Assisted suicide and disability forum to be held Oct. 12

ANN ARBOR—The University of Michigan Office of Equity and Diversity will host a forum on assisted suicide and disability, from 1:15 to 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 12, in the Michigan Union Ballroom. It is free and open to the public. For assistance in locating handicapped parking, call (734) 763-0235 or (734) 971-0277.

The forum includes a trio of speakers on the controversial issue of assisted suicide, which is the subject of a proposal on the November ballot in Michigan, and is co-sponsored by U-M Human Resources and Affirmative Action; U-M Council for Disability Concerns; Ann Arbor Center for Independent Living; and Michigan Disability Rights Coalition.

Among the speakers are Diane Coleman, founder of Not Dead Yet, a national grass-roots disability rights group that opposes the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia, speaking on “Assisted Suicide: The Ultimate Discrimination.” Coleman, who has used a motorized wheelchair since age 11, serves as vice-chair of the Illinois State Medicaid Advisory committee and is the executive director of the Progress Center for Independent Living in Forest Park, Ill.

Also speaking are Edward Pierce, chair and co-founder of Merian’s Friends, a group based in Ann Arbor that advocates the legalization of physician-assisted suicide; and Bob Liston of the Washtenaw Association for Community Advocacy, speaking on “The Disability Perspective on Proposal B.”

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