The act that made one of the biggest impacts on disabled people's lives was The American with Disabilities Act of 1990. “The American with Disabilities Act represents the latest and most comprehensive effort to fight discrimination against disability in the United States” ( Mezey, 2009). It included stopping the discrimination against disabled people on the basis of education, employment, transportation, public events, and access to state and local governments programs and services. The first major civil rights law passed since the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the ADA was estimated to affect the lives of 43 million Americans at the time of its passage “(Mezey, 2009). This act made Americans view disabled people very differently and helped those
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Edward V. Roberts was prime example of how people with disabilities were discriminated against in the 1900s. He wanted to attend the University of California, Berkeley. Although he did get in, due to him being paralyzed he faced many obstacles in his everyday life. “Roberts and millions of others were denied basic freedoms that most people take for granted. They could not board buses and subways. They could not go to work. Roberts could not live in a dorm room or get up the steps to classes (Malaspina, 2007)”. He decided to fight for his right to attend the college he wanted to go to. Roberts later became a pioneer in the Disability Rights Movement. In Washington, D.C., an organization called The Special Olympics that was created to offer athletic training, and opportunities for athletic competition and social interaction for people with cognitive disabilities. “The organization was incorporated in 1968, but programs have been running since June of 1962 when Eunice Kennedy Shriver began a summer day camp at her Maryland home” ( Penna, 2009 pg.1 ). The Special Olympics has helped Americans view people with disabilities a lot differently. This showed that they were capable of basically anything anyone else could do. It is competitive just like the regular Olympics but most importantly it shows participating is a reward. The Special Olympics grew dramatically. The first games included 1,000 athletes from 26 U.S states and Canada. By each year more countries and athletes became
Edward V. Roberts was prime example of how people with disabilities were discriminated against in the 1900s. He wanted to attend the University of California, Berkeley. Although he did get in, due to him being paralyzed he faced many obstacles in his everyday life. “Roberts and millions of others were denied basic freedoms that most people take for granted. They could not board buses and subways. They could not go to work. Roberts could not live in a dorm room or get up the steps to classes (Malaspina, 2007)”. He decided to fight for his right to attend the college he wanted to go to. Roberts later became a pioneer in the Disability Rights Movement. In Washington, D.C., an organization called The Special Olympics that was created to offer athletic training, and opportunities for athletic competition and social interaction for people with cognitive disabilities. “The organization was incorporated in 1968, but programs have been running since June of 1962 when Eunice Kennedy Shriver began a summer day camp at her Maryland home” ( Penna, 2009 pg.1 ). The Special Olympics has helped Americans view people with disabilities a lot differently. This showed that they were capable of basically anything anyone else could do. It is competitive just like the regular Olympics but most importantly it shows participating is a reward. The Special Olympics grew dramatically. The first games included 1,000 athletes from 26 U.S states and Canada. By each year more countries and athletes became