Back in December, WBFO published an investigation into at-its-face violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act by the City of Buffalo,including the absence of an ADA coordinator. Five months later, in May, the City of Buffalo quietly welcomed its first full-time ADA coordinator, and on the anniversary of the ADA in July, she spoke before the public. WBFO’s Disability Reporter Emyle Watkins sat down with her to learn more about her background and goals for the city.
For the City of Buffalo's new Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator Brittney Montgomery, living and working in Buffalo changed her perspective on being Deaf.
“I never really knew how different I was until I went to St. Mary’s [School for the Deaf] and I saw how these kids interacted, and how they had a Deaf community, and how they have their own language, their own holiday, their own slang. That's when I realized that 'wow, it was two completely different worlds and I'm missing out on this one world," said Montgomery.
Montgomery grew up in Harlem, where there wasn’t a large Deaf community, and when she moved to Buffalo, her sign language was limited.
“So I was mainstreamed all my life. I went to hearing school, hearing after school [program], you know, every aspect of my life was hearing. And then I came to Buffalo. I knew basic, basic sign language, ABC 123," explained Montgomery. "I came to Buffalo and that's actually how I found out about St. Mary's.”
Montgomery came to Buffalo to complete her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science at Buffalo State. She had the opportunity to intern, and then work for Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes, and knew she wanted to return to public service someday. It was after that experience, while she was working in customer service, people would ask her if she had attended St. Mary’s School for the Deaf. She ended up connecting with the school and worked there for several years before joining the City of Buffalo in May.
“Working at St. Mary's definitely gave me more confidence in myself, and made me more aware. It made me proud to be who I am, because now I identify as Deaf with a capital D. All my life, it was just 'I'm hard of hearing, I'm hard of hearing' but St. Mary's taught me the difference," said Montgomery.
People who identify as Deaf, with a capital "D" identify as not only having a hearing disability, but also being part of the Deaf cultural community, while people who identify as or use deaf with a lowercase "d" are typically referring to the "audiological condition of not hearing," according to The National Association of the Deaf. Her experiences as a Deaf person are ultimately what led her to apply to be the new Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator, who works with the disability community and is the appointed ADA coordinator.
“My goal is to be the voice of the disabled community. My goal is wherever I go in a room, people will automatically think about accommodation and accessibility. My goal is that I shouldn’t have to remind you, 'do you have an interpreter? Do you have ramps? Do you have this?' My goal is as soon as someone is planning something, writing something, people with disabilities automatically pop up," said Montgomery. "My goal is people with disabilities are no longer an afterthought.”
Montgomery also recognizes her new job comes with challenges. While ADA coordinators are required by law for municipalities with over 50 employees, the law only requires a current employee to be appointed to fulfill the role. There’s no direct college or training pipeline for this position. By the time she had joined City Hall, Buffalo had been without an ADA coordinator for 17 months.
“I also was following your articles and the stuff that you guys [WBFO] were posting. So I knew what I was getting myself into. So mentally, I was prepared, you know, to be stumped a lot because I realize there was no one before me. You know, it was the first time that they ever had this official position, so there was no blueprint, there wasn’t like a training book," said Montgomery. "So I was mentally prepared before I came in this position so it wasn’t as challenging as I thought it would be because I knew I will run into some barriers. But I also knew I will overcome those same barriers.”
Back in December, WBFO received from the city ADA complaint forms and grievance procedures that were ten years out of date. Since joining City Hall, Montgomery has updated and posted the ADA documents required by law with updated contact information. She’s also been working on forming the city’s Disability Advisory Committee, which does not currently exist but has been in the city charter since 2003.
“We're in the final steps of that process. I'm very excited about that because that committee will go out in the community, and ensure that all programs and services are available to everyone with disabilities, so I'm looking forward to that," said Montgomery. "I'm looking forward to meeting more people, more agencies, networking, hearing things good and bad. I'm looking forward to everything.”
Montgomery hopes Buffalonians will get to know her and work with her to help move Buffalo forward.
“Whatever happened in the past, it's in the past. I am here now. I'm here to make a difference. I'm here to listen to your voice. Some things might take a little bit longer than others, but that's okay, because that's part of life," said Montgomery. "But all that stuff is before me. Let's focus on the now, and let's focus on the future.”
