logo
Donate
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
    • Collections
    • Glossary
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Magazine
  • Webinars
  • Membership
  • Submissions

Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the ADA as a Civil Rights Bulwark

Rick Cohen
July 21, 2015

President_George_H_W_Bush_Signing_of_the_ADA_(Americans_with_Disabilities_Act)_Bill_1990

July 19, 2015; Columbus Dispatch

 

Among the many different perspectives you will hear about how much the Americans with Disabilities Act has or has not achieved, one thing is clear: The ADA, signed into law 25 years ago by President George H.W. Bush, altered the public’s perception of the civil rights of persons with disabilities. Writing for the Columbus Dispatch, Rita Price tells the story of Elizabeth Sammons, whose parents struggled with the public school system in Knox County, Ohio, so that their blind daughter could be mainstreamed rather than sent to a special school for blind students. Now 49, Sammons remembers that to demonstrate her qualifications for mainstreaming, she was required to show that she was “not a community hazard,” demonstrating for a police officer her facility with her white cane at avoiding tree root swells, sidewalk cracks, and other obstacles. Today, Sammons is an employee with Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, where she helps persons with disabilities find jobs and live independently.

Sammons looks back on her family’s efforts to get her mainstreamed in public schools as a civil rights issue, and that’s one dimension of the importance of the ADA. According to Price, the ADA, passed in 1990, along with amendments to the Act added in 2008, “gives civil-rights protections to people with disabilities similar to those based on race, sex, ethnicity, age and religion.” Leading up to the ADA, activist organizations used civil disobedience techniques to push for protections for persons with disabilities. One group called ADAPT was known for blocking buses that lacked wheelchair access, forming wheelchair caravans, and even crawling up the steps of the Capitol. “There are a number of people—some with very severe disabilities—who really took risks,” said Mark Johnson, paralyzed in a diving accident and an activist with ADAPT in that era. “You get a sense of pride about that stuff.”

Sign up for our free newsletters

Subscribe to NPQ's newsletters to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

The salient point of Price’s story is that the ADA, like much of the nation’s civil rights legislation, established for persons with disabilities and the public at large parameters of what was wrong and ultimately illegal with the way persons with disabilities were treated. But passing a law doesn’t mean that full civil rights are automatically achieved. Developers complain that making buildings ADA compliant will drive costs through the roof, but Derek Mortland of the Center for Disability Empowerment says that “for a new build, it only adds about one percent (to the cost).” Price notes that the labor force participation (that is, people working or looking for work) of persons with disabilities is about 20 percent, compared to 68 percent for persons without disabilities. Both Mortland and Michael Kirkman, executive director of Disability Rights Ohio, suggest that employers are fearful about the possibility of increased costs of accommodating workers with disabilities and of reductions in productivity, both of which Kirkman says are “based on mythology.”

The minimal costs of accommodating persons with disabilities in the workplace or in access to transportation or with regard to ingress and egress to buildings are not dismissible as discretionary choices. As Mortland told Price, “The backbone of the ADA is not what you have to do to make a building accessible—it’s civil rights…. Before it, there was no law that said, ‘You can’t discriminate against me.’”

This week, the disability rights community will be celebrating the achievements of the past quarter-century. The challenge, however, is to pivot from celebrating the past to figuring out a strategy for moving forward, particularly in the realm of labor force participation and employment where the statistics haven’t budged hugely for persons with disabilities since the enactment of the ADA. In a manner of speaking, disability is the one civil rights cause that crosses all ethnic, racial, gender, and age differences. We anticipate much discussion during this week of the 25th anniversary of the ADA to focus on strategies for moving forward and making progress against seemingly intractable obstacles.—Rick Cohen

Correction: This article has been changed from its original form. A quote for which Mr. Mortland was actually the source was misattributed to Mr. Kirkman. We regret the error.

About the author
Rick Cohen

Rick joined NPQ in 2006, after almost eight years as the executive director of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). Before that he played various roles as a community worker and advisor to others doing community work. He also worked in government. Cohen pursued investigative and analytical articles, advocated for increased philanthropic giving and access for disenfranchised constituencies, and promoted increased philanthropic and nonprofit accountability.

More about: Nonprofit NewsPolicy

Our Voices Are Our Power.

Journalism, nonprofits, and multiracial democracy are under attack. At NPQ, we fight back by sharing stories and essential insights from nonprofit leaders and workers—and we pay every contributor.

Can you help us protect nonprofit voices?

Your support keeps truth alive when it matters most.
Every single dollar makes a difference.

Donate now
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

You might also like
Cancer Research in the US Is World Class Because of Its Broad Base of Funding—with the Government Pulling Out, Its Future Is Uncertain
Jeffrey MacKeigan
Endowments Aren’t Blank Checks—but Universities Can Rely on Them More Heavily in Turbulent Times
Ellen P. Aprill
US Colleges and Universities Have Billions Stashed Away in Endowments—a Higher Ed Finance Expert Explains What They Are
Todd L. Ely
Nonprofits Under Fire: How the IRS Can—and Cannot—Revoke Federal Tax-Exempt Status
Jeffrey S. Tenenbaum, Esq.
Providence Nonprofits Reeling from Funding Cuts and Threats (And, Organizations—What You Can Do!)
Cynthia M. Gibson
Supreme Court Considers Whether States May Prevent People Covered by Medicaid from Choosing Planned Parenthood as Their Healthcare Provider
Naomi Cahn and Sonia Suter

Upcoming Webinars

Group Created with Sketch.
May 27th, 2:00 pm ET

Ask the Nonprofit Lawyer

Register
Group Created with Sketch.
June 26th, 2:00 pm ET

From Performance Management to Mutual Commitment

Fostering a Culture of Joyful Accountability

Register

    
You might also like
US Capitol Building
Tax Provision Would Give Trump Administration Unilateral...
Rebekah Barber and Isaiah Thompson
A female scientist wearing a turquoise protective hair cap, yellow safety goggles, blue gloves, and a blue protective gown peers intently into a black microscope while carefully holding a pipette.
Cancer Research in the US Is World Class Because of Its...
Jeffrey MacKeigan
A piggy bank wearing a graduation hat and standing on a pile of cash, symbolizing how endowments for academic institutions can be accessed in difficult times.
Endowments Aren’t Blank Checks—but Universities Can Rely...
Ellen P. Aprill

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

See our newsletters

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Copyright
  • Donate
  • Editorial Policy
  • Funders

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.