Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Mayor's Office for People
with Disabilities (MOPD) Commissioner Matthew Sapolin today
hosted a reception at Gracie Mansion to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the
Americans with Disabilities Act. Mayor Bloomberg and Commissioner Sapolin
presented five awards recognizing individuals and organizations that have made
significant contributions to increasing accessibility for people with
disabilities. Mayor and Commissioner Sapolin were joined by Deputy Mayor
of Legal Affairs Carol Robles-Román and representatives of the organizations
that were recognized during the reception. Signed in 1990, the Americans with
Disabilities Act has fostered independence, empowerment and inclusion for
millions of Americans.
"The Americans with Disabilities Act is one of our
nation's important victories in fulfilling our founding promise of equality for
all," said Mayor Bloomberg. "The 20th anniversary of the ADA is our
opportunity to celebrate and highlight the everyday work of the many individuals
and organizations that share this Administration's commitment to bettering the
lives of people with disabilities. We have worked hard to make sure New Yorkers
with disabilities have improved access to every aspect of the city, and we
remain dedicated to making New York the greatest city in the world for people
with disabilities."
"On this significant anniversary, it is only appropriate
that the Mayor and I continue what has become an annual tradition by granting
awards to some of the people and organizations who help people with disabilities
fully participate in every aspect of city life," said Commissioner
Sapolin. "The recipients, through their programs, services and actions,
have demonstrated, and continue to demonstrate, their dedication to the benefits
provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act."
At the reception, Mayor Bloomberg and Commissioner
Sapolin presented awards to five recipients in recognition of their
contributions to accessibility under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
They are:
Bank of America: TITLE I Employment
Award
Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial
institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses
and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management
and other financial and risk management products and services. It is among
the world's leading wealth management companies and is a global leader in
corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset
classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around
the world. Bank of America is being honored with the Title I Employment
Award for its commitment to diversity and inclusion in its everyday activities
such as charitable giving to organizations aiding those with disabilities,
promotion and encouragement of internal volunteer-based affinity groups, and
recruitment of diverse talent including its job accommodations group that
integrates people with disabilities and arranges accommodations. Bob
Qutub, Chief Financial Officer, Global Banking and Markets, Bank of America, is
accepting the award.
American Museum of Natural History: TITLE
II Public Service Award
The American Museum of Natural History
(AMNH) is one of the world's preeminent scientific and cultural institutions.
Since its founding in 1869, the Museum has advanced its global mission to
discover, interpret and disseminate information about human cultures, the
natural world and the universe through a wide-ranging program of scientific
research, education and exhibition. AMNH is being honored with the Title
II Public Service Award for its accessible exhibitions, theaters, and food
service areas, as well as its Science Sense tours, which are geared for the
blind and visually impaired, are free with admission and involve specially
trained museum tour guides who highlight specific themes and exhibition halls
while engaging participants through extensive verbal descriptions and touchable
objects. Ann Siegel, Vice President for Operations and Capital Programs,
American Museum of Natural History, is accepting the award.
The NYC Independent Living Centers: TITLE
III Reasonable Accommodation Award
The New York City Independent
Living Centers (ILCs), which include: Bronx Independent Living Services;
Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled; Center for Independence of the
Disabled, New York; Harlem Independent Living Center; and Staten Island Center
for Independent Living, are part of the Independent Living Centers movement, a
national network of grassroots and community-based organizations that enhance
opportunities for all people with disabilities to direct their own lives.
The ILCs are being honored with the Title III Reasonable Accommodation Award for
providing a wide array of services to people with disabilities free of charge,
including benefits counseling, housing assistance, transition services for youth
with disabilities, employment-related assistance, healthcare access, peer
support groups, personal and systems advocacy, crime victims and domestic
violence services, individual living skills training, community education &
outreach, computer training, cooking classes, information and referrals, and
recreational activities. Robert Gumson, Unit Manager, Independent Living
Services, New York State Education Department's Office of Vocational and
Educational Services for Individuals With Disabilities (VESID), is accepting the
award.
The AbleGamers Foundation: TITLE IV
Telecommunications Award
The AbleGamers Foundation (AGF) is a
501(c)(3) public charity devoted to improving accessibility in the digital
entertainment space and innovations in enabling hardware. AGF is being
honored with the Title IV Telecommunications award for its use of technology and
accessible telecommunications, including its website, AbleGamers.com, which is
now the largest destination on the web for the disabled gaming community and
offers a safe place for any gamer with any disability to explore and to solve
issues as a team and family; its annual "Game Accessibility Day", designed to
show how gaming can be used for rehabilitation, testing, or just plain fun; its
interactive event "The Accessibility Arcade" that allows non-disabled people to
look at, and experience the gaming world from the perspective of the disabled;
and its "Path to Games Accessibility Project", which convenes leading games
accessibility experts, game technology vendors, and lead game programmers,
producers, artists, and testers to identify and clearly state what technologies
and processes can be developed by 2015 that will greatly enhance the ability of
people with disabilities to better play the videogames they want and love.
Suzanne Robitaille, Board Member, The AbleGamers Foundation, is accepting the
award.
Autism Speaks: Frieda Zames Advocacy
Award
Autism Speaks, a nonprofit corporation, has grown into the
nation's largest autism science and advocacy organization, dedicated to funding
global biomedical research into the causes, prevention, treatments and a cure
for autism. Autism Speaks also serves increase awareness of autism
spectrum disorders, advocate for the needs of individuals with autism and their
families and aims to bring the autism community together as one strong voice to
urge the government and private sector to take action to address this urgent
global health crisis. On June 13th of this year, its annual "Walk Now for
Autism Speaks" event in New York City raised over $1 million and involved the
participation of over 4,700 walkers. For these reasons, AS is being
honored with the Frieda Zames Advocacy Award, given to an individual or
organization whose tireless efforts for greater accessibility are a fitting
tribute to the late Frieda Zames. Mark Roithmayr, President, Autism
Speaks, is accepting the award.
This evening's reception was sponsored by Bank of
America, Autism Speaks and Anheuser-Busch In-Bev. The American Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) donated dog bowls for the service dogs
at tonight's event. As guests departed from tonight's event, they received
a new calendar that was a collaborative effort between VSA Arts, an
international nonprofit organization founded more than 35 years ago by
Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to create a society where people with disabilities
learn through, participate in, and enjoy the arts, and MOPD.
The Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities,
established in 1973, serves as a liaison between city government and disabled
individuals, as well as organizations dedicated to improving the lives of New
Yorkers with disabilities.