Center for Disability Rights

CDR is doing a survey to find out more about accessibility at the 2026 Rochester Lilac Festival. Please take a few minutes to take our survey and share your experience if you did attend, and if you didn't go, let us know why.

Event organizers have said they want to work with us to make the 2027 Lilac Festival the most accessible yet. So your answers will help make future Lilac Festivals - as well as other events and festivals in the region and across the state - more accessible.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6VQKZ76

CDR unveils our Summer of Pride banners. With each banner being 10-feet tall and 12 feet wide, these banners send a message that celebrates Disability and LGBTQIA+ Pride.

Image description: Three images of LGBTQIA+ individuals celebrating Pride and having a great time being desired, being held, being loud, and being free. The first image - with the words “Every Body!”- centers two men. One is in a wheelchair and being embraced by the second. They are nose to nose in a near kiss. The second image, captioned “Stronger Together!”, showcases two women dancing together. One is a Blind woman of color and the other is a white woman with leg braces. The third banner centers a Shirtless transgender man signing “Happy” and an older white haired person signing “Pride” with those words captioning this image. All of the banners include divers groups of Disabled LGBTQIA+ individuals.

Check out our blog which introduces our Summer of Pride. https://cdrnys.org/blog/uncategorized/every-body-stronger-together-happy-pride/

They came for me without warning.

That's how our new blog post begins—and by the time you reach the end, you may not be sure who's speaking.

A Disabled person forced into a nursing home because the state won't fund care at home. A grandmother with dementia detained by ICE in the Arizona desert. A seven-year-old autistic girl held at a border checkpoint. A father who went to a routine check-in appointment and never came home.

The answer is: it could be any of them. Because the experience is the same.

In this new piece, CDR CEO Bruce Darling lays out how ICE detention and the forced institutionalization of Disabled and elderly people are not two separate injustices—they're the same system of confinement, running on the same logic, doing the same harm. Three groups. One fight.

Right here in Rochester, "Papa Omar" Ramos Jimenez—a father, business owner, and co-founder of La Casa in the South Wedge—went to a routine ICE appointment after twelve years of compliance and was handcuffed on the spot. He's still detained in Batavia, separated from his children and his community.

The logic that cages an immigrant family is the same logic that warehouses a Disabled person in an institution. If we oppose it in one place, we have to oppose it everywhere.

Read Part 1 now 👇

They Came for Me without Warning – Center for Disability Rights A A A How ICE Detention and Forced Institutionalization Are the Same Fight by Bruce Darling, CEO Center for Disability Rights and Regional Center for Independent Living They came for me without warning. I was in the middle of my life. I was the watching the light come through the window and thinking...

Congratulations to the Class of 2026! 🎉🎓

To every disabled student crossing that stage, we see you. You pushed through barriers, bias, inaccessibility, and low expectations… and still made it here. 💪♿️

Your graduation is more than a milestone. It is a statement.
You proved people wrong. You showed the world that disabled students lead, achieve, and redefine what is possible. 🌟

As you continue navigating systems that still demand strength, advocacy, and persistence, keep that fire. Keep that fight. Keep becoming the person you know you can be. The future is yours, and you have already won. 💙🔥



[ID: The image shows a celebratory graduation graphic with two organizational logos centered at the top: the Regional Center for Independent Living on the left and the Center for Disability Rights on the right. Below them, large text reads “CLASS OF 2026,” “WE ALL PROUD OF YOU,” and “Congratulations.” Five cartoon graduates wearing caps and gowns stand in a row beneath the text, each representing different physical abilities: one uses a wheelchair, one uses a white cane, one has a prosthetic leg, one has a prosthetic arm, and one stands without mobility devices. They hold diplomas and toss graduation caps into the air against a plain light background.]

