Ever since George H. W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law in 1990, discrimination against people with disabilities has been prohibited; and the legislation is supposed to guarantee that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in everyday, mainstream American life, according to the ADA website.However, disabled people find unique challenges in rural areas they would not typically face in more urban settings. Julie Reiskin, executive director of the Colorado Cross Disability Coalition, said the biggest issues people with disabilities face in rural areas is isolation and an overall lack of resources.TransportationReiskin said there are fewer people in rural communities, which is often one of the reasons why people like living in rural communities. The small-town feel and quiet atmosphere draws people to rural areas, but that comes with a lack of resources, she said.ìThe transportation system is usually less robust or non-existent,î Reiskin said. For people who need to travel into urban areas for appointments, that can pose a huge obstacle.Fran Dorrance, outreach specialist with the Colorado Springs Independence Center, said eastern El Paso County has made steps to overcome the transportation barrier through the envida program, a nonprofit organization in the Springs that provides low cost transportation and home health care.ìThe envida bus does not take people to appointments but it does run a route that gets them into town,î she said. ìBut once they get to Colorado Springs, they have to figure out how to get transportation from point A to point B, and a lot of people will not take the bus because of that barrier.îLack of resourcesDorrance and Reiskin agreed that affordable housing is another issue people with disabilities often find in rural areas. Rural low-income housing is mostly located outside a typical bus route, and there is often only one or two places for people to get specialized or low-income housing; homeless services are even less prevalent, Reiskin said.In Calhan, Dorrance said the available housing fills up very quickly. ìFor people with disabilities or seniors, there is one place in Calhan that caters specifically to them and it has a two-and-a-half-year waiting list,î she said.Sometimes, the largest barrier to getting people connected with the resources they need is that they do not know the resources exist or how to find them, Dorrance said.ìMy home office is in Calhan,î she said. ìI work at the Community Outreach Center on the (El Paso County) fairground.î Various agencies come to Calhan throughout the week to offer resources, she said. ìJust getting people that need those resources to realize we are here is hard, though.îOne way to spread the word is through the Community Outreach Center Coalition Health and Education Fair, which takes place annually at the EPC fairgrounds, Dorrance said. This year is the ninth annual Health and Education Fair, which will take place Saturday, Sept. 14, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. More than 50 vendors will be onsite to help people live a healthy life and learn about services available in the community, Dorrance said.The Independence Center tries to help people stay independent in rural areas by bringing those resources into the community, which requires a lot of research, she said.ìThe resources are out there; people just need to look for them,î Dorrance said. ìThey are here, they are limited, but if somebody comes to me for something and I cannot find it; I will research it and send them to someone I think can help them and guide them in the right direction.îThe COC is open Monday through Friday, with some of the resource organizations present, depending on the day, Dorrance said. For example, the Pikes Peak Work Force and the Colorado Department of Human Services are available on Wednesdays, she said.Americans with Disabilities Act complianceBoth Dorrance and Reiskin said ADA compliance is another major issue people with disabilities encounter in rural areas.ìMore and more businesses are starting to be ADA compliant; but, in rural areas, they are very behind,î Dorrance said. ìBut to change things, there has to be funding.îIn Calhan, the sidewalks are moving toward having the curb cuts at the corners for wheelchair access points, she said. However, with so many dirt roads, sidewalks are often non-existent; trying to change that will require funding, Dorrance said.ìMaybe as development keeps coming this way it will get better in these smaller towns, but it is not going to change into Colorado Springs overnight,î she said. ìYou can see little things happening each day, though.îReiskin said some changes are more difficult because people need to speak about their needs and experiences. ìIn a rural community, it can be harder to speak up because they can be labeled as a trouble-maker when they are really just exercising their rights. Often, they just do not say anything.îStarting a conversation with the business or organization that presents a challenge for disabled people can be the first step in getting things to change, Reiskin said. However, if the business chooses to ignore the problem, the other option is to file a civil complaint through the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Regulatory Agencies, part of the Department of Justice, she said. Filing a lawsuit through a small claims court can only result in monetary compensation; they cannot require someone to fix a problem, Reiskin said.The Colorado Cross Disability Coalition is a statewide disabilities rights organization that focuses on social justice issues and can help in certain instances of ADA violations, she said. The organization trains people with disabilities to take leadership roles in working to affect change in legislation and advocate for people with disabilities, Reiskin said.ìThrough individual advocacy, we help individuals who have a specific problem with a specific service or system,î she said. ìWe also work on civil rights enforcement and have a probate law program.îReiskin said the bottom line when it comes to ADA violations or compliance is this: ìAll of the disabilities protections apply to everyone, no matter where they live.î
