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re:1981-1984 The Reag...
1981-1984
The Reagan Administration threatened to amend or revoke regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975. Disability rights advocates Patrisha Wright (DREDF) and Evan Kemp, Jr. (Disability Rights Center) led an intense lobbying and grassroots campaign that generated more than 40,000 cards and letters. After three years, the Reagan Administration abandoned its attempts to revoke or amend the regulations.
The Reagan Administration terminated the Social Security benefits of hundreds of thousands of disabled recipients. Distressed by this action, several disabled people committed suicide. A variety of groups including the Alliance of Social Security Disability Recipients and the Ad Hoc Committee on Social Security Disability fought these terminations.
1981
The International Year of Disabled Persons began. During the year, governments were encouraged to sponsor programs bringing people with disabilities into the mainstream of their societies.
The parents of “Baby Doe” in Bloomington, Indiana were advised by their doctors to decline surgery to unblock their newborn’s esophagus because the baby had Down's syndrome. Although disability rights activists tried to intervene, “Baby Doe” starved to death before legal action was taken.
The Telecommunications for the Disabled Act mandated telephone access for deaf and hard-of-hearing people at public places like hospitals and police stations. All coin-operated telephones had to be hearing aid-compatible by January 1985. The Act called for state subsidies for production and distribution of TDD’s.
1983
The National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) was founded by Max Starkloff, Charlie Carr and Marca Bristo.
A national ADAPT action was held for accessible transportation in Denver, Colorado at the American Public Transit Association (APTA) Convention.
The World Institute on Disability (WID) was established by Ed Roberts, Judy Heumann and Joan Leon.
The Disabled Children’s Computer Group (DCCG) was founded in Berkeley, California.
The National Council on the Handicapped called for Congress to include persons with disabilities in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other civil and voting rights legislation and regulations.
The United Nations expanded the International Year of Disabled Persons to the International Decade of Disabled Persons (1983-1992).
The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) was founded by the President’s Committee on Employment of the Handicapped to provide information to businesses with disabled employees.
Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act provided for the Client Assistance Program (CAP), an advocacy program for consumers of rehabilitation and independent living services.
1984
Ted Kennedy, Jr., spoke from the platform of the Democratic National Convention on disability rights.
The “Baby Jane Doe” case involved an infant being denied needed medical care because of her disability. The litigation argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in Bowen v. American Hospital Association resulted in the passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act Amendments of 1984.
The U.S. Supreme Court, Irving Independent School District v. Tatro ruled that school districts are required under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 to provide intermittent catheterization performed by the school nurse or a nurse’s aide as a “related service” to a disabled student. School districts can no longer refuse to educate a disabled child because they might need such service.
The National Council of the Handicapped became an independent federal agency.
The Social Security Disability Reform Act was passed in response to the complaints of hundreds of thousands of people whose social security disability benefits were terminated. The law required that payment of benefits and health insurance coverage continue for terminated recipients until they exhausted their appeals.
The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act mandated that polling places be accessible.
1985
The Mental Illness Bill of Rights Act required states to provide protection and advocacy services for people with psychological disabilities.
Final legal hearings on eugenics were held in the Commonwealth of Virginia. No financial settlement was granted.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Burlington School Committee v. Department of Education that schools must pay the expenses of disabled children enrolled in private programs during litigation under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, if the courts ruled that such placement is needed to provide the child with an appropriate education in the least restrictive environment.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in City of Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center that localities cannot use zoning laws to prohibit group homes for people with developmental disabilities from opening in a residential area solely because its residents are disabled.
The International Polio Network, St. Louis, Missouri, founded by Gini Laurie, began advocating for recognition of post-polio syndrome.
The National Association of Psychiatric Survivors was founded.
1986
Toward Independence, a report of the National Council on the Handicapped, outlined the legal status of Americans with disabilities and documented the existence of discrimination. It cited the need for federal civil rights legislation (eventually passed as the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990).
