The development of parents’ NGOs in the Baltic states has been a process in which the activists moved from an unstructured grassroots movement to at least partially professional organizations that have taken on the role of prominent political actors. The history of parental activism highlights the importance of emotions at the outset of organizational development, gradual alteration of available resources, continuing growth in response to political openings, as well as ability to keep and promote fundamental values. Consequently, Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian parents’ NGOs have become similar to their counterparts in Western Europe, serving as exemplary models for the countries of the former Soviet Union and beyond. At the same time, these movements and their NGOs remain vulnerable and exposed to major challenges. Parental groups undergo processes of professionalization, a trend that has been amply observed in the postcommunist region (Howard 2003). Professionalization channels the movements’ activities toward service provision and limits their ability to negotiate and change their focus, which may be detrimental for parental involvement in the future. The important challenge that every interviewee notices is the decrease in parental participation and the NGOs’ shift of focus toward their clientele. These developments suggest changes in parents’ attitudes and reflect structural changes within NGOs, which would further affect their efficiency in advocacy, political participation and service provision. The role of parents in such NGOs is in the process of being renegotiated and redefined. Different organizations have chosen distinct paths of parents’ involvement. In this process of renegotiation, in some cases parents simply become clients or can even be marginalized when professionals take over the NGO as managers. Some parents continue to act as lobbyists and remain involved as employees of the movement NGO. A related question needing further research is to what extent can and should parents’ voices be replaced by the voices of individuals with ID, who may want to speak up for themselves. NGOs were established relying on the strong motivation of parents’ emotional engagement and experiences, such as love for their children, concern for the children’s future, and desire to overcome discriminatory practices and discourses. Parents’ focus on long-term goals and aiming for sustainable results was an important part of their efforts to ensure safe and good lives for individuals with ID. Parents’ NGOs have strong normative orientation based on respect for rights and dignity, social integration, and better quality of life for individuals with ID. This value-orientation and external opportunities dictated the choice of the movements’ tactics that includes nurturing of good relations with various politicians, while at the same time the activists were challenging the still faulty social and disability policies, norms, and practices. So far, parents’ NGOs have managed to balance between establishing comprehensive links to political and social elites and maintaining political independence. However, the question of whether these movements and their respective NGOs can or wish to change their focus from service providers toward political advocacy remains open.
The development of parents’ NGOs in the Baltic states has been a process in which the activists moved from an unstructured grassroots movement to at least partially professional organizations that have taken on the role of prominent political actors. The history of parental activism highlights the importance of emotions at the outset of organizational development, gradual alteration of available resources, continuing growth in response to political openings, as well as ability to keep and promote fundamental values. Consequently, Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian parents’ NGOs have become similar to their counterparts in Western Europe, serving as exemplary models for the countries of the former Soviet Union and beyond. At the same time, these movements and their NGOs remain vulnerable and exposed to major challenges. Parental groups undergo processes of professionalization, a trend that has been amply observed in the postcommunist region (Howard 2003). Professionalization channels the movements’ activities toward service provision and limits their ability to negotiate and change their focus, which may be detrimental for parental involvement in the future. The important challenge that every interviewee notices is the decrease in parental participation and the NGOs’ shift of focus toward their clientele. These developments suggest changes in parents’ attitudes and reflect structural changes within NGOs, which would further affect their efficiency in advocacy, political participation and service provision. The role of parents in such NGOs is in the process of being renegotiated and redefined. Different organizations have chosen distinct paths of parents’ involvement. In this process of renegotiation, in some cases parents simply become clients or can even be marginalized when professionals take over the NGO as managers. Some parents continue to act as lobbyists and remain involved as employees of the movement NGO. A related question needing further research is to what extent can and should parents’ voices be replaced by the voices of individuals with ID, who may want to speak up for themselves. NGOs were established relying on the strong motivation of parents’ emotional engagement and experiences, such as love for their children, concern for the children’s future, and desire to overcome discriminatory practices and discourses. Parents’ focus on long-term goals and aiming for sustainable results was an important part of their efforts to ensure safe and good lives for individuals with ID. Parents’ NGOs have strong normative orientation based on respect for rights and dignity, social integration, and better quality of life for individuals with ID. This value-orientation and external opportunities dictated the choice of the movements’ tactics that includes nurturing of good relations with various politicians, while at the same time the activists were challenging the still faulty social and disability policies, norms, and practices. So far, parents’ NGOs have managed to balance between establishing comprehensive links to political and social elites and maintaining political independence. However, the question of whether these movements and their respective NGOs can or wish to change their focus from service providers toward political advocacy remains open.
The development of parents’ NGOs in the Baltic states has been a process in which the activists moved from an unstructured grassroots movement to at least partially professional organizations that have taken on the role of prominent political actors. The history of parental activism highlights the importance of emotions at the outset of organizational development, gradual alteration of available resources, continuing growth in response to political openings, as well as ability to keep and promote fundamental values. Consequently, Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian parents’ NGOs have become similar to their counterparts in Western Europe, serving as exemplary models for the countries of the former Soviet Union and beyond. At the same time, these movements and their NGOs remain vulnerable and exposed to major challenges. Parental groups undergo processes of professionalization, a trend that has been amply observed in the postcommunist region (Howard 2003). Professionalization channels the movements’ activities toward service provision and limits their ability to negotiate and change their focus, which may be detrimental for parental involvement in the future. The important challenge that every interviewee notices is the decrease in parental participation and the NGOs’ shift of focus toward their clientele. These developments suggest changes in parents’ attitudes and reflect structural changes within NGOs, which would further affect their efficiency in advocacy, political participation and service provision. The role of parents in such NGOs is in the process of being renegotiated and redefined. Different organizations have chosen distinct paths of parents’ involvement. In this process of renegotiation, in some cases parents simply become clients or can even be marginalized when professionals take over the NGO as managers. Some parents continue to act as lobbyists and remain involved as employees of the movement NGO. A related question needing further research is to what extent can and should parents’ voices be replaced by the voices of individuals with ID, who may want to speak up for themselves. NGOs were established relying on the strong motivation of parents’ emotional engagement and experiences, such as love for their children, concern for the children’s future, and desire to overcome discriminatory practices and discourses. Parents’ focus on long-term goals and aiming for sustainable results was an important part of their efforts to ensure safe and good lives for individuals with ID. Parents’ NGOs have strong normative orientation based on respect for rights and dignity, social integration, and better quality of life for individuals with ID. This value-orientation and external opportunities dictated the choice of the movements’ tactics that includes nurturing of good relations with various politicians, while at the same time the activists were challenging the still faulty social and disability policies, norms, and practices. So far, parents’ NGOs have managed to balance between establishing comprehensive links to political and social elites and maintaining political independence. However, the question of whether these movements and their respective NGOs can or wish to change their focus from service providers toward political advocacy remains open.
Keywords
Baltic States
intellectual disabilities
parental movements
