CTD Conventions & Advocacy Events
Raise Your Voice! 2023
CTD’s interactive Raise Your Voice! (RYV) events are designed to provide a functional understanding of our state’s legislative process while connecting emerging and seasoned advocates with each other. We'll prepare and support you to educate legislators about the real good and harm their decisions can mean to Texans with disabilities. In addition, these conversations give CTD insight into the needs and concerns of Texans with disabilities outside our usual circles, which informs our advocacy work.
On each call, our advocacy team will give a brief update on the major pieces of legislation we've been working on, then we'll hold breakout discussions to gather your input and concerns or prepare to take an action. There is no cost to participate.
After a summer break, RYV resumes for 2023 on September 18 and will take place at 2 pm CT every other Monday into December. We will remain virtual. Upcoming dates and topics:
- October 2 - criminal justice issues, with a focus on deadly heat in Texas prisons
- October 16 - rollout of the attendant wage increase
- October 30 - changes in voting laws
- November 13 - topic TBD
- November 27- topic TBD
- December 11- topic TBD
Review 2022 RYV recordings
- May 16: Intro to Texas Legislature Online (TLO) + overview of Interim Charges: transcript (.txt) | recording (YouTube)
- June 6: Attendant Wages: transcript (.rtf) | recording (YouTube) | Crushing the Workforce 2.0 (pdf)
- June 20: Medicaid Waiver Waiting List + related Budget items, with guest speaker The Arc of Texas' Ashley Ford: transcript (.rtf) | recording (YouTube)
- July 11: Special Education, with guest speakers Disability Rights Texas' Steven Aleman and Rep. Mary E. González (HD 75): transcript (.txt) | recording (YouTube)
- July 25: Medical Cannabis, with guest speaker Frank Santos of Texas Patients First: transcript | recording (YouTube)
- September 12: School Vouchers, with guest speaker Steven Aleman of Disability Rights Texas transcript (.txt) | recording (YouTube)
- September 26: Health Equity + Access to Biomarker Testing, with James Gray of the American Cancer Society's Cancer Action Network: transcript | recording (YouTube)
- October 10: Voting, with Secure Democracy and Disability Rights Texas: transcript | recording (YouTube)
- October 24: Youth Justice, with Alycia Castillo of the Texas Center for Justice and Equity: recording (YouTube)
- November 7: Why are multiple public systems failing children with disabilities?, with Josette Saxton of Texans Care for Children: transcript (.rtf) | recording (YouTube)
- November 21: RYV 2022 Wrap up/ Looking ahead to 2023, with Chris Masey: transcript (.txt) | recording (YouTube)
About CTD's grassroots advocacy work
Since our foundation in 1978, CTD organized an Annual Convention in a different part of the state, often partnering with local disability groups. When the Legislature met (odd numbered years), we stayed in Austin to take full advantage of advocacy opportunities. During interim years (even numbered), we traveled far and wide, to cities large and small, meeting and collaborating with our members. Wherever we landed, our Conventions were hubs of consumer education, advocacy training and preparation, and CEU opportunities for professionals. We usually managed to have some fun, too!
In 2016, we began shifting to a smaller, more targeted scale of activities to train and prepare individuals for advocacy during and outside of the Legislative session. Our Raise Your Voice! (RYV!) Roundtables are regional events held during the interim session. These conversations are designed to introduce participants to the Texas legislative process and allow CTD to interact directly with emerging advocates to identify and address issues facing local disability communities. In 2019, we brought RYV! to the Legislature, piloting the RYV! Advocate Connection Program. This version of the program provided a functional understanding of our state's legislative process while connecting emerging and seasoned advocates, all while supporting real time advocacy work (office visits, testimony, etc.).
Within or outside of RYV!, we are proud to collaborate with our partners on a variety of other advocacy events to educate the public, prepare advocates for action, and engage our elected officials. Examples of such efforts include collaborating on or supporting rallies and advocacy days, conferences, film screenings, and forums.
Sponsor a CTD or Raise Your Voice! Advocacy Event
If your business or organization has a stake in disability issues, consider sponsoring a Raise Your Voice! advocacy event. Often, we work closely with our sponsors on legislative activities or consumer services. We offer multiple levels of sponsorship, all with great benefits to you! Learn more.
Past Conventions & Advocacy Events
- 2022: Raise Your Voice! Advocate Connection program (virtual)
- 2021: Raise Your Voice! Advocate Connection program (virtual)
- 2020: Raise Your Voice! Advocate Connection program archive (virtual)
- 2019: Raise Your Voice! Advocate Connection program
- 2018: Texas Disability Issues Forum (Austin)
- 2017: Raise Your Voice! Training and Advocacy Day (Austin)
- 2016: Raise You Voice! Roundtables in Arlington and Plano.
- 2015: $10 Campaign for Attendant Wages (Austin)
- 2014 (spring): West Texas Disability Resource Conference (Abilene)
- 2014 (fall): Texas Disability Issues Forum (Austin)
- 2013: 35th Annual Convention & Texas Medicaid Matters (Austin)
- 2012: iMake a Difference (McAllen)
- 2011: Community Living: It's MY Choice! (Austin)
- 2010: Our Lives Statewide Convention and Service Providers Expo (El Paso)
- 2009: Brainstorm! (Austin)
- 2008: 30th Annual Convention: Advocacy. Honor. Duty. (San Antonio)
- 2007: Thinktank (Austin)
- 2006: Raise Your Voice! (Corpus Christi)