Dear Friend,
My name is Kings Floyd, and I am the Youth Transitions Fellow at The National Council on Independent Living (NCIL). NCIL’s Annual Conference on Independent Living is our nation’s largest gathering of disability rights advocates, and is a crucial opportunity for people with disabilities to connect, meet with our legislators, and propel the movement forward. Last year, nearly 1,000 participants attended our conference, including over 100 youth from across the country.
The theme for the 2017 NCIL conference is Revolution: A Global Independent Living Movement, taking place July 24 – 27, 2017. We’re excited to turn our focus outwards and connect with young advocates from all over the world. Due to a variety of barriers, most especially cost, youth with disabilities have been unable to fully participate in the international disability community. We are asking for contributions towards the Youth Scholarship Fund that will bring young people from across the country, and hopefully, around the world, to the NCIL conference. Your donation will support plane tickets, hotel accommodations, personal assistance services, and registration costs for attendees. Here are some of the reactions from youth scholars last year:
“…Honestly I just loved the energy of it all. So many people fired up and organizing great things…I’m so excited to work for NCIL and just throw myself into the conference this year!”
“NCIL conferences are always so empowering, and I come away with a renewed sense of readiness to advocate for disability rights, knowing I have a strong community of support.”
“I was excited I was happy to be amongst fellow advocates and we all had a vision to increase inclusion & diversity amongst youth…and a renew sense of empowerment to engage. I loved it!”
“…When you go to NCIL you realize the rights and opportunities that you think have just always been there only exist because of the hard work of the disability rights movement. The surge of pure elation you get when you realize all the times society told you people with disabilities were powerless is absolutely untrue.”
“I attended the 2016 conference about 2 weeks into my job as youth transition coordinator. Being asked to develop the program from scratch, I was a little nervous to say the least. But thanks to all the awesome people and information I gained at the NCIL Conference; I was able to get our program off to a booming start. I look forward to returning this year to share what I’ve learned and to gain more knowledge to strengthen our program even more.”
With your help, we can bring youth with disabilities to the 2017 NCIL Conference and ensure that youth leadership will grow and flourish in the Disability Rights Movement, as well as expand globally to promote the rights of people with disabilities. Together we can ensure that young people with disabilities are empowered, engaged, and ready to lead. You can make a donation online. Thank you so much for your support!
Kings Floyd, Youth Transitions Fellow