(Sacramento, CA) - Today, Disability Rights California (DRC), the nation’s largest disability rights organization, is excited to host our second annual gala celebrating the Art of Disability Justice. Guests will be welcomed to the Tsakopoulos Library Galleria for a sold-out evening honoring artists and advocates with disabilities. 

The Art of Disability Justice was born from a simple idea: to bring people together and to raise awareness about disability justice. Our goal with the event was to be able to gather individuals from the community to come together for the disability community.

“DRC is thrilled to see the growth in sponsors and attendees since we hosted our first gala last year. This event is designed to raise the profile of the disability community as an important political, cultural, and economic force and to celebrate our heroes,” said Andy Imparato, DRC’s Executive Director.  

The evening will honor Academy Award-winning actor Troy Kotsur and his wife Deanne Bray, and the California Mandela Campaign for their contributions to the advancement of disability rights. 

Kotsur and Bray will receive the National Leadership Award for their longtime work advocating for authentic representation of D/deaf and hard of hearing people and people with disabilities in the entertainment industry. Kotsur’s starring role in the 2021 film “CODA” earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, the first deaf man to receive the distinction. Bray was the first Deaf actress to star in her own television series in the show Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye.

The California Mandela Campaign will be honored with the California Leadership Award for its work advocating to end the use of solitary confinement for vulnerable populations, including people with disabilities, in California jails, prisons, and immigration detention facilities.  

The evening’s program will also feature a performance from Infinite Flow Dance featuring dancers with disabilities, and an interactive salsa dance lesson from Haben Girma, the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School, and her good friend and distinguished blind leader and educator Dr. Conchita Hernandez. 

We are proud to host a distinctly accessible evening with accommodations for people with a variety of disabilities. We will be complying with Sacramento County guidelines for COVID safety and masks will be provided at the event for any guest that may ask for one. 

We look forward to another great event and appreciate all your continued support of Disability Rights California. Special thanks to our wonderful sponsors for their support. Together we can affect change for the disability community across California and the nation!

Media Contacts

Melody Pomraning
Communications Director
Disability Rights California
916-504-5938
Melody.Pomraning@disabilityrightsca.org

Disability Rights California (DRC) – Is the agency designated under federal law to protect and advocate for the rights of Californians with disabilities. The mission of DRC is to defend, advance, and strengthen the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities.