In early December last year, Tash held their annual conference at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana. Each year the conference unites self-advocates and allies to share resources, testimonials and create significant friendships and relationships with people who share similar experiences. Conference attendees are made up of a diverse pool of individuals who come from all around the United States and some international visitors with the common goal of committing to this year’s theme of Celebrate Together: Let the Good Times Roll!
TASH is a member based disability advocacy organization that was founded in 1974. TASH encourages its members to make significant strides to change policy and professional practices. Through its efforts, people with significant disabilities are more likely to be included as contributing citizens in all aspects of community life. For 50 years TASH has focused on obtaining and protecting human rights and securing inclusion for individuals with significant disabilities. It provides support needs to those who are most vulnerable to segregation, abuse, neglect and institutionalization.
TASH uses advocacy, research, professional development, and resources for self-advocates and their families to build inclusive communities. Through its Inclusive Practices, a quarterly journal available online, TASH reveals the latest research to everyone who lives or works with people with significant support needs. Inclusive Practices also publishes articles that provide best practices and strategies for practitioners, families, and self-advocates.
I first met staff members of TASH in March 2023 in Lansing Michigan for Voices in Action Day, a day organized by SAM ( Self Advocates of Michigan ) where self-advocates meet with their state legislators to discuss policies and concerns regarding their lived experiences as disabled people in hopes to create lasting change for disability rights, awareness and justice. Donald Taylor, Manager, Membership & Communications for TASH, was there interviewing self- advocates for their Storytellers for Change project.
In mid-June 2024 an email came from TASH requesting proposals for this year’s conference, I went straight to work and submitted a proposal that aligns with my life’s mission to bring awareness to the lived experiences of Disabled people in our Latinx communities. From experience I know how harmful the cultural social stigma can be towards the quality of life the disabled individual born into families who don’t understand disabilities and or lack the language, education or desire to take steps to accommodate and advocate for the human rights of their disabled family members. With the help and support of SAM and SABE ( Self advocates Becoming Empowered ) I submitted my proposal under the general format Titled: How Self-Advocacy Helped Me Break Cultural Stigmas About Disability. I was delighted to have been selected and to attend my first TASH conference as one of the presenters.
This year’s participants, composed of professors and researchers from leading institutions; dedicated citizens involved in local, state, and federal governments, educators, students, self-advocates, adult service providers, family members were greeted in a brightly lit foyer aligned with various vendor and information tables filled with stickers, literature and resources prevalent to affirming disability awareness inclusion and education from organizations such as the Disability Employment TA Center, Mass Mutual Special Care, Institute on Community Integration, Wise and TASH. The same space held numerous tables filled with dozens of donated items for the silent auction to raise money in support of TASH and all that it accomplishes. I browsed through and bid on items as grand as a Beach rental in the Florida Keys and as simple as children’s Nerf Guns and Tye Dye kits.
Before the conference, TASH sent out the conference schedule and encouraged attendees to download their app to review the conference offerings and select classes and workshops we wanted to attend. On my first night I attended the film festival that featured The Ride Ahead, a documentary featuring Samuel Habib, a man with cerebral palsy who invites viewers to experience life from his perspective. On the second day, I presented with nine other contributors in a ballroom that was reserved for a series of testimonials and lectures titled TASH Talks.
After sharing my lived experiences, details of my diagnosis and how life affirming Self Advocacy has been, I set out to explore the event. In addition to the TASH talks there was a lot to choose from to fill your day that was certain to meet your unique interests including breakout sessions based on personal experiences like: A Latinas’ Mother’s Journey: A Study of Advocacy and Change, an interactive presentation to understand ABLE savings accounts for people with disabilities to save for disability-related expenses, a look into the social Impact of An Inclusive Dance Program, and Poster Presentations from professors, medical and doctoral students across the country. There was also an inclusive dance party and a filming opportunity with Washington state’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to hear authentic stories that center on the lived experiences of students, families, educators and school districts.
The four-day event ended with a box lunch gathering where self-advocates socialized and connected with each other and the news that I had won a few of the items I bid on. I headed back to Detroit knowing firsthand how TASH uplifts self-advocates, fuels them with knowledge and tools to improve the outcome of their daily lives by assuring them that they have a place in their communities and the power to break the stigma that comes with being a disabled person.
About TASH: TASH is an international leader in disability advocacy. Founded in 1975, TASH advocates for human rights and inclusion for people with significant disabilities and support needs – those most vulnerable to segregation, abuse, neglect and institutionalization. TASH works to advance inclusive communities through advocacy, research, professional development, policy, and information and resources for parents, families and self-advocates. The inclusive practices TASH validates through research have been shown to improve outcomes for all people.
About Jaqueline Cuevas: Jacqueline Cuevas, a proud native of Southwest Detroit, graduate of Western International. Her late diagnosis of a seizure disorder and the cultural stigmas surrounding disabilities inspired her to become a dedicated self-advocate. Jacqueline works tirelessly to raise awareness and promote having difficult and honest conversations about the realities that come with being disabled , fostering greater understanding and acceptance in her local community and on a national level.
