Disability rights activists in Mississippi say parts of the state do not have the resources needed to provide services to individuals with disabilities.
Amy Williams of Ocean Springs, is the mother of a 13 year old son with Down syndrome. She says she's always looking for ways to better her son.
"Anything that I can gather and take back and teach our family friends to better him in the community and get him more involved that I can take back to help him is exciting," says Williams.
William's gathers a lot of that information from events like one held last week in Jackson. The Mississippi DisAbility MegaConfernce is an annual event that helps connect people with disabilities and their families to services that those individuals might need.
But one of the main problems, is that some of those services aren't provided state wide. Matt Nalker helped organize the conference. He says parts of Mississippi are still having problems complying with the American with Disabilities Act nearly 25 years after its adoption.
"We think about the Delta and the desert up there that takes place up there as far as services and supports for people," says Nalker. "Those folks deserve the same treatment as somebody in the Metro-Jackson area that has all the resources."
Mississippi's third district Congressman, Gregg Harper, also has a son who is intellectually disabled. He says the state has made great strides since the ADA was passed in 1990, but continued education could help the state even more.
"That's part of it, as people is making sure that families and communities understand that there wishes and desires are no different than anybody that did not have a disability."
Disability rights advocates hope that raising awareness of the issue, more services will be provided to those parts of the state.