Yesterday, May 6, CDR testified before the New York State Senate Committees on Disabilities and Labor, highlighting the barriers that prevent Disabled New Yorkers from accessing real, integrated competitive employment. 💼♿

We pushed for solutions: ending subminimum wage, fixing the benefits cliff, expanding transit, and investing in programs that actually open doors.

Here's the link to the Testimony: https://youtu.be/9fl7NK1qiEU?si=aUMpLEQ-28ENHku8&t=8875

What barrier to employment do you think gets overlooked the most? Drop it in the comments. 💬

Today is Interpreter Appreciation Day 🤟

The Center for Disability Rights and the Regional Center for Independent Living extend our sincere appreciation to the interpreters who support our community every day. Your skill, professionalism, and commitment ensure that communication is accessible, accurate, and respectful.

We are especially grateful to interpreters everywhere, including those who work closely with CDR and RCIL, particularly Sign Language Connection, Inc. Your dedication makes it possible for people to fully participate, advocate, and engage without barriers. Access is a right, and your work helps uphold that right.

Thank you for the essential role you play in advancing inclusion and communication access.



[ID: Blue graphic with a white outline of hands making the sign for interpreting, the words “Interpreter Appreciation Day” and “Thank you, interpreters,” and the Regional Center for Independent Living and Center for Disability Rights logos at the bottom.]

May is Older Americans Month 🌼

This month, the Center for Disability Rights and the Regional Center for Independent Living recognize the contributions, leadership, and lived experiences of older adults in our communities. Older Americans continue to shape our culture, our neighborhoods, and our movements for justice and inclusion.

We also acknowledge the barriers many older adults still face from inaccessible housing and transportation to gaps in long‑term services and supports. At CDR and RCIL, we remain committed to advancing policies and programs that protect independence, dignity, and the right to age in the community.



[ID: The graphic has a purple background with a blue banner at the top that reads “May Is,” followed by large purple text stating “Older Americans Month.” In the center, an illustration shows an older adult sitting in a wheelchair, smiling and waving, with soft pastel floral shapes in the background. At the bottom of the image, the Regional Center for Independent Living logo appears on the left and the Center for Disability Rights logo appears on the right.]

May is Mobility Awareness Month 💜

The Center for Disability Rights and the Regional Center for Independent Living recognize the many ways people move through the world with wheelchairs, walkers, scooters, canes, prosthetics, and other mobility aids that support independence and self‑determination. Mobility is about access, autonomy, and the right to navigate our communities without barriers.

This month, we honor the Disabled people who rely on mobility aids, the advocates pushing for accessible environments, and the ongoing work to ensure mobility is treated as a civil right. Everyone deserves the freedom to move through the world safely and with dignity.



[ID: The graphic has a purple background with white text at the top that reads “May is Mobility Awareness Month.” Below the text, four illustrated figures stand side by side, representing different mobility aids and prosthetics, including a person with a prosthetic leg, a person with a prosthetic arm, a person using a wheelchair, and a person with another prosthetic limb. At the bottom of the image, the Regional Center for Independent Living logo appears on the left and the Center for Disability Rights logo appears on the right.]

What happens when one person refuses to look the other way?

Our newest blog tells the story of how a single Rochester resident challenged the Lilac Festival's illegal service-dog policy - and won. It's a reminder that discrimination still shows up in places people assume are accessible, and that real change often starts with one person deciding to act.

Read how Riley Schillaci pushed for accountability, how City Council stepped in, and why CDR will be monitoring accessibility throughout the festival

Full story here: https://cdrnys.org/blog/advocacy/lilac-festival-service-dogs-the-ada-and-one-persons-successful-fight-for-change/



[ID: The graphic shows a blurred background of lilac flowers with a colorful Rochester Lilac Festival logo in the center, featuring stylized purple, white, and green lilac blooms. At the top, the text reads “New Blog Post” and “.” The main text states “Lilac Festival, service dogs, the ADA, and one person’s (successful) fight for change.” At the bottom of the image, the Center for Disability Rights logo appears.]