At People First Wisconsin, we work to make things better for people with disabilities, especially people with intellectual disabilities. 
 

• We work to get rid of the "R" word.   You know what that word is, don't you?  We hate that word.  We don't want our support workers to use it.  We don't want the government to use it.  We don't want people to use it when they raise money to help us.  We don't want groups that ae supposed to be helping us to use it in the name of their organizations.  And we don't think it's funny when kids use it to describe people and things that they don't like.   People know it's wrong to use the "N" word - we need people to know it's wrong to use the "R" word too.
   
• We work to stop bullying and teasing.  People with disabilities, especially intellectual disabilities are more likely to be teased, called names and bullied in schools, institutions and the community.  Sometimes it turns violent.  We don't want to be abused by words or by fists.  We want to learn how to defend ourselves and stay safe.  We want respect and dignity for all people.  We want to work with our community leaders, teachers, religious leaders, the police and others to make this happen.
   
• We work to educate everyone about the civil rights of people with disabilities.  We want people to understand The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  We want our right to vote to be respected.  We want our sexuality rights and our right to marry to be respected.  We want to make sure that legal guardianship is used only when necessary and is limited.  We want there to be lawyers who understand us and are available to help us legally when we need to defend our rights. 
   
• We work to improve transportation for persons with disabilities.  We want better public transportation across the state.  Transportation needs are the greatest for people with disabilities living in rural areas away from any city.  We want to have the transportation we need so that we can work and live in the community - just like everyone else. 
   
• We work to improve services that help people with disabilities to get jobs in the community.  We want more job coaches with better training to help people get and keep jobs.  We want help deciding on a career and help finding the right job, especially for those of us just graduating from high school.  We want technical colleges to offer vocational education programs that will accept us.  We want job training to help us get better jobs.  We DO NOT want anyone with a disability to be paid just pennies for an hour of their work.
   
• We work to make it possible for all persons with disabilities to live in the community.  As the saying goes, "There's no place like home."   We want to see the people living in the state institutions move to their own homes in the community - just live everyone else.  We want to see more affordable and accessible housing.  We want enough service support to keep everyone with a disability safe and happy while living in the community.
   
• We work to help people with disabilities to get good health care.  We want to see that people get the help that they need.  We need doctors and dentists to be willing to accept patients who use Title 19 Medicaid.  We want doctors, nurses, dentists, and therapists to take the time to listen to us.  We want them to help us understand things and to respect us as adults. 
   
• We work to be a part of all the decisions that affect our lives.  We support self-determination in our long-term support services.  Nothing about us without us!  We work on developing our leadership skills.  We work to have our members serve on more committees and boards.  We support our members in participating in the community organizations and religious communities of their choice.  We join with other groups and coalitions to make things better.  We speak up and we organize so that politicians and other policy-makers know what we think about the issues that affect our lives.