JULY 26, 2015 MARKS THE 25th ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA)
The ADA was authored by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and signed into law by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990.
Get excited everyone…2015 marks the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act! Supporters of equal rights for people with disabilities all over the country are celebrating this major event in the history of disability civil rights in the United States.
So, what exactly are we celebrating?
Until as recently as the latter part of the 20th century, it was not uncommon for people with significant disabilities to be segregated from the rest of society and placed in institutions, without their input or consent, and without access to the education, training, or employment opportunities that were accessible to people without disabilities.
The Independent Living Movement/Disability Civil Rights Movement, inspired by the Civil Rights movement of the 1960’s, was initiated to advance the philosophy that people with disabilities have the same civil rights, choices, and opportunities as do people without disabilities. Even with expansive grassroots advocacy efforts by and for people with disabilities, it was not until 1990 that the first major legislation was passed expressly to protect the civil rights of people with disabilities. This legislation was called the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, or as it is more commonly known, the ADA. As former President George Bush, Sr. signed the ADA into law, he asserted, “Let the shameful walls of exclusion finally come tumbling down.” That statement still resonates today, 25 years later, as tireless, ongoing advocacy efforts press on to more and more fully support the rights of people with disabilities.
The ADA is a broad-ranging civil rights law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made discrimination based on race, religion, sex, national origin, and other characteristics illegal. Beyond the protections provided by the Civil Rights Act, the ADA requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, and imposes accessibility requirements on public spaces, amenities, and services. Effectively, the ADA makes it possible for people with disabilities to better access the same choices, opportunities, and civil rights as people without disabilities.
Take cut curbs – you know, the part of a curb that is constructed with a dipped area that is level with the street. This simple construction feature lets people who use wheelchairs get out and about on public streets so they can participate inclusively in their communities and the economy as consumers, the workforce, and more. Cut curbs are a byproduct of the ADA. The ADA also introduced the idea of “reasonable accommodations,” which calls for employers to collaborate with workers with disabilities who are seeking typically inexpensive, simple (reasonable) adjustments in the workplace, that will allow them to perform critical job functions as effectively as a person without a disability. A reasonable accommodation might be as simple as purchasing an anti-glare screen for the PC monitor of a worker with a vision impairment.
The ADA is aligned with the Independent Living Movement in that it protects and supports the rights of people with disabilities. As one of roughly 500 Centers for Independent Living (CILs) in the United States working to advance the Independent Living Philosophy, DAWNcil embraces the 25th anniversary of the ADA as a unique and very important opportunity to continue to raise awareness as to the wants, needs, choices, and rights of people with disabilities. Throughout 2015, DAWNcil will conduct monthly activities focused on various ADA-related topics in honor of the 25th anniversary of the ADA. You can check DAWNcil’s website and newsletters (available by mail or on the website), or call or email for specific information: main number 973-625-1940, video relay 973-453-4689, email info@dawncil.org.