To contact Montgomery, she can be reached by email at BMontgomery@buffalony.gov or by phone at (716) 851-9664. The city's new ADA Compliancewebpage also includes more information, such as the grievance procedure, complaint form, complaint appeal form, and public notice required by federal law.
AUDIO TRANSCRIPT
Emyle Watkins: This is Emyle Watkins for WBFO News
Watkins: For Brittney Montgomery, living and working in Buffalo changed her perspective on being Deaf.
Brittney Montgomery: “I never really knew how different I was until I went to St. Mary’s [School for the Deaf] and I saw how these kids interacted, and how they had a Deaf community, and how they have their own language, their own holiday, their own slang. That's when I realized that 'wow, it was two completely different worlds and I'm missing out on this one world.'”
Watkins: Montgomery grew up in Harlem, where there wasn’t a large Deaf community, and when she moved to Buffalo, her sign language was limited.
Montgomery: “So I was mainstreamed all my life. I went to hearing school, hearing after school [program], you know, every aspect of my life was hearing. And then I came to Buffalo. I knew basic, basic sign language, ABC 123. I came to Buffalo and that's actually how I found out about St. Mary's.”
Watkins: Montgomery came to Buffalo to complete her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science at Buffalo State. She had the opportunity to intern, and then work for Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes, and knew she wanted to return to public service someday. It was after that experience, while she was working in customer service, people would ask her if she had attended St. Mary’s School for the Deaf. She ended up connecting with the school and worked there for several years before joining the City of Buffalo in May.
Montgomery: “Working at St. Mary's definitely gave me more confidence in myself, and made me more aware. It made me proud to be who I am, because now I identify as Deaf with a capital D. All my life, it was just 'I'm hard of hearing, I'm hard of hearing' but St. Mary's taught me the difference."
Watkins: Capital "D" Deaf refers to people who identify as being deaf and are deeply part of the Deaf cultural community. Her experiences as a Deaf person are ultimately what led her to apply to be the new Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator, who works with the disability community and is the appointed ADA coordinator.
Montgomery: “My goal is to be the voice of the disabled community. My goal is wherever I go in a room, people will automatically think about accommodation and accessibility. My goal is that I shouldn’t have to remind you, 'do you have an interpreter? Do you have ramps? Do you have this?' My goal is as soon as someone is planning something, writing something, people with disabilities automatically pop up. My goal is people with disabilities are no longer an afterthought.”
Watkins: But Montgomery also recognizes her new job comes with challenges. While ADA coordinators are required by law for municipalities with over 50 employees, the law just requires a current employee to be appointed to fulfill the role. There’s no direct college or training pipeline for this position. And Buffalo had been without an ADA coordinator for 17 months.
Montgomery: “I also was following your articles and the stuff that you guys were posting. So I knew what I was getting myself into. So mentally, I was prepared, you know, to be stumped a lot because I realize there was no one before me. You know, it was the first time that they ever had this official position, so there was no blueprint, there wasn’t like a training book, so I was mentally prepared."
Watkins: Back in December, WBFO received from the city ADA complaint forms and grievance procedures that were ten years out of date. Since joining City Hall, Montgomery has updated and posted the ADA documents required by law with updated contact information. She’s also been working on forming the city’s Disability Advisory Committee, which does not currently exist but has been in the city charter since 2003.
Montgomery: “We're in the final steps of that process. I'm very excited about that because that committee will go out in the community, and ensure that all programs and services are available to everyone with disabilities, so I'm looking forward to that. I'm looking forward to meeting more people, more agencies, networking, hearing things good and bad. I'm looking forward to everything.”
Watkins: Montgomery hopes Buffalonians will get to know her and work with her to help move Buffalo forward.
Montgomery: “Whatever happened in the past, it's in the past. I am here now. I'm here to make a difference. I'm here to listen to your voice. Some things might take a little bit longer than others, but that's okay, because that's part of life. But all that stuff is before me. Let's focus on the now, and let's focus on the future.”
Watkins: For more on Buffalo’s ADA coordination and how to contact Montgomery, visit WBFO dot org. Emyle Watkins, WBFO News
