The Americans With Disabilities Act At 30

Thirty years ago, President George H. W. Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act.

It was the first comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities. It offered protections against discrimination and imposing accessibility requirements in workplaces and in public.

The ADA was a landmark achievement, but the fight for equal rights is far from over.

Here’s part of what activist and editor Alice Wong wrote for Vox, amid the coronavirus pandemic in April 2020:

Eugenics isn’t a relic from World War II; it’s alive today, embedded in our culture, policies, and practices. It is imperative that experts and decision-makers include and collaborate with communities disproportionately impacted by systemic medical racism, ageism, and ableism, among other biases.

The debates on health care rationing unveil how our society devalues vulnerable populations. Draft guidelines from various states and health systems identified people with dementia, cancer, intellectual disabilities, and many other pre-existing conditions as those who will not benefit from treatment compared to younger, healthier, non-disabled people. Dr. James Keany, an ER physician at Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, California, was quoted recently in the Los Angeles Times: “As it stands in the US, if your family member is adamant that you would want everything done and you’re 90 years old, wearing a diaper, severely demented, you would get put on a ventilator … Most countries consider that malpractice because what are you saving that person for?”

And protests over police brutality have sparked discussions of the mistreatment of Americans with disabilities by law enforcement.

What did the ADA accomplish? And what work is left to be done?

Find more of Alice’s comments on the conversation in this Twitter thread.

Eugenics & ableism is a HUGE issue.

In Texas, a Black disabled man named Michael Hickson died 6 days after doctors withdrew nutrition and hydration because he had the coronavirus and his doctor

— Alice Wong (@SFdirewolf) July 2, 2020

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