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When other people make decisions for individuals with disabilities, the decisions that are made often don’t fit their need. Self_Advocacy helps people get the outcomes that they desire which is necessary – as they grow from a child to an adult – to succeed in this world. Self-Advocacy ensures that people with disabilities are treated as equals and that they are given the same decisions, choices, rights, responsibilities, and chances to speak up to empower themselves, opportunities to make new friends, and to learn from their mistakes.
SELF ADVOCATES IN ACTION (SIÑA)
“Nothing about us, without us.”
“SIÑA Ta Chogue”
Guam’s Officially Recognized Self-Advocacy Organization
OUR HISTORY:
SIÑA grew out of self-advocacy workshops beginning September 2009. Seasoned advocates were trained to facilitate work-shop trainings and mentor participants in fulfilling their self-advocacy projects. This process facilitated the bonding of self-advocates into a group dubbed as, “The SuperFriends.” As an informal group, the SuperFriends engaged in social networking, provided peer support and mentoring, provided formal input regarding policy and directorship of agencies, conducted forums for agency heads and policy makers, expanded the pool of trained facilitators, and with empowerment expanded participation and membership on boards and councils and built bridges with agencies, providing solutions to overcome barriers to services.
OUR MISSION:
Self-Advocates in Action is to promote self-advocacy for people with disabilities by assisting, educating, forming alliances and participating together to further strengthen efforts to accomplish individuals goals to improve one’s quality of life; to experience self-determination, to choose and decide for one’s self; to speak up to empower one’s self; to promote and protect one’s dignity; and to educate each other, members of the community, and public servants on issues that are important to us.
ABOUT US:
Self-Advocates in Action, a 501 © 3 non-profit charitable and educational organization consists of individual with all types of disabilities and their families. SIÑA is an acronym for a Chamoru word meaning “can do” or “it is possible.”
Self-Advocacy: The Path to Speaking Up
Understanding Advocacy through the DD Council Lens