Late last night, Barack Obama announced Joe Biden as his choice for Vice President technological style through text 
messaging. Some were annoyed by what seemed like a gimmick to deliver the news, but I saw it as a nod to my generation and our preferred way to communicate. A candidate's record and proposals on civil rights issues are the most important determinants to my vote so I woke up this morning anxious to research how Joe Biden has fared during his work as Senator for Americans with disabilities. So far, I've been pleasantly surprised!
[Graphic caption: Two photos of Barack Obama and Joe Biden overlapping with the title reading "Barack has chosen Joe Biden to be his running mate."]
- Biden's own history with a speech impediment in high school seems to serve as a reflection point for him to realize the value of having one's voice heard and the rippling effects of discrimination and exclusion. I appreciate that he doesn't claim to "know what it feels like" and he hasn't exploited this aspect of his adolescence. I'm sure he was tempted given the criticism he's endured based on his unique "conversational style". He's blunt gets right to the point, undoubtedly an adaptive way of speaking when stuttering could interrupt your words.
- Biden's web site answers the question of why he ran for Senator 35 year ago with the quote, "Civil rights. I wanted to end the discrimination I saw." Here's how Biden plans to help Americans with disabilities:
"Senator Biden always has been a strong supporter of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). He has long championed efforts to allow Medicaid to provide home- and community-based support services needed by disabled individuals to remain out of institutions. He also fought to allow low-income families with disabled children to buy into the Medicaid program."
- His work to fight discrimination goes beyond our minority status to seek justice for hate crimes based on sexual orientation. He also recently established a pilot program, called the Justice Integrity Act, to study the racial disparities in our country's criminal justice system. Biden has maintained a strong interest in education with a focus on changes to the primary school system. This is a nice complement Obama's work to develop creative college tuition programs. Both Senators identify the importance of dedicating resources to early intervention services. For more of a "Quick Education on Joe Biden" check out this post at The Outskirts.
- In my weaker moments, I feel like a completely selfish voter. What I care most about is a candidates plans and their history of work for AND with people with disabilities. The American Association of People with Disabilities issues a series of questions to all the Presidential candidates several months ago. Biden responded and HERE are his answers in full. Biden was joined by only four other candidates last November (not Obama) when he attended the National Forum on Equality, Opportunity, and Access last November.
From my burst of research, I'm hopeful and feeling even more positive about what Obama's decision could mean for people with disabilities. I've supplied almost all the material that helped form my opinion within this post and I encourage you to do some digging of your own! We'll all be sick of the news coverage in no time but it's important to make our side of the issue heard as well. Do you think Biden was the best choice for VP?
You'll note I wasn't brave enough to answer that question so I'll leave that up to YOU!
