Disability/Arts Advocate Invited to Joint Session of Congress

When President Trump gives his first address to Congress tonight, at least one person in the audience will be listening for assurance that he will support the laws and programs that protect people with disabilities. Jeannine Chartier, a survivor of childhood polio and head of Vision Strength Access (VSA) Arts Rhode Island, will attend the joint session as a guest of U.S. Congressman David Cicilline (D-RI).

In a new release on Rep. Cicilline's website, Chartier says:
"Like so many of my friends and colleagues, I have been shocked and frightened by how Donald Trump conducted himself as a candidate and how he has governed as president. As a woman with a disability, an artist, and the director of an arts education nonprofit, I hope that my attendance will show the president that Americans like me will not just stay at home and let him undo all of the progress we have made in recent years. America is our country too, and we deserve a voice."

For 21 years, Chartier has been the executive and artistic director of VSA, a Rhode Island program that provides arts programs for children and adults with disabilities.

Take a moment to thank Congressman Cicilline for shining a light on the accomplishments and rights of people with disabilities.

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