Disabilities Act History

The Americans with Disabilities Act has come a long way with helping to protect and obtaining justice for the disable opening the door for jobs and creating more adequate access to public spaces to an estimated 43 million disabled people however, corrective disabilities are more of a challenge. People whose disabilities that can be remedied with eyeglasses, medications, etc. are not covered by the ADA (Post, 1999). Justice Sandra Day O’Conner supports this action and wrote three provisions that led to the conclusion that remediable conditions are not a disability (Post, 1999).

I believe the main point for the evolution of the ADA is the continuous unfair and superfluous discrimination denies the disabled an equal opportunity to pursue the opportunities our society may offer and the desire to correct this unjust discrimination.

Individuals with disability have had a long history of maltreatment in America. From being thought of as possessed individuals in need of exorcism, targeted for heinous experiments, unknowingly sterilized, being labeled imbecile, feeble minded, and retarded, to being shipped off to state schools or mental asylums, those with disabilities were given no consideration as a valuable and able to contribute member of society. In a speech to congress, Frank Bowe, a highly educated deaf-man highlighted this claim by stating, “we are not even second-class citizens, we are third-class citizens” (Bowe, F. 1977--need citation), and Jim Cherry (2001) furthered the ideal in his words, that prior to “1970 we [disabled citizens] had no right to education, to employment, to transportation, to housing, or to voting. There were no civil rights laws for us, no federal advocacy grants. Few people looked beyond our medical needs” (Cherry, J.L, 2001 http://www.raggededgemagazine.com/0701/0701cov.htm). Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 attempted to fundamentally change how disabled people were reguarded.

After years of discrimination, it looked as though people with disabilities would finally fine justice. In 1968 a bill was proposed that would enable people with disabilities to seek protection from the government. One would think that this bill would be welcomed into our society, but the events that followed proved quite the contrary. It took five years, three changes of administration and two presidential vetoes to pass the Rehabilitation Act. President Richard Nixon signed the bill into law on September 26, 1973. This act was designed to protect the rights of persons with disabilities. Proceeding the signing of the bill a federal campaign was launched to eliminate discrimination

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was put into place in 1990 to ensure that people could not discriminate against those with disabilities. At the end of every war, there were newly disabled American veterans that wanted improved civil rights and proper accommodations for the disabled that needed them. In the 1960’s, veterans from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War saw

Americans with disabilities make up the largest minority group in the United States. Approximately fifty million people in the United States live with physical or mental handicaps. This minority group is unique in that it is made up of people from all socioeconomic classes, genders and races. Mental and physical impairments do not discriminate. As with other minorities, Americans with disabilities face unique challenges and discriminatory behaviors. For centuries, disabled people had to battle irrational fears and stereotypes due to the lack of medical understanding. The first demand for equal treatment for disabled people came in the 1960s. The struggle for disability rights has followed a similar pattern to many other civil rights movements – first negative stereotypes must be challenged, followed rallying for political and institutional change and lobbying for the self-determination of a minority community. As a result the examples of the African American civil rights and women’s rights movements encouraged the disability rights movement, and after decades of campaigning and lobbying, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990.

The ADA story started quite a while back in urban communities and towns all through the United States when individuals with disabilities started to challenge societal boundaries that prohibited them from their groups, and when parents of children with disabilities started to battle against the rejection and isolation of their kids. It started with the foundation of neighborhood gatherings to advocate for the privileges or rights of individuals with disabilities.

History tells us that it has been a long road to liberty and a continual fight for civil rights for those with disabilities. One of the most influential times for change in the lives of disabled Americans occurred during the 1960s and 1970s, and became know as the Disability Rights Movement.

The Americans with Disabilities Act became law on July 26,1990 and was announce as a civil right law that banned discrimination against people with disabilities in all aspects of life.In addition,the act also has five titles that are included within it to help explain what the act is about.The first title is about equal employment for people who have disabilities,the second title states that people with disabilities can not be discriminated against while participating in any activity,the third is about public places not being alowed to discriminate against peopke with disabilites,the fourth titles says that all telephone companies need to provide services that help people with a hearing disability can communicate over the phone and lastly tilte

The history of the ADA did not begin in 1990 at the signing ceremony neither did it begin in 1988 when the first ADA was introduced to Congress. The ADA journey began years ago throughout the United States when the disabled community began to challenge societal barriers that eliminated them from their communities, when parents of children with disabilities began to fight against discrimination of their children, and when institutions were being established for the bettering of the disabled society. It began with the establishment of local activist groups for the rights of people with disabilities and the establishment of the independent living movement. This challenged the conception that people with disabilities needed to be

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 was passed by congress in 1990. The ADA is a law which

According to the book, the American Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 is a landmark legislation because it's where congress acknowledged that 43 million Americans with disabilities had been subjected to discrimination and that they have not had any recourse within the law to deal with this discrimination. this law was passed to promote the rights of people with disabilities.The ADA was a landmark legislation for the United States and at the time for the world it paved the way for civil rights for people with disabilities and gave them the stepping stone needed to be able to get into government agencies, get jobs and have equal employment opportunities, have better access to transportation, and other services.

The Americans with Disability Act was first introduced to congress in 1988, and was signed into law on July 26, 1990. The ADA was made using Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act in 1973 as its base. Section 504, which banned discrimination based on disability, but was limited to recipients of federal funds. The ADA was also modeled after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin ("Introduction to the ADA", 2017). In 1986, the National Council on Disability had recommended the ADA and introduced the first version to congress in 1988. The final version of the bill was signed into law on July 26, 1990 and amended in 1996. the ADA is an "equal opportunity" law for people with disabilities. The ADA is one of America's most comprehensive pieces of civil rights legislation that prohibits discrimination and guarantees the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in the mainstream of American life ("Introduction to the ADA", 2017). Eventually there was a need for the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) which became effective on January 1, 2009. The law made a number of significant changes to the definition of “disability” under ADA which was much needed.

Veterans Benefits was evaluated due to a push for independent living that encouraged disabled Americans to leave the hospitals and institutions. A proposed change in 1978 gave way for a need to examine the issues facing disabled civilians in society and in public places. The goal was to bring people out of the confinements of their homes and into the community (Haugen, 2008). Many of these individuals were capable of becoming participating members of society which would in turn alleviate the growing problem of disabled veterans returning from war. The population reached a level critical level of overcrowding and inadequate care and inaccessible care for some. The development of plans for transportation and public facilities was an essential tool to propel the rights and needs of the disabled to the forefront. A continued focus helped initiate the 1988 Fair Housing Amendment Act to alleviate the discrimination issues of the disabled (Haugen, 2008). The powerful force created by the nation’s veterans helped enable the revision of the Rehabilitation Act to also include the civilians with disabilities. The formation of the ADA or Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990 was groundbreaking in achieving change with regard the individual rights in all aspects of society. Haugen reports, “much of the language and philosophy used in the ADA is borrowed from section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act” (p. 40). The provisions of section 504 eliminate and prevent discrimination in public services and assure no disabled person is denied the benefit of public transportation (Haugen,

After watching, videos, going over the material, and doing some research about the disabilities rights movement I found it sad that people have fought so long and hard to get the rights there are now for people with disabilities, the rights that should be unspoken and come naturally, not have to be fought for.