15th ANNIVERSARY: AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT
Fifteen years ago this week, former President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law, mandating civil rights for people with disabilities for the first time in the history of the nation.
The law has changed this country for the better but there is still much room for improvement. There is also a great deal of ignorance about the law and about people with disabilities in general, and, not surprisingly, those who are more interested in profits than people continue to lie about and resist the law.
The U.S. Supreme Court justices, including some of its so-called moderates and liberals, have been hostile to the ADA in recent years and that situation is likely to grow worse with the choices of nominees during the 2nd term of George W. Bush -- an ironic situation given his father's support for the ADA.
Here are some important statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau:
37.5 million: Number of Americans older than 5 with at least one disability.
42 percent, 34 percent: Percentage of working-age men and women, respectively, who are employed.
847,000: Number of people ages 18 to 34 who have disabilities and are enrolled in school — 5 percent of all students in this age group.
2.5 million: Number of veterans who received compensation for service-related disabilities as of 2003.
The law has changed this country for the better but there is still much room for improvement. There is also a great deal of ignorance about the law and about people with disabilities in general, and, not surprisingly, those who are more interested in profits than people continue to lie about and resist the law.
The U.S. Supreme Court justices, including some of its so-called moderates and liberals, have been hostile to the ADA in recent years and that situation is likely to grow worse with the choices of nominees during the 2nd term of George W. Bush -- an ironic situation given his father's support for the ADA.
Here are some important statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau:
37.5 million: Number of Americans older than 5 with at least one disability.
42 percent, 34 percent: Percentage of working-age men and women, respectively, who are employed.
847,000: Number of people ages 18 to 34 who have disabilities and are enrolled in school — 5 percent of all students in this age group.
2.5 million: Number of veterans who received compensation for service-related disabilities as of 2003.
posted by bennyoates at 10:12:00 AM
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