October 24, 2020

Sarah Iannarone Releases Disability Justice Platform

Today, Sarah Iannarone, candidate for Portland Mayor, released a policy on Disability Justice, a set of proposals and commitments to advance civil and human rights for people with disabilities. To create the policy, disabled activists were consulted and compensated for their work to develop a policy that reflects the needs of the disability community, the values of Sarah’s campaign for Portland mayor, and her commitments to the community once elected.

Policy authors Allen Hines and Nico Serra said in a statement: “It has been a true honor to collaborate with Sarah Iannarone and her staff to create this document. We worked with about 30 people with disabilities to develop it. We are convinced she will make every effort in her power to complete the commitments she has made to our communities. We proudly endorse her and are excited to continue working towards true justice in the future.”

The plan, centered on justice for disabled BIPOC Portlanders, is focused on three main areas: increasing access for the disabled to Portland City Government, prioritizing housing protection beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act, and bolstering the leadership of disabled people in Portland. Policy proposals of note include:

• Continued remote work options for all possible positions in the City
• Emergency communication for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and DeafBlind communities, who have lacked access to vital information in disaster or crisis scenarios
• Supporting nonprofit developers with applications for HUD loans to build accessible, affordable housing
• Modifying inclusionary zoning to mandate 15% of affordable units built under IZ to be accessible
• Evaluating and improving the accessibility of the process of running for elected office
• Hiring disabled intermediaries between the City and other governments to address systemic ableism

Sarah Iannarone said in a statement, “This is the last policy release planned for the campaign, and it completes the Plan for Progress. It was critical we allow the people in the disability community we hired time and space to create this proposal, and I am firmly committed to everything contained within this plan. As an able-bodied person I feel a duty to use my privilege to advance disability justice. As Mayor, the power of my administration will back the people.”

The plan is live now at sarah2020.com/disabilityjustice.