Disability Rights

Striving for an America free of discrimination against people with disabilities, where they are valued, integrated members of society with full access to education, homes, health care, jobs, voting, and beyond.

disability rights

What you need to know

70%

of public school students who are physically restrained or secluded have disabilities.

60%

of people in local jails have some form of mental disability.

$15,000 or less

Forty-eight percent of people with disabilities have a personal income of $15,000 or less.

Striving for an America free of discrimination against people with disabilities, where they are valued, integrated members of society with full access to education, homes, health care, jobs, voting, and beyond.

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COBB ET AL V. GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY SUPERVISION ET AL

A five-year effort to get equal access for deaf and hard-of-hearing people on parole and probation in Georgia has ended in victory. The American Civil Liberties Union and our legal partners reached a groundbreaking settlement that requires the Georgia agency responsible for supervising people on probation and parole – the Georgia Department of Community Supervision or “GDCS” – to dismantle the discriminatory hurdles that make it harder for deaf and hard-of-hearing people to avoid prison and live safely in their communities.

GDCS has agreed to provide Deaf interpreters for people who need them. Deaf interpreters are sign language interpreters who are also deaf. A Deaf interpreter will work with a hearing ASL interpreter to provide effective communication, especially for deaf adults who have experienced language deprivation — a neurodevelopmental disorder with negative and long-lasting effects on the deaf adult’s language, cognitive, and socioemotional development. GDCS will also now provide better accommodations for deaf or hard-of-hearing clients who cannot read and write English. Many people on supervision in Georgia are required to complete programs or classes as a condition of their supervision, but, in the past, the sponsors of many of these programs have refused to provide ASL interpreters and other necessary accommodations to our clients. GDCS will now require that the providers of any classes or programs required for people on supervision, comply with federal disability laws by providing necessary accommodations, such as interpreters, for effective communication.

Read more about this victory.


HARRIS V. GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

In this federal class action, the ACLU is seeking an injunction directing the Georgia Department of Corrections to immediately provide qualified American Sign Language interpreters, auxiliary aids and services, and reasonable modifications to deaf and hard of hearing individuals in prison. This lawsuit highlights how prison, probation, and parole systems fail deaf prisoners – leading deaf people to go to prison more often, stay longer, and return more quickly.


COEN V. GDOC

The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Georgia filed a motion in federal court to pursue a class action lawsuit on behalf of deaf and hard of hearing people imprisoned in and released from the Georgia Department of Corrections. The complaint highlights how prison, probation, and parole systems fail deaf prisoners – leading deaf people to go to prison more often, stay longer, and return more quickly.

The Latest

Press Release
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Settlement Ensures Communication Access for Deaf People on Parole and Probation in Georgia

Deaf and hard of hearing people on parole and probation have settled a lawsuit challenging the state's failure to provide them with accessible communication.
Issue Areas: Disability Rights
Press Release
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Press Release: Case Seeking Communication Access for Deaf People on Parole and Probation in Georgia Proceeds

A case challenging the Georgia Department of Community Supervision’s (GDCS) failure to provide adequate communication access to deaf plantiffs on probation or parole.
Court Case
Oct 26, 2021

Cobb v. Georgia Department of Community Supervision

In this federal class action, the ACLU is seeking an injunction directing the Georgia Department of Community Supervision to immediately provide qualified American Sign Language interpreters, auxiliary aids and services, and reasonable modifications to people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Court Case
Jun 20, 2020

Harris v. Georgia Department of Corrections

Court Case
Jun 20, 2018

Coen v. GDOC