It's the 25th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Last edited Mon Jul 26, 2021, 12:03 PM - Edit history (3)
Signed into law in 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
A leading force behind the ADA was Justin Whitlock Dart, Jr.
Justin Whitlock Dart, Jr. (August 29, 1930 – June 22, 2002) was an American activist and advocate for people with disabilities. He helped to pass the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, co-founded the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), and is regarded as the "Godfather of the ADA."
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Background
Dart came from a wealthy Chicago family. His father, Justin Whitlock Dart, Sr., was President of Dart Industries. His mother, Ruth Walgreen Dart, was the daughter of Walgreen founder Charles R. Walgreen and his wife, Myrtle Walgreen. Justin's brother Peter Dart also developed polio.
Dart contracted polio in 1948 before entering the University of Houston, where he earned undergraduate degrees in history and education in 1954; however, the university refused to give him a teaching certificate because of his disability. The university is now home to the Justin Dart, Jr. Center for Students with Disabilities, a facility designed for students who have any type of temporary or permanent health impairment, physical limitation, psychiatric disorder, or learning disability.
Activism
During his time at the University of Houston, which was then segregated, Dart organized the first student group to oppose racism.
After graduating, Dart was a successful entrepreneur who founded three Japanese corporations, but in 1967 he gave up the corporate life to devote himself to the rights of people with disabilities, working in Texas and Washington, D.C. as a member of various state and federal disability commissions.
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Last edited Tue Jul 28, 2015, 11:05 PM - Edit history (1)
way before being signed into law 25 years ago yesterday. One of the oldest parts of it grew out of the original report codifying the need and prescribing the physical changes required to the built environment to allow fuller access for all. The report was by the Committee A-117 chaired by Harold Wilke in way back in 1959.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disability_rights_movement
Harold Wilke was honored to be asked to deliver a "blessing" (a first) before the public bill signing on the South Lawn of the White House on July 26 1990. He is pictured here receiving one of the pens from President George H Bush with his foot (he has no arms) ...
