Honoring Mike Raymond

By: Shawn Latham 

Mike Raymond, a Washington State self-advocacy leader, was born in 1947 and passed away on September 17.  Mike advocated over the last 50 years to shut down the Developmental Disability Institutions, also called Residential Habilitation Centers. In particular, Mike fought for the closure of Rainier School in Buckley, one of the remaining four institutions. Mike lived at Rainier School from 1949 to 1969. He was put into Rainer after doctors told his mom he would be better off being there. Later on, the staff told him that his mother had passed away, which was a lie. During his time at Rainier, he experienced and saw many instances of abuse.  He often had to push heavy blocks, walk in perfect lines, wear clothing like straightjackets, or be put into isolation when being punished. Mike also witnessed workers there using damp cloths to choke other residents.

Thankfully, in 1969, thanks to his sister’s help, Mike was able to leave Rainier and move into a group home. He was also able to reconnect with his mother. After a while, Mike married his sweetheart Dianne, whom he met at Rainier.  Mike and Dianne proved many people wrong when they decided to do what most couples do: get married, move into their own place, and start a family.  They were excited to welcome a daughter into their life named Tera, who is now a teacher in Wisconsin with a family of her own.  Mike was very proud of his daughter and all of her accomplishments. He even started to root for the Green Bay Packers in her honor, even against his local Football team, the Seattle Seahawks.

During his career after leaving Rainier, he was dedicated to helping others with intellectual and developmental disabilities acquire skills to achieve as much independence as he and his wife had. Mike worked for Self-Advocates of Washington as a community trainer, among various other jobs he did. He helped to start other key Washington State organizations like People First of Washington, Self Advocates in Leadership, Allies in Advocacy, Pave, and Northwest Services for Independent Living.  Mike also served on numerous boards, including the Washington State Developmental Disabilities Council, Disability Rights of Washington, and the Tacoma Area Coalition of Individuals with Disabilities (TACID).

Mike loved to help anyone he came into contact with, and he also enjoyed joking around with people and ensuring they were having a good time. He advocated for making his community more accessible to all of us. Mike refused to retire because his dream was to see all institutions close down. Although this hasn’t happened yet, Mike was happy that the State passed SB 5393 this year, which stopped any new admissions there.

As we all remember and reflect on Mike’s life, I know he would want us all to remember his famous saying, “What do we want? Shut them Down!”

 

 

In 2015, Disability Rights Washington shared a video highlighting Mike’s story. Mike was institutionalized for twenty years in Washington State and then went on to work as a community trainer and is a disability rights advocate. Watch the video below.