Concrete Change, a grassroots organization advocating accessible housing, was organized in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Employment Opportunities for Disabled Americans Act was passed allowing recipients of Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Insurance to retain benefits, particularly medical coverage, after they obtain work.
The Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act was passed setting up protection and advocacy (P & A) agencies for people who are in-patients or residents of mental health facilities.
Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1986 defined supported employment as a “legitimate rehabilitation outcome.”
1987
Justin Dart, Commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration, was forced to resign after he testified to Congress that “an inflexible federal system, like the society it represents, still contains a significant portion of individuals who have not yet overcome obsolete, paternalistic attitudes toward disability…”
The Alliance for Technology Access was founded in California by the Disabled Children’s Computer Group and the Apple Computer Office of Special Education.
1988
The Air Carrier Access Act was passed prohibiting airlines from refusing to serve people simply because they are disabled and from charging people with disabilities more for airfare than non-disabled travelers.
The Civil Rights Restoration Act counteracted bad case law by clarifying Congress’ original intention. Under the Rehabilitation Act, discrimination in any program or service that receives federal funding – not just the part which actually and directly receives the funding – is illegal.
The Fair Housing Act amendments prohibited housing discrimination against people with disabilities and families with children. It also provided for architectural accessibility of certain new housing units, renovation of existing units and accessibility modifications at the renter’s expense.
The "Deaf President Now" protest was held at Gallaudet University. I. King Jordan became the first deaf president of Gallaudet University.
ADAPT protested inaccessible Greyhound buses.
The Technology-Related Assistance Act for Individuals with Disabilities was passed authorizing federal funding to state projects designed to facilitate access to assistive technology.
The Congressional Task Force on the Rights and Empowerment of Americans with Disabilities was created by Rep. Major R. Owens, with Justine Dart and Elizabeth Boggs, co-chairs. The Task Force began building grassroots support for passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Congress overturned Ronald Reagan’s veto of the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987.
In Honig v. Doe, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the stay-put rule established under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975. School authorities cannot expel or suspend or otherwise move disabled children from the setting agreed upon in the child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) without a due process hearing.
1989
In ADAPT v. Skinner, the Federal Appeals Court ruled that federal regulations requiring that transit authorities spend only 3% of their budgets on access are arbitrary and discriminatory.
The original version of the American with Disabilities Act was introduced in 1988. It was redrafted and reintroduced in Congress. Disability organizations across the country advocated on its behalf (Patrisha Wright, Marilyn Golden, Liz Savage, Justin Dart Jr., and Elizabeth Boggs, among others).
The Center for Universal Design (originally the Center for Accessible Housing) was founded by Ronald Mace in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Mouth: The Voice of Disability Rights began publication in Rochester, New York.
The President’s Committee on Employment of the Handicapped was renamed the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities.
1990
The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed by George W. Bush. The Act provided comprehensive civil rights protection for people with disabilities. Closely modeled after the Civil Rights Act and Section 504, the law was the most sweeping disability rights legislation in history. It mandated that local, state and federal governments and programs be accessible, that businesses with more than 15 employees make “reasonable accommodations” for disabled workers and that public accommodations such as restaurants and stores make “reasonable modifications” to ensure access for disabled members of the public. The act also mandated access in public transportation, communication, and in other areas of public life.
Sam Skinner, U.S. Secretary of Transportation, issued regulations mandating lifts on buses.
American Disabled for Accessible Public Transit (ADAPT) organized The Wheels of Justice campaign in Washington, D.C. which drew hundreds of disabled people to support the Americans with Disabilities Act. Activists occupying the Capitol Rotunda were arrested when they refuse to leave.
The Committee of Ten Thousand was founded to advocate for people with hemophilia who were infected with HIV/AIDS through tainted blood products.
The Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resource Emergency Act was passed to help communities cope with the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
American Disabled for Accessible Public Transit (ADAPT) changed its focus to advocating for personal assistance services, changing its name to American Disabled for Attendant Programs Today (ADAPT).
