AAPD Chief Sees Job As Grassroots Calling 
By Mike Ervin
Mark Perriello wants to introduce himself to the
grassroots disability community. Perriello became president and CEO of the
American Association of People with Disabilities in June. He succeeded the
organization’s original CEO, Andy Imparato, who joined the staff of
Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa).
Perriello, who has been blind since childhood, worked as
an adviser to President Barack Obama on diversity issues. But he sees his AAPD
job as a grassroots calling. He plans to continue the leadership development he
said AAPD does best while emphasizing other initiatives based on the priorities
that have developed from his personal disability experience.
Perriello grew up in Chelmsford, Mass., a small town of
about 30,000 people on the outskirts of Boston. “It was a great place to
grow up,” he said. “Chelmsford is where I learned about democracy,
being involved in the community, the importance of voting and the impact of
campaigns and elections on creating change.
“I recall a controversial measure deemed Prop
2½. The measure would have increased local taxes in order to continue
funding important educational programs. The measure didn’t pass. Classes
on music and art were canceled, math and science courses for high school
seniors became elective classes, and students were forced to pay fees for
sports and afterschool activities. The loss struck a deep chord with me. My
sophomore year of high school I ran for, and won, a seat as the student
representative on the school committee, the beginning of my path of community
service.”
Between the ages of 3 and 5, he lost sight in his right
eye from toxoplasmosis, an infection caused by a parasite often carried by
cats. The loss was gradual, and now his vision is monocular.
“As a kid, adults didn’t really know what to do
with the information about my sight,” he said.” It made them
uncomfortable. I was often put on the sidelines when it came to sports and
other activities. I know now that their abundance of caution said more about
them than about my capabilities.
“Other kids found my low vision to be a source of
amusement. I played along, but it was tough. The mental bruises lasted a long
time. Now I define my own limits and know when a joke has gone too far.
Bullying people with disabilities has to end.”
A person who figured prominently in Perriello’s life
was his uncle Chris, who was born with Down syndrome in 1959. Uncle Chris was
sent to an institution at age 3 and lived there for several years. But the
family brought him home every weekend.
“My grandparents were told by many experts that they
were doing the right thing. But every Sunday night when it was time for Chris
to leave, it was like saying good-bye for the last time. There were no dry
eyes. After three years of tearful good-byes, my grandmother decided that she
had enough. Chris belonged with his parents and his siblings, and he never
returned to an institution again. He enrolled in public schools and flourished.
He was living with his family, participating in his community, and was exactly
where he needed to be.”
While attending Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn., where he
obtained a bachelor’s degree in religious studies, Perriello came out as
gay. These days he is highly respected in lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) political activist circles. He built that reputation through
his work fundraising, organizing and developing communication strategies at the
Human Rights Campaign and the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund and Leadership
Institute.
“My work at the Human Rights Campaign has had the
biggest impact. The LGBT community has experienced significant gains in the
law, in the workplace and in health care. I’d like to think that my work
at HRC played a small role in that progress.
“While at HRC, I planned the first-of-its-kind
presidential forum on LGBT issues in 2004. All but two of the Democratic
candidates appeared in person, and we significantly raised the profile of LGBT
issues in the election. In 2002, I led an effort with HRC’s Web team that
transformed the way HRC raised money for political candidates and helped make
HRC a more powerful force in Washington, D.C. “
Before coming to AAPD, Perriello worked as the White House
liaison at the U.S. Department of the Interior and as the White House priority
placement director. In the latter position, he was charged with identifying
diverse pools of qualified candidates for political appointments. In an
interview with the Washington Blade, an LGBT newspaper, Perriello said
that while seeking out people with disabilities to recommend for appointments,
the magnitude of the job discrimination faced by disabled people really hit
home. After that revelation, he began to develop a strong desire to become more
engaged in disability activism.
“In many ways it was more challenging to come out as
a person with a disability than it was to come out as LGBT,” Perriello
told the Blade. “There is a lot of stigma that unfortunately in our
society goes along with disability.”
So he saw an opportunity with AAPD to apply his skills to
serving the disabled community.
Perriello said he looks forward to building on AAPD’s
youth leadership development work, such as the internship program by which
young people with disabilities work for legislators on Capitol Hill. “The
young leaders AAPD brings to Washington each year represent a new generation of
leaders who are ready to take up the work of equal rights.”
He also said he wants to develop an initiative to combat
the type of bullying that he faced, and young people with disabilities still
face today.
A lot of Perriello’s time so far at AAPD has been
spent addressing threats to Medicaid.
“Medicaid provides a vital lifeline for 8 million
Americans with disabilities and their caregivers. In the context of the debt
ceiling debate, the program was poised for major cuts, and we aren’t out
of the woods yet. AAPD coordinated with United Cerebral Palsy, ADAPT and others
to help protect this critical program. Among other tactics, we ran radio ads
targeted to conservative voters in early primary states, brought everyday
Americans to Washington to lobby the White House and Congress, and activated
the Justice for All Network to spur grassroots action.”
Perriello said he expects this battle to continue. Because
of what he learned from his experience with his uncle Chris, he said he has a
personal interest in not just preserving but transforming Medicaid so that it
becomes a pillar of support for people with disabilities who want to live in
their homes and communities, not in institutions.
“Fifty years later, we are still fighting for people
to live full and independent lives. Not everyone is as fortunate as my
grandparents, who had five built-in babysitters -- and my grandmother stayed at
home. We need common-sense solutions that work for everyone and will bring
people back to their communities, reunite families and save taxpayer
money.”
Mike Ervin is a writer and member of American Disabled
for Attendant Programs Today, a group that works for the civil rights of people
with disabilities. |
