Chairman Menendez Applauds Senate Passage of National Defense Legislation Including Foreign Relations Committee Priorities U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released a statement following the U.S. Senate’s passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024. This year’s defense package included numerous priorities Chairman Menendez spearheaded […]
Please read our newest report on families and children living in the midst of a war: “DRI asked more than 500 brave and courageous families living in Ukraine what they are now experiencing during the war and what they need. The war has worsened the widespread problems families have faced as they struggle with little […]
Hear them speak out Recording of the webinar available from the following links: Recording in Ukrainian HERE Recording with English Translation HERE Disability Rights International (DRI) and Disability Rights Ukraine (DRU) release a report based on interviews and a survey of more than 500 families throughout Ukraine. Moderator: Olga Levshukova, Ukraine Program Associate, DRI Lead […]
In NYT, DRI President Calls for Protection of Ukrainian Families To the Editor: Re “Russia Signals Intention to Deport More Children” (news article, March 19): Many of the teens and toddlers abducted by Russia from Ukraine have been taken from orphanages, but are not orphans at all. They have parents and extended families. Most end […]
Link to DRI PSA Senate Bill for the International Children with Disabilities Protection Act. HERE Link to Livestream recording of the Senate Briefing & Reception Celebrating the International Children with Disabilities Protection Act and International Day of Persons with Disabilities. HERE
Celebrating International Day of Disability and the International Children with Disabilities Protection Act When: Tuesday, December 6, 2022, 3:30-5 PM (please arrive early to go through security) Where: Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room SDG-11, 50 Constitution Ave. NE Accessible visitor’s entrance: 1st & C St. NE Accommodations: Sign language will be available Reception: Refreshments before/after […]
This bill represents everything we’ve been working on for over two decades. All children — especially children with disabilities — need our support to live and grow up in a loving family. And they need protection against being placed in orphanages or other institutions. — Laurie Ahern, President, Disability Rights International Today, a bipartisan group of senators, led […]
On September 9, 2022 the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD Committee) adopted the new Guidelines on Deinstitutionalization, including times of emergency. The Guidelines provide a roadmap to governments, disability activists, and donors about the immediate steps needed to end the practice of institutionalization and residential treatment or care for people with disabilities. […]
“The billions of dollars of international aid being pumped into Ukraine during the war should also be used to shut down orphanages, support families to care for their children and build a community that accepts disability,” says Eric Rosenthal, Executive director of DRI. https://www.bbc.com/news/disability-62226636 Full documentary will be aired soon.
Russia’s War Creates Orphanage Crisis In Ukraine More than 11 million people have fled Ukraine as a result of Russia’s invasion. But many of most the vulnerable — mentally and physically disabled children — have been left behind.