WEBVTT

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Many of the barriers we experience

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on a daily basis are carried over into decision making situations

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where professionals in positions of authority can make snap judgments

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about us based on how we communicate.

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I know so many situations where professionals automatically assume

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we can't manage our own affairs and they defer a decision about

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us to a family member, or a support person.

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Sometimes, they defer to other people because it's a faster, easier

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way to get an answer.  What is most

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concerning is, very often support people, even those with good intentions

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can present their own view rather than ours, perhaps

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thinking they know what's best for us.

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And unfortunately, there are far too many horror stories

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about people who do express what they want, and yet their opinions

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are ignored, not taken seriously, or they are simply denied what they want in life.

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This cannot go on.

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We all need to work together to defend the rights of people who have

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communication disabilities.

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Professionals must understand how to make a duty

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to accommodate laws, work for us, and to exercise our right to control what

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happens in our lives, because right now, they don't seem to know

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what these accommodations mean for us.