CDR staff and consumers are part of the ADAPT action in Atlanta

Disabled advocates vacate Capitol

By Christian Boone

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A group of disabled advocates who forced their way into the State Capitol Monday morning have dispersed after scoring a meeting with Gov Sonny Perdue’s chief of staff.

Roughly 200 protesters, representing ADAPT, a national organization of disabled activists, had surrounded the Capitol Monday morning. They seek state compliance with the Supreme Court’s 1999 Olmstead decision, which mandated better long-term care options for the disabled.

“It’s a shame that 10 years after Olmstead, more people are going into nursing homes than before, “said Bernard Baker, an organizer with ADAPT’s Atlanta chapter. “Living in the community isn’t a privilege, it’s a civil right, and we are being denied our civil rights.

Georgia State Patrol spokesman Paul Cosper said no arrests have been made, though ADAPT organizers said two protesters were arrested but released soon after.

The protesters sneaked in through the handicapped entrance after marching from the CNN Center at around 8:30 a.m. “We did our homework,” said ADAPT spokeswoman Barbarann Bongiovanni, from Alpharetta.

The meeting with Perdue’s chief of staff is scheduled for Tuesday.