of it. They're just. They're like everybody else. [00:49:26] Speaker B: So really, we're running little on time and I apologize. But you. You are throwing a big party. I hear you have a gala coming up. Do you want to talk a little bit about it? And so excited. [00:49:39] Speaker A: On March 1, we have a gala. We do have tickets on sale if you want to just search for ARC Minnesot Gala 2025, it'll take you to the website. It is our biggest fundraiser of the year. But there will be lots of staff there, there will be lots of our self advocates. So people with intellectual and developmental disabilities will be in the room and just the disability community at large will have a nice presence there. We have like a silent auction and a regular live auction, of course, Great food, we'll have some music and partying towards the end of the evening. And I think most importantly, like I said, this is one of our biggest fundraisers and you've heard some of the work we do, you've heard some of my passion, and believe me, my team is equally as passionate, if not more passionate. So these are the people that you will be supporting. If you can't go to the gala, you can still go to our website and donate so that we can continue to do the work that we do. And you can just again search for the ARC Minnesota for that. And if I can throw in there, we also have three thrift stores and you can shop at our thrift stores, you can donate to our thrift stores and you can volunteer at our thrift stores. So there's lots of ways that you can contribute to our cause and to us in our fight for justice. Because even though we represent the intellectual and developmental disability community, the work that we do more times than not is for the entire disability community. Like Medicaid is for everybody with a disability. Sub minimum wage is for everybody with a disability. You know, transportation, affordable housing. These are some of our other issues that we're working on are for all disabilities. So hopefully some of your listeners will give us a few donations, a few dollars tonight. [00:51:52] Speaker B: Where can people go with your website? [00:51:53] Speaker A: Again, it is arcminnesota.org or you can just search the Arc Minnesota and I'm sure our website will be the first thing you see. And if you want to get to our gala page, it's easiest to again search Arkansas, Minnesota Gala and it'll be the first thing at the top of your page. The first link at the top will take you to that ARC aarc. Thank you for pointing that out. Yes, ARC is arc. [00:52:22] Speaker B: I wanted to thank you. You've been a great interview. I really enjoyed this. Charlene, did you have any questions for him? No. Charlene, did you have any questions for Neve? No. I learned a lot tonight. That's right. You guys do have their story. Is there anything else? I think what are some direct things that you do with the disability community or with the community? [00:52:52] Speaker A: Yeah. So we have like our program side, our team that works in our programs. And so we do things like we have crisis housing assistance. So if individuals are obviously with disability find themselves needing to go into kind of inpatient care with their mental health, we can give financial assistance so they don't lose their housing. We do trainings, events and outreach. Again, this is for both the community and the disability community. So it could be like with a business or for people with disabilities, like, you know how to. What's out there for you? Around employment, we have a help desk where you can call and ask any questions like about the school systems, your rights, anything like that. We have a very big self advocate advocacy team that meets and gets together and they do social events and trainings and all kinds of work to help shape the work that we do and be a part of that. We have peer to peer mentoring. So if somebody, for example, that's around employment, if somebody wants to get supported employment, they can talk to another individual with a disability that has employment to ask questions. And we also have scholarships and micro grants around employment and housing. So like if you get a job and you need equipment, you can apply for one of our grants. If you get a place to stay and you need a down payment or you need, you know, to pay an electric bill for the first month, we have little micro grants for that. So that's, that's a few of the services that we do more directly with the community. [00:54:35] Speaker B: Wow. Well, it's nice to know that they can get equipment because that equipment, I know, speaking from personal experience, can be very expensive. How does that work if somebody wants to do that? [00:54:47] Speaker A: Yeah, so we have again, the easiest way because I'm sorry, I don't have the web link directly. If you go to our website and search for micro grants, that's what it's called. And it's just an application process. It opens and closes at the beginning of the month. So make sure you get in there quick to put it in. Because we have a limited number of funds each month. It goes pretty quickly because it's a very popular service that we provide. So again, go to our website, arcminnesota.org and you can search micro grants. [00:55:25] Speaker B: Excellent. Okay, well, thank you so very much. I've really enjoyed having you on and I appreciate the time that you've given and I just want to remind our listeners that, that, you know, 501 C3s are great. I mean we're one too. So we. I appreciate that it takes money to, to make things run. So thank you. Very much. I appreciate you being here. [00:55:55] Speaker A: Thank you so much for having me. It's been wonderful. [00:55:59] Speaker B: Come back again soon and maybe you can give us a recap of what happens in legislation at the, you know, at the end of their time. [00:56:07] Speaker A: Oh, yes, that would be great. [00:56:08] Speaker B: Okay, thanks so much. You've been listening to Disability and Progress. The views expressed on the show are not necessarily those of KFEI Oats, a board of people. My name is Sam. I'm the host of the show. I appreciate you joining us today. Charlie Dahl is my PR Research person, and Erin is my podcaster who's currently somewhere warm. Well, soon, soon we'll get it. This is KFAI 90.3 FM, Minneapolis, and KFAI.org just a reminder that our email address is disabilityatprogressamjasmin.com drop us a line. We'd love to hear from you. Thanks so much for listening.