May is Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month reminds us that psychological and emotional well-being are inseparable from the broader fight for disability justice. Mental health disabilities deserve full legal protections, accommodations, inclusion, and respect. At Disability Rights North Carolina (DRNC), we believe that reducing stigma means more than raising awareness; it means dismantling the systemic barriers that deny people equitable access to care, employment, housing, and community life. Share these important resources with friends and family, and consider taking a moment to check in on someone in your community. Even small actions can make a meaningful difference!
Welcome to DRNC’s Summer Interns
Please join DRNC in extending a warm welcome to our Summer 2026 interns: law students Cynthia Edwards, Raun-Kahil Hall, Jack Rosen, and Madeline Taccetta, and undergraduate students Kylie Brooks and Mekhi Patterson.
DRNC’s 2026 Disability Advocacy Conference was a huge success - thank you!
DRNC is profoundly grateful to all who attended our annual disability advocacy conference! The experience, hard-won wisdom, and care you shared, and the affirming community we built in that space together was truly inspiring. Attendees left the conference feeling deeply moved by the stories shared, reinvigorated for the work ahead, and grateful for mutual support. In these challenging times, thank you for reminding us that we are #InThisTogether!
DRNC in the Community!
DRNC is always grateful for opportunities to be in the community with you, and we’re excited to introduce four recent events that brought us together with partners, advocates, and supporters!
On Saturday, April 18, 2026, DRNC joined the Reach for the Stars! Be A Star! STEM Fair. Pictured to the left, is Curtis Hill, a DRNC Supervising Advocate, at Reach for the Stars! Be A Star! STEM Fair | The Science House
On Tuesday, May 19, 2026, Curtis Hill also participated in the DECI, IDD Resource Fair. DECI is a private, nonprofit community-based rehabilitation program in Durham County, North Carolina, serving adults with disabilities. Learn more! IDD Resource Fair | DECI
On Wednesday, May 13, the DRNC Education Team hosted an event at the Durham County Main Library to provide more information and insight on our monitoring initiatives at the Durham County Youth Home (DCYH) and across the Juvenile Detention Centers (JDCs) statewide. Cari Carson, Supervising Attorney, and Elijah Moffe, Attorney, led the conversation by presenting on DRNC’s findings from our JDC report. Michelle Delgado from the ACLU-NC, Craig Waleed, Project Manager for DRNC’s Unlock the Box initiative, and Laura Toptine, former mental health provider at DCYH, and Elijah Moffe also participated in the panel and are pictured to the left, Cari Carson is at the podium to the right. We are hoping to host another, larger event in Durham at the end of the summer/early fall. Stay tuned!
On Thursday, April 30, DRNC facilitated a fair housing, traumatic brain injury (TBI) and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) presentation in Clinton, NC. The event was hosted by the Health Care for Homeless Veterans Program run by Fayetteville, NC VA Coastal Health Care System, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Pictured are Lisa Nesbitt (right), Supervising Attorney on DRNC’s Housing & Medicaid (HOME) Team, and Desireé Gorbea-Finalet (left), Project Manager for DRNC’s NC BRAINS initiative. Find out more about this program. Health Care for Homeless Veterans - VA Homeless Programs
ICYMI: DRNC in the News
Elevator at NC senior apartments broken again after short repair, still impacting elderly residents
WRAL, May 4, 2026
DPI finds Durham County Youth Home residents were improperly denied special education access
WRAL, April 28, 2026
State seeks stay over class action in jail mental health services suit
Carolina Journal, April 20, 2026
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About Us
Disability Rights North Carolina (DRNC) is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization. We are North Carolina’s protection and advocacy system, dedicated to advancing and defending the rights of people with disabilities.
Disability Rights North Carolina
801 Corporate Center Drive, Suite 118 Raleigh, NC 27607
919-856-2195 | 877-235-4210 (toll free)
919-856-2244 (fax) | TTY callers, dial 711
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