Honorable Norman Dicks from Washington

12/05/2017

Honorable Norman Dicks

Senior Policy Advisor

c/o Van Ness Feldman

1050 Thomas Jefferson Street, NW

Washington, DC  20007

Dear Honorable Dicks,

My name is Matt Winick from Ann Arbor, Michigan with a strong interest in learning history, social justice, and public policy. In these subjects, I like to learn the need to make Civil Rights stronger to reduce discrimination, protect the environment from pollution, and many others. Honorable Dicks, the main reason I’m writing you a letter is to explain how I find your work as member of the U.S. House of Representative from Washington’s 6^th district to be very inspiring to me.

When you served in U.S. House of Representative from Washington’s 6^th district from 1977-2012, I liked on how you were a strong supporter of Civil Rights by advocating for people with disabilities’ rights, supporting Civil Rights legislation to help protect minorities including women from being discriminated, and expressing the need for women to have equal pay.  Also on Civil Rights, I truly appreciated how you worked with Democrats including moderate Republicans to support The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to help protect people with disabilities from being discriminated in education including public places, re-introduced the Equal Rights amendment to help protect women from being discriminated based on gender even thought it did not get a vote in congress, and provide funds to help women including minorities businesses to help compete in the economy.   Voting in favor of the American Recovery Act of 2009, a stimulus package to help create job-training programs to help train youth including workers to develop job-skills to help prepare for the work force and expressing the need to raise the minimum wage to help minimum wage workers afford to live is common sense to improve the economy.  On the environment, I really liked on how you strongly supported funds for renewable energy to help reduce addiction on oil with gas and pushed for funds to help keep public lands including water resources to make them safe for people to use.   Another thing that I liked about when you served in U.S. Congress was how you supported more immigration visas to help immigrants come to get an education or have a job, expressed the need for immigration reform to help protect immigrants including refugees from oppressive countries,  and advocated for campaign finance reform to reduce dark money from lobbying groups or corporations in campaigns to reduce corruption.

Honorable Dicks, I have autism with a learning disability. Having a disability is hard for me because I have trouble comprehending on learning different advance subjects, sometimes I struggle to communicate my thoughts, and get teased. Your commitment to be a strong supporter of Civil Rights including people with a disabilities’ rights really inspires me to work hard on my disability. The ADA of 1990 that you supported helped benefited me to get some education and to be protected from being discriminated in public places. In education the ADA of 1990 helped me get some accommodations in elementary school through high school including my community college like extra time on exams, have a T.A. or a tutor help me with assignments, use educational software including a recorder to help assist on comprehension along with improve on note-taking, and have special education resources help assist me on accommodations.   In May 2014, I was able to get an associates degree in Liberal Arts at Washtenaw Community College. My main focus in my Liberal Arts degree is history, government, some business, some science, and criminal justice.  The American Recovery Act of 2009 helped me get into a job-training program called the B. Side of the Arts at the EMU College of Business in Michigan. In the program, they had lectures about how business works and provided classes to help train other people including me to develop work-skills.  As a result of the American Recovery Act it helped prepare me for the workforce and it paid really well. Your role in Congress gives me motivation to continue to learn different subjects especially history.

I strongly believe that you made a great difference when you served in Congress. I’m very proud on how you worked hard to make Civil Rights stronger, protect the environment, and many others. Your work in Congress on supporting the ADA of 1990 helped benefit me to get help on my disability and the American Recovery Act helped me developed work skills. You have inspired me to work hard on my disability and to continue to learn different subjects. Thanks for taking the time to read my letter, making a great difference, and inspiring me.

Sincerely,

Matt Winick