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Concept Version 8
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Civil Rights of People with Disabilities

Disabled Americans face limited access to public places and institutions that civil rights legislation seeks to address.

Learning Objective

  • Describe the campaigns and successes of the disability rights movement.


Key Points

    • The Disability Rights Movement arose in the 1960s to create widespread institutional reform that would protect the civil rights of disabled persons in the United States.
    • Disability is an umbrella term that includes impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions caused by a combination of physical, social, and psychological conditions.
    • The 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act mandated improved access to government and social spaces for disabled persons, and also strengthened protections against discrimination.

Terms

  • disability

    State of being disabled; deprivation or want of ability; absence of competent physical, intellectual, or moral power, means, fitness, and the like.

  • disability rights movement

    The movement to secure equal opportunities and equal rights for people with disabilities.

  • Americans with Disabilities Act

    A wide-ranging civil rights law that affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 did for other groups.


Example

    • Outfitting trains and buses with ramps in order to improve access to transportation for disabled persons is an example of a measure designed to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Full Text

Introduction

Disability is an umbrella term that includes impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. Disabilities may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these, and they may be present from birth or acquired later in a person's lifetime. According to the World Health Organization, an impairment inhibits body function or structure; an activity limitation inhibits an individual's ability to execute a task or action; and a participation restriction affects an individual's ability to participate in life situations. Thus, disability is often complex, reflecting an interaction between features of a person's body and of the society in which he or she lives.

Civil Rights

Disabled persons face unique social challenges that may limit their participation in civic life. Notable issues include:

  • Accessibility and safety measures in transportation, architecture, and the physical environment
  • Equal opportunity in housing, employment, and education
  • Protection from abuse, neglect, and the violation of patients' rights

To address these concerns, a disability rights movement has introduced a range of legislation and law suits.

The disability rights movement became organized in the 1960s, concurrent with the African-American civil rights movement and feminist movement. Prior to the 1960s, individual disability groups had advocated for social reform; schools for the deaf and blind were organized as early as 1817, and the American Federation of the Physically Handicapped was formed in 1940 to advocate on behalf of people with physical limitations. But, it was not until the 1960s that a diverse range of disability groups became unified in pursuit of large scale advocacy. In the 1960s, the movement included such successful initiatives as the Community Mental Health Act, which provided funding for research about developmental disorders, and the Architectural Barriers Act, which required all federally owned or leased buildings to be accessible to disabled people.

Throughout the 1970s and 80s, the disability rights act gained increasing visibility and a number of policy successes, including increased accessibility of public places and increased resources for people with developmental disabilities. Perhaps the most sweeping success, however, came in 1990 with the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The act provided comprehensive civil rights protections modeled after the Civil Rights Act. It mandated that local, state, and federal governments and programs be accessible to people with disabilities, that employers with more than 15 employees make "reasonable accommodations" for workers with disabilities and not discriminate against otherwise qualified workers on the basis of disability, and that public spaces such as restaurants and stores make "reasonable modifications" to ensure accessibility. The act also mandated the accessibility of public transportation, communication, and other publicly provided services.

Transportation Accessibility

Public transportation vehicles, such as train and bus systems, are required to be outfitted with ramps accessible to disabled persons.

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