"The Americans with Disabilities Act is the most sweeping piece of civil rights legislation since the 1964 Civil Rights Act." - Rodman G. Griffin, disabilities historian
“This is the emancipation proclamation for disabled Americans."
Senator Tom Harkin, Iowa
Senator Tom Harkin, Iowa
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Thesis
For thousands of years, people with disabilities were believed to be mentally unfit and impure, a rendition of the essence of evil. During the twentieth century, after years of discrimination and prejudice that prevented able handicapped men and women from seeking jobs, utilizing public areas and controlling their residential and life decisions, the disabled began a long revolution for civil rights. They lobbied for reforms, eager to earn the right to enjoy America as lawful equals, not as second class citizens.
Uniting across racial, gender and ethnic barriers, people with disabilities gained power in the United States government and succeeded in passing the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, a revolutionary civil rights law that structurally reformed America and legally compeered persons with and without disabilities.
Uniting across racial, gender and ethnic barriers, people with disabilities gained power in the United States government and succeeded in passing the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, a revolutionary civil rights law that structurally reformed America and legally compeered persons with and without disabilities.