For many years, people with disabilities were treated differently (not as well) from people who did not have disabilities. Disabilities included problems with seeing, hearing, speaking or moving. There was no nationwide effort to protect people with these disabilities from discrimination when they applied for a job, or went to a restaurant, hotel, office building or stadium or any place open to the public.
Finally, in 1990, Congress passed The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public. The purpose of the law is to make sure that people with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications (providing equipment that enables people with hearing or speech disabilities to communicate throughout the country using a telephone).1
You can see the changes that this law has made. There are now parking spaces reserved for handicapped people, spaces that are extra wide to accommodate a wheelchair. Some buses have special seating areas to accommodate wheelchairs. Some theater performances hire people trained in sign language or provide special headsets for the hearing impaired. There is a worldwide Special Olympics program for people with intellectual disabilities. Automobiles can be equipped with steering devices that allow disabled people to drive.
1 ADA National Network What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)?
