Our History
Our story began as early as 1977 when, as a result of a Federal mandate, each state was required to provide a means of protection and advocacy for people with disabilities. In Georgia that mandate birthed the Georgia Advocacy Office (GAO). The GAO had at its helm many compassionate and forward thinking people who had a consciousness about human rights and a profound understanding of the deep-seated devaluation of people with disabilities.
By the end of that year the GAO would initiate several advisory boards throughout the state of Georgia comprised of people from local communities that would consider a means of voluntary citizen participation, apart from the legal and paid advocacy of the GAO itself. These advisory boards, with the financial support of the GAO, produced local, independent citizen advocacy programs as a way to provide protection and advocacy for their neighbors with developmental disabilities. By January 1978, the Atlanta Citizen Advocacy office was open for business.