July 26, 2023
On July 26, 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law; this landmark civil rights law affirmed the inherent dignity of every person, regardless of disability. The ADA prohibits discrimination by local and state governments, provides standards for privately owned businesses and commercial facilities, stands against discrimination in the workplace, and ensures equal access to healthcare, social services, transportation, and telecommunications.
As we honor the many advocates whose efforts made the ADA a reality and continue to fight to fulfill the ADA's promise, ACL is compiling some of the many resources, events, and blogs from ACL, our disability grantees and stakeholders, and our federal partners:
- The White House has issued a proclamation on the anniversary of the ADA. In it President Biden notes: "The ADA has had a profound impact, but we still have much more work to do. Disabled Americans are still three times less likely to have a job; and when they do, they often earn less for doing the same work. Voting locations, transit, and public spaces are too often inaccessible. And we need to continue building a culture that not only protects disability rights but also celebrates disability pride."
- Leaders from across HHS has issued statements on the 33rd anniversary of the ADA. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra writes: "We must challenge ourselves, and our nation, to accelerate our progress and make inclusion and equal opportunity for people with disabilities a reality. The fight for disability rights continues, and we at HHS remain committed."
- This ADA Anniversary Toolkit from the ACL-funded ADA National Network includes sample social media posts, graphics, educational resources, and more.
- The Administration for Community Living and the HHS Office for Civil Rights work closely together to defend the rights of people with disabilities and ensure equal access to all facets of life, throughout life. We came together to create this website to tell the story of how the ADA came to be, showcase some of the progress we have made as a country toward achieving its promise, and illustrate a little bit of the work being done by ACL and OCR, as well as other partners within HHS and across government.
- In a blog post, the CDC's Shannon Griffin-Blake, PhD, MA, writes: "Part of recognizing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and assessing the progress that has been made since it was enacted is to listen and learn from the varied lived experiences among people with disabilities. People with disabilities are the true experts and can share important insights about feasibility, relevance, and benefits for public health efforts to be truly congruent with their real time needs."
- This feature article from the National Academies discusses efforts to make science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) more inclusive of people with disabilities. The article highlights the story of NIDILRR director Anjali Forber-Pratt and includes recordings of a recent summit and four webinars on STEM and disability inclusion.