Rise Up for Disability Rights

Known locally as the ACL, we are The Arc serving Boulder & Broomfield Counties. We promote and protect the rights of people with intellectual developmental disabilities (IDD) to be included as natural and integral parts of our communities. We achieve this through individual, group, community, and systems advocacy.

While Colorado offers various systems to support people with IDD, these systems, though well-intentioned, can often be bureaucratic, slow, and difficult to navigate. This creates significant gaps and barriers, limiting the support available to people with IDD and impacting their ability to lead self-determined lives.

At the ACL, our advocacy work seeks to bridge these gaps. Advocacy means listening to, understanding, informing, and standing alongside people with IDD and their families as they navigate the complexities of systems, resources, and choices that shape their lives. Leading with respect and heart, we put people before systems so that people with IDD can pave the way for the lives they want to live.

Here is what we do and how your donation makes a difference:

• One-on-one, rights-based advocacy for adults and children with IDD and their families. Your donation helps people advocate for educational rights, secure healthcare, access support services, and find interdependence and independence in the places they want it most.
  
• Systems and policy-level advocacy informed by people with IDD, who we call “self advocates.” Self advocates and their families serve as our leaders and advisors, guiding advocacy decisions with authenticity, relevance, and lived experience. Supporting the ACL means investing in systemic change, reshaping policies, breaking down barriers, and improving both individual lives and societal attitudes.
• Identity-based groups where self advocates and families find belonging and celebrate every aspect of who they are. Your contribution sustains these groups—safe spaces for building networks of peer support. These groups dismantle isolation, fortify belonging, and strengthen the collective voice of people with IDD.
  
• Community training initiatives that help community members and organizations better understand and welcome people with disabilities. ACL's training initiatives educate local organizations and residents, cultivating inclusive communities. Your donation supports workshops and resources, fostering broader community understanding and acceptance, making accessibility, diversity, and inclusion, not only a standard practice, but an expectation in our communities.
  
• Grassroots events and groups led by community members and self advocates. The ACL embodies the powerful philosophy of "nothing about us without us" through our sponsorship and consultation of ongoing groups, community events, and educational opportunities for self advocates and their families. Your support nurtures authentic leadership and sustainable, community-driven solutions.

Donating to the ACL recognizes that disability affects us all. You may have a disability, love someone with a disability, care for someone with a disability, be a neighbor or employ someone with a disability. However you’re connected to disability, this is your chance to get involved.

Your financial support sends a powerful message: Systems must evolve to support individuals' unique needs, goals, and dreams. Your donation helps people to advocate for their rights, healthcare, and autonomy. Your investment amplifies the voices that were previously unheard.

Contribute to the ACL and join a community where equity, justice, compassion, and belonging are the guidestones forging a pathway toward true community living for all.