Topeka, A Small Powerhouse

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Topeka: A Small Powerhouse

Topeka, KS (June 30, 2000) - "We want people to know that Kansas is more than just Dorothy and Toto" Susan Briggs, Topeka's Spirit of ADA Torch Relay co-coordinator, said moments before the Relay festivities kicked-off in the South Lobby of the State Capitol building.

Indeed, Kansas, and particularly Topeka is miles away from Dorothy and Toto. Besides having one of the best transit systems in the country-every bus is lift equipped-- Topeka houses the national headquarters for the Disability Rights Action Coalition for Housing or DRACH, as well as KDRACH, the local office of this grassroots organization. DRACH works on the federal, state and local levels to insure that the civil and human rights of persons with disabilities are recognized and fully honored in provision of housing.

"The ADA doesn't particularly cover housing as a civil right, but it refers to fair housing laws," Becca Vaughn, a DRACH coordinator, explained in an interview before the Relay. " Everyone knows the ADA but very few people understand the housing civil rights that give us the same protection in our own home as we would have in a restaurant or walking down the sidewalk or in public," Vaughn said.

Joan Wagnon, Mayor of Topeka, promoted DRACH's goals, pledging to the hundreds gathered inside the Capitol for the Relay, that in moving the ADA forward in the next ten years, the city of Topeka would be looking at the issue of housing. "…its great to be able to get into the grocery store…but if you can't find a place to live that accommodates your disability and if you become disabled and have to move because your home will not accommodate you and there is discrimination in the housing market that doesn't allow you to find the kind of accommodations that you need, then we still have a long way to go," Wagon said.

Wagnon went on to call Topeka "a leader on the cutting edge for freedom and justice for all of its people."

And that it just may well be. In addition to local advocates making advances in transportation and public accessibility, KDRACH has written a legislative bill referred to as "visit-ability," which is waiting for House and Senate approval in the next legislative session. The proposed bill requires that all housing built or rehabilitated with public funds in the State of Kansas would incorporate basic accessibility features, including one accessible or no step entrance to each dwelling unit, an accessible route through the main floor of each unit, and 32 inch or wider doorways.

Though five other states have proposed the bill, and two to date have passed it (Georgia and Texas), no state except Kansas covers rehabilitation projects. Georgia and Texas' ordinances include only new construction. "The Fair Housing Act basically only covers government funded housing which is multi-family, four or more units, so we're losing a tons of housing options to steps," Vaughn said.

Visit-ability is a national law in England and applies to both private and public housing. If voted into law in Kansas, visit-ability would serve as a model for the rest of the country.

Following morning speeches by Mike Oxford, Executive Director of Topeka's Independent Living Resource Center (TILRC), Mayor Wagnon, Paralympian and motivational speaker Kevin Saunders, and a representative for Kansas Governor Bill Graves, among others, the Relay caravan took off from outside the Capitol building and made its way to TILRC, the Relay host organization. A parade of hundreds of persons with disabilities walking, rolling, on floats and in cars joined behind the Relay caravan. The route that included 50 torch bearers passing the torch every .25 miles, proceeded through downtown Topeka on S. Kansas Avenue and winded along several other main streets before ending in late afternoon at a Home Depot store 13 miles from the starting line.

Mike Oxford said in his speech "…the torch is about hope, its about endurance and courage and that's why we're carrying the torch today. Cause we have hope for the future, we've endured a lot, and we will have the courage to continue to keep our civil rights law strong and make sure all communities are available to everybody equally."