Press Room

May 22, 2020 – New York, NY – Today, a coalition of disability organizations filed a lawsuit against the New York State Board of Elections (“NYS BOE”) for excluding New Yorkers with disabilities as their Absentee Voting program expanded in response to COVID-19.

Southfield, Michigan (May 19, 2020): In a historic outcome, a Federal Court in Detroit has approved a consent decree that orders the State of Michigan to provide accessible absentee ballots to blind Michigan voters in all future elections. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of blind voters Michael Powell and Fred Wurtzel, along with the National Federation of the Blind of Michigan, alleged that Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Director of Elections Jonathan Brater violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to provide absentee ballots that can be completed by the blind.

Baltimore, Maryland (May 11, 2020): Five blind high school students and the National Federation of the Blind, the nation’s leading advocate for equal education of the blind, have filed a complaint against the College Board with the United States Department of Education Office of Civil Rights (OCR) on behalf of themselves and all other blind and deafblind students who are registered to take the May 2020 advanced placement (AP) tests from the College Board.

Washington, DC (May 5, 2020): Timothy Cole is being treated for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. His treatment leaves him immunocompromised and unable to work, and places him at additional risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. He needs to apply for disability benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the safest way to do so would be to fill out the application online at his home in Jacksonville, Florida.