Welcome to the Boston Center for Independent Living  (BCIL)

BCIL is a 501(c)(3) organization that has provided services to people with disabilities since 1974, when it became the second independent living center in the country. The organization was created by people with disabilities seeking full integration into society. BCIL accomplishes this by empowering people of all ages with a wide range of disabilities with the practical skills and self-confidence to take control over their lives and become active members of the communities in which they live. At the same time, BCIL engages in advocacy and community organizing to promote access and change within society.

Our Mission Statement

The Boston Center for Independent Living is a frontline civil rights organization led by people with disabilities that advocates to eliminate discrimination, isolation and segregation by providing advocacy, information and referral, peer support, skills training, PCA services, and transitional services in order to enhance the independence of people with disabilities.

Our Antiracism Statement

The Boston Center for Independent Living commits to making all aspects of our work antiracist, not only because it is just but also because it is necessary to serve and represent our community of people with disabilities. We commit to purposefully identifying, discussing, and challenging issues of race and ethnicity to address the impact they have on our organization, our work, and our people. Moreover, we will add our voice and advocacy to similar antiracist efforts in our community.

 

If you suspect abuse or neglect of a person with disabilities, please contact the Disabled Persons Protection Commission hotline at 1-800-426-9009 or 1-888-822-0350 TTY (ages 18-59), the Executive Office of Elder Affairs at 1-800-922-2275 (ages 60+), the Department of Public Health 1-800-462-5540 (all Ages residing in Long Term Care Facilities), and the Department of Children and Families at 1-800-792-5200 (ages birth-17). The DPPC Sexual Assault Response Unit can be reached at 617-727-6465.

 

 

 

Upcoming Events

Accessibility and Daniels-Finegold v. MBTA Settlement Update (Virtual)

Wednesday, December 11, 2024
5:30pm - 7:30pm

Judge Patrick King will report on the state of the Daniels-Finegold v. MBTA settlement agreement. He will provide an update on the MBTA's work towards accessibility compliance in line with… Read More

Housing Workshop - In-Person & by Zoom

Wednesday, December 18, 2024
10:00am - 12:00pm

Housing Workshop - In-Person & by Zoom Join3 us on the first and third Wednesday of every month to learn more about and how to apply for affordable housing options… Read More

Office closed

Wednesday, December 25, 2024
12:00am - 11:59pm

The Boston Center for Independent Living will be closed Wednesday, December 25th, in observance of the Christmas holiday. Read More

Latest News

Happy Throwback Thursday! Here's a photo of BCIL rallying for disability rights.#ThrowbackThursday #Accessibility #IndependentLiving #Advocacy #DisabilityRights #BCIL ... See MoreSee Less
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Did you know the global population of people with disabilities is over 1.3 billion people? This includes over 16% of the global population. This International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we're celebrating the diversity of the disability community. We know health research must be diverse and inclusive too. Better treatments and care are possible with better research. Join @AllofUsResearch to build a brighter health future: bit.ly/AllofUsInclusion-FB#AllofUsInclusion #NationalRecoveryMonth #JoinAllofUs @AllofUsResearch ... See MoreSee Less
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BCIL had a spirited virtual annual meeting this past Wednesday, with strong, personal testaments to the importance of immigrants to Massachusetts and BCIL. Speaking were Board Chair Dianna Hu, whose parents emigrated from China; youth program staffer Maximo Pimentel, who came to Boston at age 8 from the Dominican Republic; Debby Daley, a Disability Peer Advocate from Costa Rica; and keynoter Laura Rotolo from the American Civil Liberties Union, who left Argentina as a child when her family had to escape a military dictatorship. We did have a tech glitch—the two fast-paced films connected to BCIL’s 50th anniversary events ran but without volume. We figured out the problem, and you can watch them here with sound, captions if needed, and audio descriptions: Click here to see highlights from BCIL’s 50th event in September (2-minute running time) : youtu.be/XGudsWHGRCo?si=R9BsbtaxeluC4K0TClick here to see BCIL’s 50th video with reflections, history, and a look to the future: (15-minute running time): youtu.be/zMnuMGil3ZU?si=7Ga2QcZZlJlLoTk_Click here to hear the audio described version of BCIL’s 50th video with reflections, history, and a look to the future: youtu.be/hfAretSFlrw?si=fjIgWgqm4kJXKBYHThe video of the meeting can be found at: youtu.be/Kb-OAX3zMrI?si=BBqzxXga3QVZxp2l ... See MoreSee Less
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Join us tonight for our Annual Meeting at 6:30 pm! At tonight's annual meeting we will embark on a critical discussion about immigrants' rights as immigrants are a critical part of the independent living picture. We will kick-off the discussion with Laura Rotolo, the Field Director for the American Civil Liberties Union, who’ll discuss immigrants’ rights and their intersection with disability rights, and then we will continue the conversation with several BCIL staff who are immigrants. Along with the immigration rights discussion, we will review the past year and update you on current advocacy campaigns. We’ll also have videos marking BCIL’s 50th anniversary.The meeting will be virtual. To register for the Zoom link click here: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Wkb2Y31BSU-dD_-x_0XHxQ?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR1iQnB-J6BE4... CART and ASL will be provided. ... See MoreSee Less
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