Ian McIntosh Appointed Interim Executive Director Of Not Dead Yet (NDY)

Rochester, NY, January 13, 2025 – A Brief Note on behalf of The Board of Not Dead Yet:

With the sudden passing of Not Dead Yet’s irreplaceable Founder, President and CEO, Diane Coleman , the Board of Not Dead Yet (NDY) was tasked with ensuring that her legacy continues into the next phase of this important mission, decades in the undertaking. We worked over a period of months, to select and appoint Ian McIntosh as Interim Executive Director. In this unprecedented and challenging time, Ian will provide leadership and direction while stewarding Not Dead Yet’s constant critical mission to oppose the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia as deadly forms of disability discrimination.

Ian joins Not Dead Yet having previously served as the Director of Disability Outreach for the Patients Rights Action Fund (PRAF), a leading, national, secular, non-partisan leader defending the rights of patients, people with disabilities, our elders, and the poor from the threat of legalized assisted suicide and euthanasia.

We have tasked Ian with focusing on anticipating and planning for mission critical next steps for the organization, which is a strength Ian brings to NDY, as he has a history of working closely with national and international advocates in various capacities. Ian worked closely with Diane, a mentor and close friend, during his time at PRAF, and therefore considers his present role a serious assignment and incredible honor.

In Solidarity,

Emily Wolinsky
Board Chair, Not Dead Yet

 

 

 

 

 

 

Join Us: Virtual Memorial for Diane Coleman

Please join us for a virtual memorial celebrating the life and legacy of our Founder, Diane Coleman. We will share stories from her life and work and create a community space to mourn our loss. Register to attend here. CART and ASL will be provided. Please email jules@neighborhoodaccess.org if you have additional access needs.

Registration Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEuf-msrz4uGtOYEAGod_qyLmp6iJ1DXBlR

Flyer for the virtual gathering
ID: Flyer for the virtual gathering. Text reads “please join us for a virtual gathering celebrating the life and legacy of Diane Coleman. Monday November 25th at 3PM ET on Zoom. CART and ASL Provided. Please email jules@neighborhoodaccess.org with additional access needs or questions.” In the center is a picture of Diane, an older white woman with shoulder-length gray hair, glasses, and a respirator. She is smiling.

 

In Memoriam: Diane Coleman

Dear Not Dead Yet Family, Allies, and Supporters,

It is with heavy hearts and deep sorrow that we announce the passing of our beloved founder and leader, Diane Coleman. Diane’s legacy as a tireless advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, and as a fierce and unyielding voice against assisted suicide and euthanasia, will forever shape our movement and the world we strive to change.

Diane founded Not Dead Yet in 1996, establishing a national disability rights organization committed to fighting for the inherent dignity of every person with a disability. Through her vision and leadership, Not Dead Yet grew into a powerful force for justice, protecting our right to live and ensuring that disabled lives are valued, respected, and protected from discriminatory medical practices, including the non provision and forced removal of life sustaining care, QALYs, and most of all, the inherently discriminatory public policy of assisted suicide and euthanasia law. Her work was visible not only in the courts, boardrooms and legislatures the halls of legislative chambers but also on the streets, where she led protests, organized, and mobilized countless other disabled people people with disabilities from across the globe to fight for their rights.

Diane was an intellectual powerhouse, a strategist, a passionate advocate, and a mentor to so many of us. Her understanding of policy, her commitment to the principles of the social and disability justice models of disability, and her ability to cut through the ableist rhetoric surrounding assisted suicide and euthanasia were unparalleled. She spoke with clarity and conviction, both in the media and in legislative hearings, where she presented testimony before Congress, co-authored amicus briefs in state, federal and Supreme Court cases for the U.S. Supreme Court, and tirelessly worked to ensure that the voices of disabled people were heard and respected in the development and implementation of public policy.

As many of you have shared, Diane’s impact on individuals—colleagues, activists, students, and friends—was profound. She shaped the lives of so many, whether through direct mentorship or through the sheer force of her example. Diane was a leader who never wavered in her commitment to the movement. Her strength was, in many ways, a beacon for all of us who continue the fight for freedom, dignity, equality and inclusion of people with all kinds of disabilities, as well as women, elders, LGBTQ+, BIPoC and other marginalized populations.

Diane’s legacy will endure through all the work that continues in her name—through the Not Dead Yet community and through the work of every person whose life she touched. She built a movement that will not stop fighting, and she taught us to mourn for the dead and fight like hell for the living.

While we grieve her loss, we also celebrate her extraordinary life and the powerful mark she left on the world. Diane was a friend, a teacher, and a champion of justice. Her spirit, her intellect, and her fierce commitment to disability rights will live on in each of us who continue the work she began.

Our deepest condolences go out to Diane’s family, her colleagues, and to all who loved her. We stand united in our grief, but also in our commitment to carry on Diane’s work. Rest in power, Diane. Your legacy is eternal, and the fight for the rights of disabled people will continue in your name.

With Love and Solidarity,

The Board of Not Dead Yet

Emily Wolinsky, Chair
Samantha Crane, Treasurer
Lydia Nunez Landry, Secretary 
Horacio Esparza
Amy E. Hasbrouck
Germaine Martin
Michael Volkman

 

Pam Heavens: Do not support legalizing physician-assisted suicide

The Times Weekly published this opinion letter by Illinois disability advocate Pam Heavens on October 2nd:

The Illinois General Assembly is considering a bill that will legalize physician-assisted suicide. I am a 68-year-old Disabled woman and proud member of “Stop Assisted Suicide Illinois Coalition”, which vehemently opposes this bill. This organization includes representatives from diverse communities including disability rights, patients’ rights, health care, hospice care, human rights, senior rights, veterans, and various faith- based advocacy organizations. All parties are committed to keeping Illinois a physician-assisted suicide free state.

Since our health care system does not treat everyone equally, the practice of physician – assisted suicide raises the risk for those who often do not get the same access and treatment as others. This includes people with disabilities, veterans, people with mental illness, older people and those who cannot afford high-quality health care. How this manifests in the health care system is illustrated in the movie “Million Dollar Baby,” which feeds into the attitude that many non-disabled people who become disabled are then “better dead than disabled.”  Disability and poverty are two major factors that have the potential of making assisted suicide seem desirable. Regarding mental illness, none of the physician-assisted suicide laws have strong requirements that a person seeking it be evaluated by a psychiatrist.

The doctor/patient relationship is sacred. It is a bond that is strengthened by mutual trust. Legalizing physician-assisted suicide irrefutably erases that trust. Illinois lawmakers must unequivocally reject legalizing doctor assisted suicide. To do less will leave a stain on our state of which we all will be ashamed.