July 28 - Americans with Disabilities Act 20th Anniversary press conference
Douglas SchmidtACT Team Coordinator
Fifth Freedom Network
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As many of you know, July 26 was the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). To help commemorate this occasion, Fifth Freedom and the Northeast Indiana Disability Advocacy Coalition held a press conference on the steps of the Federal Building in Fort Wayne. The highlight of the press conference was the ADA Report Card, the result of a survey of Northeast Indiana residents with disabilities, and presented their grade of their community’s implementation of the ADA.
Fifth Freedom staff arrived early to help set the stage. It was a very warm day, so we were glad for the cool breeze blowing across downtown Fort Wayne. That is, until we started to set up. We had an easel to display the Report Card and a large flag, and as soon as we set them up, the wind would knock them back down. Fortunately, we had come prepared with the handyman’s secret weapon: duct tape. By the time the press conference started, the only thing not taped to the stage was the presenters!
The press conference began with some opening remarks from Tom O’Neill, the CEO of Passages. Lynne Gilmore, Executive Director of the AWS Foundation, presented a timeline of events leading up to the passage of the ADA, including the passage of the Civil Rights Act, the creation of Medicaid and Medicare, and the passage of the Architectural Barriers Act.
John Guingrich, disability advocate and Vice President of Government Solutions for Briljent, LLC, gave his thoughts on growing up without the ADA, and some changes that came after it was passed. He related a story about being the best man in a friend’s wedding, around two years after the ADA was passed. He went to the tuxedo rental store pick up his tuxedo. As he has a disability affecting his arms, he also had to have it altered. However, the salesperson’s response was “I’m not sure we can help you.” This was the first time he mentioned the ADA in public, not to demand special treatment, but to ask for the same alteration service available to everyone else. The salesperson called her manager, and eventually he was able to get the tux altered.
Tony Belton, Community Relations Coordinator for the Arc of Northeast Indiana, unveiled the Report Card. The survey showed that, while there has been a great deal of objective improvements in many areas, people’s subjective perception of services and their community has worsened. The poor economy and the resulting program cuts may have been a factor. Also, under the previous administration, some Supreme Court cases had narrowed the legal definition of “disability” and weakened some of the protections under the ADA. These cases were overturned by the ADA Amendments Act in 2008, but there are still frustrations and legal difficulties remaining.
David Nelson, President and CEO of the League for the Blind and Disabled, reminded the audience what the ADA was all about: not giving people with disabilities anything special, but giving them the same rights as everyone else. A place to park in a parking lot or the ability to get in to a building is not special favors, but basic rights. Over the past twenty years, the ADA has brought numerous changes and benefits, but there is still a lot of work to be done.
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