One breezy Thursday morning, folks traveling the busiest street in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania's capital, were treated to an unusual sight. They encountered some of the nation's premier public lawyers for disability rights gathered on the street corner and waving to passersby. Attorneys, advocates, state and local government staff and private service agency representatives had set up displays and booths and were handing out hot dogs, nachos and literature.

Launching a new strategy
It was a surprising and new experience for the public who got to meet experts on disability law and policy issues. The event introduced a new strategy of the public interest attorneys and staff who had carried the fight for civil rights for people with disabilities all the way to the Supreme Court. This ‘meet and greet' event brought their message directly to the people they serve. It's actually part of an energetic and committed new outreach campaign to tailor services and supports to meet the needs and interests of the citizens they serve. It was held as part of a first Annual Disability Forum hosted by Pennsylvania Protection and Advocacy, Pennsylvania's umbrella rights organization for people with disabilities.

Protection & Advocacy system mandated to do outreach
The Protection and Advocacy system, created by Congress when it authorized the Rehabilitation Act in 1975, is the federally mandated system that protects and advocates the rights of people with disabilities. In every State and Territory, a Protection and Advocacy system exists that provides information and referral, advocacy, technical and legal back up to assist people with disabilities to maintain and exercise their rights as citizens. Given special consideration in the legislation are the needs of minority groups, and each state's P&A system (as they are called) is mandated to conduct outreach programs to make sure the federally funded services are available to as many people as possible.

Beyond print and television: new approaches needed
In large urban areas, this might be easily done through print and television public service messages. Such areas usually have thriving cultural organizations and advocacy communities that can advise and assist in outreach. The P&A system in Pennsylvania has a long history of linking up with natural service systems, such as the schools, mental health and other State and private disability service agencies and training their staff and consumers. But these kinds of administrative and distant approaches don't always work in regions with scattered agricultural populations. In rural and remote areas, not even all the English speaking population knows about the P&A services and their rights as persons with disabilities. Some new approaches were needed. Pennsylvania's P&A and partners started by tossing away old thinking and working on new realistic and effective ways to reach isolated communities.

Cuban-American recommends community-based relationship-building
Heidi Notario-Smull, Advocacy Specialist for Pennsylvania Protection and Advocacy, draws on her Cuban-American background for insight into the best way to design outreach programs. She serves as a specialist for the Developmental Disabilities team and on the Outreach Committee.

"Barriers are largely a lack of knowledge," she said. "Getting to the people is only part of the process. It's listening to them. Asking them what do they need. And how can you do that unless they know you and have confidence in you?" Outreach is much more than getting pamphlets translated, explained Heidi as she handed out hot coffee to visitors. Relationships must be built, which means an agency has to commit to a long-term presence in the community.

The lack of knowledge works both ways, she went on to explain. Many disability service systems don't even know they have Latino populations in their area. She gives an example of one survey of Pennsylvania counties designed to find out about interpreter use. A county embracing one of Pennsylvania's largest cities replied in the survey that they didn't use interpreters because they didn't need them. Systems that don't offer services accessible to Latinos may never see them, because Latinos informally create their own information and referral network. "We direct our friends and relatives to services that work for us and that are accessible," said Heidi, as others nodded in agreement. Word of mouth is lightning fast. The absence of Latino clients may be a sad commentary on the lack of inclusiveness of an agency.

"That part of it is cultural," Heidi said. "We take care of our own. We don't ask strangers for help." A system that fails to offer a welcome to Latinos won't get many requests for services. Even when state and county agencies attempt outreach with the best intentions, they often lack the cultural insight to effectively connect with the folks who need their services.

Doing outreach where the community is
"When is most outreach done?" asked Heidi with a chuckle. "Work hours, Monday through Friday. The days we work. When it's convenient for us (the service providers)."   Most Latinos are at work themselves those hours, and unable to attend workshops and presentations. "If you really want to reach Latinos in isolated rural areas, go set up a card table and folding chair at the superstores on Sundays," she said. "That's their day off. That's where they'll be, doing their shopping."

Counteracting fear
Another reason Latinos may not access disability services is fear. Mark Murphy, Executive Director of the Disabilities Law Project, stepped out of the wind and the roar of the traffic to answer questions about the rights of Pennsylvania Latino farm workers who become disabled. "It's really a Catch-22 for them," he said. He means that it's a situation that on the surface looks simple, but often it turns out to be difficult to get through bureaucratic barriers. Farm workers who are legal residents are entitled to services from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation should they become disabled, as well as Workman's Compensation should the injury be work related. Since employees pay into Social Security, they are also entitled to Social Security disability benefits if they are permanently disabled. Few farm workers ever apply for such benefits. Preventing many from seeking help are: fear of loss of income, complications with residency rights or fear of retaliation from employers.

The Disabilities Law Project and Protection and Advocacy help individuals and provide referrals to other organizations to address specialized needs. They can provide technical assistance and legal back up. Most calls to the Disabilities Law Project are from people seeking help to overcome barriers to employment. Hispanic intake staff and attorneys help meet that need, but without successful outreach, those who need help the most won't know it exists or where to find it.

Needs-based surveys
Links to State and local agencies also help spread knowledge about rights and resources. Sharing in the forum, along with many other agency representatives, Kenneth Puckett, Director of the Office of Deaf and Hard of Hearing, talked about a one-year study being carried out to determine the community's needs. He identified a sizable deaf Latino population in the Allentown area, which showed the need for tri-lingual (English, Spanish, American Sign Language) interpreters, as well as for emergency management training for First Responders to the deaf Latino community. Partnering with agencies that people with disabilities use makes P&A systems more accessible to the public.

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