What We Need - Jeiri Flores

April 16, 2020

My name is Jeiri Flores and I am a person with a physical disability; I have cerebral palsy. I am from Rochester, New York. The COVID-19 emergency has not only changed my everyday life it has changed how I interact with my respite staff and health care aides.

I am worried about my job and what employment for people with disabilities will look like post COVID-19. My role as an advocate is unorthodox and untraditional so there's little to no protection or job security. Specifically, I am concerned that the job I fought for years to obtain is in jeopardy and I'll once again be at the mercy of the complex reality that is job searching while disabled.