Disability Justice

Content note: This story includes discussion of mental illness, su***de, and self-harm.

CPR News published a detailed investigation into the death of Michael Mott at Denver International Airport and what his story reveals about Colorado’s ongoing struggle to provide timely, appropriate mental health treatment for people involved in the criminal legal system.

Disability Justice Senior Disability Rights Attorney Meghan Baker is quoted in the article, offering important insight into Colorado’s behavioral health crisis, competency restoration system, and the limits of relying on fragmented contractor-based care.

This story is heartbreaking, complicated, and important. It underscores why people with mental health disabilities need access to meaningful treatment, supervision, community-based supports, and systems that do not wait until tragedy occurs to respond.

Read the full story here:
https://www.cpr.org/2026/08/06/denver-airport-runway-su***de/

Yesterday, Disability Justice staff and interns had the opportunity to tour the Colorado State Capitol and hone their speaking skills in front of a mock House committee.

The tour and training were organized by our Public Policy Liaison, Jack Johnson, and gave our team a valuable opportunity to better understand the legislative process and opportunities to educate policymakers.

Experiences like this help Disability Justice staff strengthen our advocacy as we prepare for upcoming legislative sessions and continue working to make Colorado the best place in America for people with disabilities to live and thrive.

We extend our utmost gratitude to Rep. Jennifer Bacon, Rep. Yara Zokaie, Rep. Kenny Nguyen, our tour guide Garrett, and the many staff members and assistants who helped make this experience possible.

They also allowed Disability Justice Executive Director Andrew Romanoff, former Colorado Speaker of the House, to join the mock committee as an honorary member once again.

We’re hiring a Manager of Individual Giving!

Disability Justice is looking for a detail-oriented and highly organized person to help shape and grow our individual giving program. This newly created role will focus on donor stewardship, annual giving, prospect recruitment, CRM systems, and building fundraising infrastructure for long-term success.

This is a full-time, hybrid position based in Denver, Colorado, with a hiring range of $72,000–$80,000 per year.

Please apply through BambooHR here:
https://disabilitylawco.bamboohr.com/careers/34

Be sure to get your tickets to 504 The Musical today! You're not going to want to miss it!

https://www.denvercenter.org/tickets-events/504-the-musical/?fbclid=IwY2xjawTd2SxwZG9mAWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMU1MNDVacXJURDlJNENteHNzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeahjPq1mc_U9awxa_H28VjTTyA2TcZSu7AtsF3kdVzKCJJ1RrpImI5QtLeXo_aem_6DGm7cFx6E9UsdVNDk9j8w

Only 6 Days until the WORLD PREMIERE of Join The Protest with us and learn, laugh, fall in love, and be swept away by this incredible fictionalized story you should all know! GET YOUR TICKETS BEFORE ITS TOO LATE! (denvercenter.org/tickets-events/504-the-musical)
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Photo ID; this photograph has the words six days until opening with the logo for 504 the musical. There are a couple photographs on it as well. One photograph is of a white woman with shoulder length brown hair looking over her shoulder and smiling. One photograph is of the stage we are performing on which is in the round. It shows the stage covered in different Lighting. One photograph shows a black male in a suit with a cane. And another photograph shows three people once sitting down all interacting with each other.

Sharing for families in the Four Corners region of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah:

Encircle Families is hosting Four Corners Special Education Day on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM MDT at the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock, Arizona.

The event will include trainings on special education topics from birth to graduation, a resource fair, keynote speaker, free lunch, and a gas gift card raffle.

Disability Justice is not presenting this year, but we wanted to help spread the word so Colorado families in the Four Corners area know about this opportunity.

Learn more and register here:
https://encirclefamilies.org/event/four-corners-special-education-day-2026/

As we celebrate 36 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act, we also want to remember that the disability rights movement didn't begin with the ADA. It was built through the courage, persistence, and direct action of disabled activists who demanded equal access and dignity.

In The Sunday Story, NPR's Joseph Shapiro and Colorado Public Radio's Stephanie Wolf explore the history of the disability rights movement—from the 1978 Denver bus protests led by the "Gang of 19," which helped secure accessible public transit, to today's ongoing fight to protect the hard-won right of people with disabilities to live independently.

Listen to the story: https://www.npr.org/2026/07/26/nx-s1-5907399/the-1978-protest-that-sparked-the-disability-rights-movement

This Sunday, NPR ’s The Sunday Story is releasing a new episode about the Gang of 19; the Colorado activists whose fight for accessible public transportation helped shape the Disability Rights Movement.

The episode will also feature Disability Justice Co-Legal Director Emily Harvey.

As we mark the 36th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, this story is a powerful reminder that disability rights history happened right here in Colorado; and that the fight for accessibility continues today.

Listen here:
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/g-s1-110423/the-sunday-story

Thank you to the Colorado Disability Bar Association for highlighting this story and our work.

We are incredibly grateful to have such supportive and collaborative disability rights organizations like CDBA here in Colorado. Partnerships and shared advocacy make this work stronger.

It is powerful to see so many organizations across our state working toward the same goal: advancing the rights, dignity, and full inclusion of people with disabilities.

Community is not a privilege. It is a civil right.

Disability Justice condemns the Department of Justice’s recent decision to retreat from longstanding guidance enforcing the ADA’s integration mandate; a core principle of the Supreme Court’s landmark Olmstead v. L.C. decision.

For decades, Olmstead has affirmed that people with disabilities have the right to receive services in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs, rather than being unnecessarily institutionalized.

This federal retreat does not change the law, but it does make state-level advocacy and enforcement more urgent than ever.

Read our full response here:https://disabilityjustice.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/DOJ-Olmstead-Response_RELEASE_FINAL.pdf

More resources: https://www.disabilityjustice.co/independent-living

Chapter 1 | Change, Not Charity: The Americans with Disabilities Act | AMERICAN EXPERIENCE | PBS View a version with extended audio description here: https://youtu....