Texans with disabilities fear new restrictions on voting help could mean criminal charges at the polls
Nancy Crowther sings during an outdoor service to a group Sunday October 26, 2014 at Milam Park. Rev. Lizarraga is part of a new ministry for the special-needs community called"FaithAbility." Crowther traveled from Austin to attend the annual AccessAbility Fest and this particular service.Nancy Crowther needs an aide around the clock to help her with meals and other daily household tasks. Her personal attendant of three years lives with her in Austin.
“We don’t want to jeopardize our attendants, but we want to be able to vote, but we need our attendants’ help, so we’re in a Catch-22,” Crowther said. “It’s a bigger swath of the voting populace that will be scared off and what will happen is that people will not vote. But I’m not going to give in to that.”
“There are voters with disabilities who use their personal aides or personal attendants to assist them in completing daily tasks, and voting is a daily task,” said Molly Broadway, a voting rights training specialist at Disability Rights Texas, adding that she has already received calls from assistants afraid of incurring criminal charges for activities that are usually part of their duties. “It’s a very present, very real need that exists.
Broadway has instructed those providing assistance to sign the expanded oath, inform poll workers about the help they’re providing to the voter and reach out to county election offices and request additional accommodations when necessary. “We gather screenshots or copies of the actual papers that may have been signed or not signed, and then we submit them to the appropriate enforcement authority,” Huntley explained.
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