James Meadours went to his first Self Advocacy meeting simply to change his voting card, but instead the meeting ended up impacting the rest of his life.
Meadours has a mild mental disability, but he said he does not let it affect his goals and accomplishments.
Originally from Oklahoma, Meadours is interested in voting rights for people with disabilities. He became the statewide president of Oklahoma People First, a “self-advocacy group for people with developmental disabilities,” in 1993.
People First works with transportation, voting and living condition issues and provides peer support groups. During his two-year term as president, Meadours discussed disability issues with state senators and representatives.
In 1996, Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating proclaimed Dec. 9 as “James Meadours Day” to honor Meadours for his dedication and work for people with disabilities in the state of Oklahoma.
Meadours moved to New Orleans in 1997, when The Arc, an organization for people with mental disabilities and their families, recruited him to start a People First chapter in the city.
Meadours moved to Baton Rouge a year later when the People First contract moved to Baton Rouge.
Meadours is involved with the LSU branch of Best Buddies, a national organization that gives students and people with intellectual disabilities the chance to establish one-to-one friendships and group interaction.
Meadours said a voting problem that people with disabilities in Louisiana encounter is the civil interdiction law. A guardian is assigned to a person depending on the person’s ability to handle money, themselves and life on their own, Meadours said. According to the “Legal Status as an Adult in Louisiana: Options and Alternatives” publication, civil interdictions take away any rights from a person that require legal consent, including the right to contract, the right to marry, the right to vote and the right to sue or be sued. The judicial court appoints a curator to make decisions for the person.
A limited interdiction is more flexible and “only infringes on the rights of the interdict to the extent necessary. If a person needs assistance managing one area of his/her life, such as financial matters, the curator will have the authority to make decisions about that one matter, while leaving the interdict the ability to regulate the remaining areas of his/her life.” 
Medours said that misconceptions of people with disabilities still are present. He said the families of the people and providers, individuals who support people with disabilities, need to put the needs and interests of the people first.
Groups like People First and The Arc are dedicated to informing the community of what people with disabilities can do, as opposed to their limitations.
“Instead of looking at the real person and their capabilities, many people look at their disabilities,” Meadours said.
Meadours said that Louisiana is institution-biased, ranking first among states for people in group home settings.
“Like everyone else, people with disabilities want the opportunity to live in the community,” Meadours said.
This issue recently has taken national preeminence.
According to the National Organization on Disability, 54 million Americans have disabilities of every type and degree, representing approximately one-fifth of the U.S. population.
Inaccessibility of polling places or lack of aid during voting may prevent this large group of potential voters from exercising their right.
Meadours said that the last time he voted, a man at the polling place helped clarify the seven Louisiana Constitutional changes on the ballot.
The Help America Vote Act, a program hoped to prevent another controversy like the 2000 presidential election fiasco, funds punch card voting replacement systems and voter programs. It also establishes groups such as the Election Assistance Commission, which formulates voting standards for states and has made special provisions for voters with disabilities.
A special provision of the Act provided that every polling place will have one machine accessible to people with disabilities beginning in 2006.
Lois Simpson, the Executive Director of the Advocacy Center in New Orleans, said polling places, restaurants and other buildings have portable ramps and handicap access signs, but they think of them more as a way to abide by the law, rather than a necessary facility.
“Unless people are aware of the issues of people with disabilities, they do not think anyone will really need to use these things,” Simpson said.