Community Is a Civil Right Worth Protecting

By George H. Fleischner, President/CEO, Nonotuck Resource Associates, Inc.

Nearly every American understands the importance of home. Home is where we build relationships, participate in our communities, make choices about our daily lives, and experience the dignity that comes from belonging.

For people with disabilities, however, the right to call a place in the community “home” has not always been guaranteed.

For generations, people with disabilities were routinely segregated in institutions, often far from their families, friends, schools, jobs, and communities. Decisions about where they lived and how they spent their days were frequently made by others. While many Americans are unaware of this history, it is not ancient history. Many individuals and families still remember a time when institutionalization was considered the only option.

Over the past several decades, our nation has moved in a different direction. Landmark disability rights laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Supreme Court’s historic decision in Olmstead v. L.C., affirmed a simple but profound principle: people with disabilities have the right to live in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs.

That principle transformed lives.

Across Massachusetts and throughout the country, community-based services have allowed people with disabilities to live in neighborhoods, attend local schools, work in local businesses, volunteer, worship, develop friendships, and contribute to the life of their communities. Families have been able to remain together. Older adults have been able to avoid unnecessary nursing home placement. Individuals who once had few choices have gained opportunities for greater independence and self-determination.

That is why the recent opinion issued by the Trump Administration Office of Legal Counsel that aggressively rejected the rights of people with disabilities to live in the community is so troubling.

While the opinion does not overturn federal law or the Supreme Court’s decision in Olmstead, it signals a willingness to retreat from one of the most important civil rights advances of the last half-century. It challenges the longstanding understanding that public systems should support people with disabilities in community settings whenever possible.

As someone who has spent decades working alongside people with disabilities and their families, I have seen firsthand what community living makes possible. I have seen people move from isolation to connection. I have seen individuals develop meaningful relationships, gain employment, pursue education, and become active members of their communities. I have also seen the peace of mind families experience when their loved ones are supported not in institutions, but in homes where they are known, respected, and valued.

The debate over disability policy is often framed in legal or financial terms. But at its core, this is a question about belonging and being valued.

The issue is not whether people with disabilities deserve safety and support. We all agree they do. The question is whether that support should be delivered in ways that maximize inclusion, choice, and community participation, or whether we are willing to accept a return to systems that separate people from the communities where they belong and come from.

The progress our nation has made did not happen by accident. It was achieved through the advocacy of people with disabilities, family members, service providers, policymakers, and civil rights leaders who believed that disability should never be a reason for exclusion.

We should not abandon that progress.

A strong community is one that makes room for everyone. People with disabilities are not problems to be managed or populations to be segregated. They are our neighbors, coworkers, classmates, friends, and family members. Their right to live, work, and thrive in the community is not merely a policy preference—it is a fundamental civil right.

As we approach another anniversary of the Olmstead decision, we should reaffirm our commitment to the values that decision represents: inclusion, opportunity, dignity, and belonging. The measure of a society is not how it treats the most powerful among us, but how it ensures that everyone has the opportunity to participate fully in community life.

That is a principle worth defending.