Summit Condemns Silencing of Minority Group

As a disability rights organization, having grew out of the civil rights movement in response to people with disabilities long being viewed as incapable and having faced a long history of discrimination by being forced into institutions and denied opportunities to participate in education, employment, housing, a public participation, and even the political process, we recognize the danger to all minority groups when a majority group inappropriately silences the voices of any minority. One of Independent Living’s main mantras is “nothing about us, without us,” and this can be applied across all minority groups. No matter the minority group, policy decisions should not be made without that minority group having a seat at the table and a voice in the process. Unfortunately, actions taken during the 2023 Legislative Session to silence and limit the voice of the LGBTQIA+ community was an attempt to do exactly that, deny the voices of a minority group a seat at the table where policy decisions about them were being made. We find that these actions were excessive and unacceptable. Whether one chooses to support a minority’s positions, or not, is not relevant to the issue of taking action to willfully silence the voice of any minority.

As a minority that has faced a long history of discrimination, isolation, and segregation, we know full well that there are times we must be loud in order to be heard. If we stand by and allow the voice of one minority group to be silenced, it could be our own voice and viewpoint next time. As such, Summit Independent Living condemns discrimination in all forms, including the silencing of voices, and fully supports the statement issued by Disability Rights Montana (DRM’s Perspective: Rep. Zephyr (HD-100) – Disability Rights Montana (disabilityrightsmt.org)).