Jamie Junior Selected to Receive the 2023 Persons With Disabilities Civil Rights Act Advocacy Award

DETROIT - Jan. 9, 2024 - PRLog -- The State of Michigan, Department of Civil Rights, honors Jamie Junior, Advocacy, Community Education & ADA Coordinator by selecting her to receive the 2023 "Persons With Disabilities Civil Rights Act Advocacy Award." The award was presented at the Michigan Civil Rights Commission 60th Anniversary Breakfast Reception on Wednesday, December 13, 2023, beginning at 10:00 AM. The event was held in Heritage Hall (Capitol Visitor's Center) 323 W. Ottawa St, Lansing, MI 48933.

Bio of Jamie Junior:  Jaime Junior (she/ her) is a dedicated Disability Rights and Social Justice advocate with Cerebral Palsy and, for the past 8 years, has navigated through life primarily on wheels.  Jamie has spent most of her life advocating for others and is a familiar face in spaces designed to ensure human rights, dignity, and cooperation.

In 2023, Jamie was crowned Ms. Wheelchair Michigan and used her platform to advocate around the state for equity and greater economic opportunities for individuals with disabilities. Jamie is a certified ADA coordinator and is currently employed with the Disability Network Wayne County-Detroit as the Advocacy and Community Education Coordinator, where she uses her lived experience and skill to help others live as independently as possible in their chosen community.  As a member of the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council, Jamie helps to create programs and policies that ensure that people with disabilities, as well as their families and friends, have equitable access to the tools they need to thrive and achieve their dreams. Jamie finds joy in movies, books, and good music as well as spending time with family and friends.

Throughout her advocacy career, Jaime has received several achievement awards, including Advocate of the Year for the Arc Detroit in 2022 and the Cookie Gant Spirit Award in 2020. Jamie believes that "everyone, regardless of ability, has the right to have full access to their community, and to enjoy financial self-sufficiency, and to live a self-determined life."
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