The Education for All Handicapped Children Act was amended and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
1992
Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act were infused with the philosophy of independent living.
1993
The American Indian Disability Legislation Project was established to collect data on Native American disability rights laws and regulations.
A legal case of four men convicted of sexual assault and conspiracy for raping a 17-year old mentally disabled woman in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, highlighted the widespread sexual abuse of people with developmental disabilities.
Robert Williams was appointed Commissioner of the Administration on Developmental Disabilities. He is the first developmentally disabled person to be named the Commissioner.
Holland v. Sacramento City Unified School District affirmed the right of disabled children to attend public school classes with non-disabled children. The ruling was a major victory in the ongoing effort to ensure enforcement of IDEA.
1995
Maria Rantho, South African Federation of Disabled People’s Vice-Chair, was elected to Nelson Mandela’s Parliament in South Africa. Ronah Moyo, head of the women’s wing of the Zimbabwe Federation of Disabled People, was elected to Robert Mugabe’s Parliament in Zimbabwe. Both women felt they faced an uphill struggle with legislators who were ignorant of the needs of people with disabilities.
The First International Symposium on Issues of Women with Disabilities was held in Beijing, China in conjunction with the Fourth World Conference on Women.
ACLIFM, an organization of people with disabilities in Cuba, held its first international conference on disability rights in Havana, Cuba.
Justice for All was organized by Justin Dart and others in Washington, D.C.
When Billy Broke His Head…and Other Tale of Wonder premiered on PBS. The film is about the disability rights movement.
The American Association of People with Disabilities was founded in Washington, D.C.
The U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit in Helen L. v. Snider ruled that continued institutionalization of a disabled Pennsylvania woman, when not medically necessary and where there is the option of home care, was a violation of her rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Disability rights advocates perceived this ruling as a landmark decision regarding the rights of people in nursing homes to personal assistance services.
Sandra Jensen, a member of People First, was denied a heart-lung transplant by the Stanford University School of Medicine because she has Down’s syndrome. After pressure from disability rights activists, Stanford U School of Medicine administrators reversed their decision. In 1996, Jensen became the first person with Down's syndrome to receive a heart-lung transplant.
1996
Congress passed legislation eliminating more than 150,000 disabled children from Social Security rolls along with persons with alcohol and drug dependencies.
Not Dead Yet, formed by disabled advocates to oppose those who support assisted suicide for people with disabilities, focused on the idea of rationing health care to people with severe disabilities and imposition of “do not resuscitate” (DNR) orders for disabled people in hospitals, schools, and nursing homes.
In Vacco v. Quill and Washington v. Glucksberg, the Supreme Court validated the state prohibition on physician-assisted suicide, deciding that the issue is within the jurisdiction of the states.
1998
The Persian Gulf War Veterans Act was passed.
In Bragdon v. Abbott, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the definition of disability includes asymptomatic HIV.
In Pennsylvania Department of Corrections v. Yeskey, the Supreme Court decided that the Americans with Disabilities Act includes state prisons.
1999
In Carolyn C. Cleveland v. Policy Management Systems Corporation, et. al., the Supreme Court decided that people receiving Social Security disability benefits are protected against discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act if and when they are able to return to work.
In Olmstead v. L.C. and E.W., the Supreme Court decided that individuals with disabilities must be offered services in the most integrated setting.
In three employment cases (Sutton et. al. v. United Air Lines, Inc., Murphy v. United Parcel Service, Inc. and Albertsons, Inc. v. Kirkingburg) the Supreme Court decided that individuals whose conditions do not substantially limit any life activity and are easily correctable are not disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The Works Incentives Improvement Act (Ticket to Work) became law, allowing those who require health care benefits to work.
2001
The Commonwealth of Virginia House of Delegates approved a resolution expressing regret for its eugenics practices between 1924 and 1979.
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