160
Next Steps
25 years after the passage of the ADA, the work of disability rights activists continues Story by eric seeger
A
s the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) turns 25, the people who fought for it – as well as an entire new generation of leaders – are very busy. This moment in history is particularly poignant for the disability rights movement, because many of the advocates today represent much of the timeline of activism. Protesters who remember the Rehabilitation Act in the 1970s are working alongside the framers of the Americans with Disabilities Act. And 40-somethings who were in high school when the ADA went into effect are seeing the first generation of people with disabilities who have always lived with this law reach adulthood. “It’s an exciting time,” said Mark Johnson of The ADA Legacy Project, about the cultural shift in advocacy today. “[Young adults] have grown up with this atmosphere all their lives. They don’t have to fight for equality; they just expect it. That’s where the next generation is taking us.” Helping the Memory Live On With the anniversary of this landmark legislation comes the opportunity to look inward at the movement, to review its history, and to set goals for the future.
As Johnson points out, an entire generation of adults has grown up knowing nothing but life under the ADA. They likely live more inclusively than others before them. But they might not know the real-life struggles that people with disabilities faced before the law came to their side. More important, they may not see how it supports everyday aspects of their lives – or how it still stands to be improved. Since 2012, The ADA Legacy Project has been raising awareness of this anniversary by coordinating events and creating educational materials on the disability rights movement; the resounding message: “Disability Rights are Civil Rights.” “Fifty years after the Civil Rights Act, we are not done,” said Johnson. “Twenty-five years after the ADA, we are not done either.” Starting in 2014, The ADA Legacy Project launched the ADA Legacy Tour, which includes a 37-foot RV wrapped in disability rights images, portal exhibits, and related materials. “This anniversary can bring attention to the past and remaining issues,” Johnson said. “If you’re a person with disability, I hope that you will come away with a sense of pride. If you don’t have a disability, I hope that you will come away not just more aware, but more involved.”
Protest and Civil Action A quarter-century after the ADA’s signing, there remains a valid need for public protest on behalf of people with disabilities. For more than 30 years, ADAPT has been organizing activists and leading nonviolent protests – including civil disobedience – across the country to raise awareness. In September 2014, hundreds of ADAPT protesters came to Little Rock, Arkansas, for four days of protest. Dozens of activists were arrested during the week for confronting individuals and groups that support the institutional bias. According to the group’s action report: State funding for long term services and support for seniors and people with physical disabilities is institutionally biased, with 69.7% of Medicaid funding going to nursing facilities. “That’s pathetic,” said Mike Oxford, an ADAPT Organizer from Kansas. “Seniors and people with disabilities don’t want to be forced into nursing facilities, but that’s what the state is doing.” ADAPT came to the state capital to show Arkansas’ citizens that they were paying a hefty sum for services that members of the disability community didn’t even want – that nursing homes had a grip on funding
