ISSUES

People with disabilities are often segregated in non-community based settings and often work in sheltered workshops under 14(c) certificates making sub-minimum wage of as little as $ .60/hour

These individuals are often seen as possessing less value and less deserving of respect. They experience higher incidences of discrimination.

In group homes or residential care facilities, there are high incidences of abuse or neglect occurring.

This Stuff Shouldn't be Happening !

As a disability self advocate, I will push for accessibility and inclusion. We need an increase in home and community based services which allow an individual greater privileges than these segregated settings. We need people working in competitive employment making minimum wage or higher. We need to ensure that people have access to the home modifications that are necessary for them to remain in their home and participate to their fullest in society .

Quality, accessible, and affordable healthcare is every Missourian’s right. But every year Missouri families must make increasingly difficult decisions for how they prioritize spending on prescription drugs and medical bills over the basic costs of living.

The inaction means less healthy communities, higher premiums for those with coverage, and the loss of hospitals, especially in rural areas.

As your state representative, I’ll support common sense measures like expanding Medicaid, so no Missourian is forced to choose between a decent job and keeping their healthcare.

Because it requires an individual to be on Medicaid to receive targeted case management and other essential services, those with disabilities are left high and dry as they were prohibited from using the healthcare exchange to get private insurance.

Every Missouri child should have access to free, quality education regardless of their zip code. As your representative, I will work to strengthen our public schools and fully fund our commitment to our kids.

I will support universal early childhood education, because investing in our kids from an early age is the best way for us to invest in our future. I will also support investment in higher education and workforce training, to ensure all Missourians have the opportunity to gain the skills to compete in our economy.

K-12 Education is the first step to workforce development ; Without basic math , the ability to read and write, it becomes next to impossible to gain even an entry level job .

We must also make sure education is accessible and the academic accommodations are given so that those with disabilities can learn in a manner that allows them to achieve their full potential .

A strong economy is one that works for everyone. As your state rep, I’ll fight for those who truly build up our economy—our workers—for the wages, benefits, and protections they deserve. I’ll support investments in educational opportunities to support a 21st century workforce.

I’ll work for policies that support local businesses who provide good jobs in our state and keep our economy growing. I’ll also work to bring new businesses here that want to capitalize on our skilled Missouri workforce and quality of life. But I’ll always put workers’ interests before the special interests of large corporations.

Missouri's current minimum wage is $11.30/hour which is inadequate to cover bare essentials of living. This should be increased. Missouri also is an At-Will state, meaning individuals can be fired without just cause .

Central to the role of government is to fairly enforce the law, and to provide protection for its people. I will support our law enforcement officers in their difficult jobs, while also demanding accountability when they overreach.

I will support tough but reasonable sentences for violent criminals, while also seeking ways to reduce our prison population and reintegrate folks into society after they have served their time. I’ll also support drug treatment courts and diversion programs that find alternative ways to punish and rehabilitate non-violent criminals without simply throwing them in prison.

No matter where you live in Missouri, the root causes of crime are the same: a lack of educational and work opportunities, along with drug addiction and poverty. Addressing these basic issues must always be central in any conversation about crime.

Agriculture is the backbone of Missouri, and at the heart of it are our family farms—where many of us call home and why generations before us settled here. But passing down our way of life to future generations is becoming increasingly challenging.

Our local communities used to have a say in how farming was done in our backyards, but the Republican-led state legislature has passed bills favoring large corporate farms and pushing out family farms.

Last year, state Republicans passed a bill taking control from local communities to regulate certain large feeding operations known as CAFOs. This allows large scale operations to buy up local farms, push the production limits of the land, and pollute our communities’ treasured landscape without local oversight.

As your state rep, I’ll advocate for the state of Missouri to protect local control, giving ordinary citizens easier access to have their say on how farming operates in their community.

Government works best when it is closer to the people it serves. I respect the fabric of our local communities and trust them to know best when it comes to overcoming the challenges they face.

In Missouri, we have seen many decisions influenced by special interests, circumventing the will of local communities on local issues by preempting local ordinances with state law or by diluting local opposition to matters by including state-wide votes.

I believe in the saying “show me your budget, and I’ll show you your values.” Our state’s budget serves as a moral contract with our citizens. Every year, it is up to the state government to allocate the tax dollars you pay to maintain and improve our quality of living.

But while our schools are underfunded, our healthcare costs are on the rise while our taxes increase, and we’re borrowing money to pay for our crumbling roads and bridges, corporations in Missouri are receiving tax cuts and incentive packages.

We can lower taxes at the same time we fund the things necessary by taking advantage of matching grants which are not currently being used.

We simply should not be handing out money to corporations hoping that prosperity will trickle down. As your state rep, I will be a careful steward of your tax dollars in Jefferson City.

I believe you and your family are the economic drivers of our state. Our budget should reflect that by investing in the things that will improve you and your family’s life, rather than lining the pockets of big businesses.

Every person should have the autonomy to make decisions about their body and their life. Republicans have passed extreme abortion bans in recent years, limiting access to abortion even in cases of rape, incest, or medical need.

Mothers die from childbirth in Missouri in numbers far greater than the rest of the industrialized world, and instead of promoting healthcare, Missouri legislators have placed burdensome restrictions on it.

Republicans have gone so far as to pass legislation that costs hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to defend against constitutional challenges, while at the same time blaming budget shortfalls for lack of funding for essential items like school transportation.

As your state rep, I will stand with women for their right to make the best decisions about their healthcare for their own lives.

Faith in government and the political process is the cornerstone of a functioning democracy. As your state rep, I’ll fight to shine a light on those who conceal their donors and influence our politics with dark money.

Over the years, Republicans have eroded the barrier between special interests and politics. In 2018, Missourians overwhelmingly voted in favor of Amendment 1, known as CLEAN MO. It capped contributions and limited the way money could move in and out of campaign coffers. Special interests have continued to find loopholes around these laws, pushing ‘dark money’ further into the political process.

At the same time, Republicans are advocating for the repeal of Amendment 2, Medical Marijuana.

Ultimately, this campaign isn’t about me. This is our campaign and I want you to be proud of it and the coalition we build along the way. That’s why I’ll provide you easy access to the sources of our campaign money.

Every year for the past two decades, the Missouri Non-Discrimination Act (MONA) has been filed, only to be blocked by Republicans. MONA would allow basic protections to our LGBTQ community by adding sexual orientation and gender identity to Missouri’s Human Rights Act.

Missourians should not have to fear losing their jobs or being denied housing for who they love—discrimination that is currently completely legal in our state.

Meanwhile, Republicans in recent years have also passed legislation that makes it easier for employers, landlords or businesses to discriminate based on race, age, religion or gender—more so than in any other state.

As your state rep, I will work for a Missouri that welcomes people regardless of race, religion, gender, age or sexual orientation, and protects all people from discrimination.

Those with intellectual and developmental disabilities are LGBTQ at higher rates than the average population. Those with Autism are seven times as likely to be non-binary (twainbow.org). We all deserve protection under the law.

Our drug epidemic tragically touches too many families in every community across Missouri.

We need to end the Stigma of Addiction and recognize when it is occurring in our communities. Often times if someone can recognize that an overdose is occurring, they can call 911, provide basic first aid and Administer Narcan. With the invention of Narcan, Many people can step in and intervene to prevent death from an overdose.

Also since now, many overdoses are caused by Fentanyl laced Heroin and Other Drugs of abuse, we need to treat this issue with compassion and refer people to treatment centers and support systems to help people detox and eventually become clean and sober.

Providing Testing strips to see if a drug is laced could help people to identify if Fentanyl is in their drug of choice.