At CCDC, we improve lives by improving Colorado’s systems.
We fight to make our state and local laws and policies meet the needs of Coloradans with disabilities.
In order to achieve our goals, we use multiple strategies including individual and systemic advocacy, education, leadership development, grassroots organizing, voter engagement, and litigation. Key to advancing our mission is the work we do with individuals, service providers, businesses, community organizations, and within all three branches of Colorado’s government.
Our goal is for all disabled Coloradans to be able to lead full lives with equitable access to any opportunities available to our non-disabled peers.
Our “cross-disability” approach
We believe people with different types of disabilities have more in common than not, and we have the most power when we work together for a common good. With this in mind, our “cross-disability” approach means we advocate with and on behalf of people who have any and all types of disability. We believe that our voices are more powerful when we raise them together as a community. Our community is inclusive of people who have physical, psychological, cognitive, sensory, and/or intellectual disabilities, and those disabilities may be acquired or congenital, hidden or visible, temporary or permanent, episodic or chronic, and range from mild to severe. We fight for the rights of all Coloradans who have disabilities, no matter the nature of their disability.
Our coalition
We have relationships with many other Colorado non-profit organizations that support people with disabilities and/or focus on eliminating injustices people with disabilities may encounter. The fight for disability rights is often complex, and our partnerships enable us to develop, implement, and monitor well-rounded solutions to the inequities our community faces.
Our guiding values
Disability Representation
We believe that anytime decisions are being made that affect people with disabilities, people with disabilities should be involved in those decision-making processes; we focus heavily on making sure that our community is represented when Colorado’s laws and policies are being created and implemented. We frequently use the slogan, “Nothing about us without us,” to demonstrate this commitment.
Disability Pride
We believe that disability, in its many forms, is a natural part of life. We know that people with disabilities possess inherent worth. Disabled people have valuable perspectives not only about how our society functions as it is, but also about how our society could and should function.
Intersectionality
We recognize that disability may be one facet of a person’s identity among many others, such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, sexuality, citizenship status, age, religion, etc. We know, too, that a person’s experience with disability is influenced by the other parts of their identity and vice versa. We are committed to intersectionality in our work because ableism harms people with disabilities differently depending on other facets of their identities.
Our current priorities
Our strategic plan details our current organizational objectives, as well as our long term plan of action for how we intend to accomplish those goals; our priorities reflect aggregate input and feedback we receive from people with disabilities across Colorado. Feel free to check out our previous strategic plans and final reports for those plans as well.