Resource: The Right To Be Rescued: Disability Justice in an Age of Disaster

This Note explores the legal responsibilities that local governments have toward marginalized communities in a time of crisis and argues that people with disabilities (PWDs) have a "right to be rescued": a legal right to have their unique needs accounted for and addressed in emergency planning. Exploring a series of cases that have established this right, the Note focuses on an innovative class-action lawsuit in which the court held that the City of New York failed to ensure that PWDs have meaningful access to the City's emergency services. As the nation continues to rebuild after Sandy and faces a future in which disasters will become the norm, this Note argues that the story of this case and the man-made disaster that surrounded it should serve as a call to action for other urban areas that have yet to adequately plan for the needs of PWDs in emergencies. Such planning is not merely morally correct; it is legally required, and it is critical that local governments get their plans in order before the next storms, and lawsuits, come.