ADA at 20: California to NY

On July 26, 2010, I was on the capitol steps in Sacramento, California celebrating with 250 people the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. It was a grand sight seeing so many people, most of who were born after the birth date in 1990, celebrating the advancement of people with disabilities in education, services and most importantly employment.

One person came up to me and asked, "I'm surprised you weren't speaking in your own state of New York?" I had received a text message 24 hours earlier, asking if I could get to Sacramento in time to speak at their luncheon. I wanted to be part of this celebration so I embarked on my 12 hour and three airport journey.

Standing on the lawn in front of the Capitol, I realized California is far ahead of most states in regard to serving the needs of people with disabilities. I was at that moment sorry for the state of New York. The Empire State should be the leader in serving people with disabilities, especially with our governor's well-publicized visual impairment. Alas, California 3000 miles away allowed me to be involved with the celebration. I sent a text back to Albany to record the evening news from July 26. Upon my return, I fast forwarded through the local news and realized there were no stories on the 20th anniversary of the ADA.

The media's interest in the 20th anniversary has been disappointing. Not only was there no coverage in Albany of any celebration, I was listening to a national NPR radio show later in the week discussing the anniversary-three days late. During the program, they brought on a guest who has written an historical look at the ADA. As I was driving, I was thinking here is the national media attention. I soon realized the missed opportunity. The invited author did not identify themselves as having a disability and stumbled through some of the answers to questions the host had prepared. Most of the people calling in identify themselves with a disability and appeared to know more about their self-advocacy than the author.

The national morning news talk shows touched on the anniversary, but like President Obama with his one and only one appearance on the topic, it was a brief mention for the national media.

California is leading the way in many respects. In Sacramento, there were as many cameras held by media contingent as there were people celebrating. The word is out and it's led by the youth. The Youth Leadership Forum event is made up of 60 delegates (young people with disabilities) from around the state from all different agencies and reflective of differing abilities. They come together to celebrate their uniqueness, celebrating the anniversary but most important to raise awareness with state legislators about employment!

Twenty years after President Bush signed the legislation there are curb cuts, wheelchair ramps and educational opportunities. The next great advancement for people with disabilities will be employment. It will be the opportunities that come from the next generation leading Fortune 500 companies and small businesses that are willing to look beyond the physical and mental challenges that person may have and see employee dedicated and striving to be the best in their field.

In Sacramento at the YLF meeting, I realized the spirit of the youth will force both legislators and future employers to listen. Twenty years ago when the law was written, I was in the same place as the members of the YLF today. I was a self-advocate for my own employment. The growth after 20 years as exponential; to watch 60 individuals with spirit and enthusiasm advocating for their own employment is fantastic.

 

 

 

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