Chai Hopes for Disability Rights
I just got off of an incredibly inspirational conference call. Yes, I know, that's not a sentence one hears every day, but today, it's true. I spent an hour on a conference call hosted by the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Amendments Act, a bill that restores workplace civil rights to individuals with disabilities.
The ADAAA passed in the House by an overwhelmingly margin - a bipartisan one! - last month, and on today's call, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) announced that the Senate version will be introduced today. Disability rights advocates expect the bill to reach the Senate floor by September and to be signed into law in October.
President George H. W. Bush signed the original Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 into law 18 years ago this month. As Jews, the number 18 holds special significance, representing the Hebrew word chai, or "life." I can think of no more fitting metaphor for the present situation of individuals with disabilities in the United States. Under current law, the courts have deemed people with diabetes, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Down syndrome and other conditions "not disabled enough" to be protected under law, effectively denying them the ability to earn a living when they are discriminated against in the workplace. If passed, the bill would reestablish Congress' intent in passing the original ADA, restoring the rights of people with disabilities to earn a livelihood, to generate income, to be productive members of society and to live free of discrimination.
On this special anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, let us commit ourselves to bettering the lives of others by ensuring Senate passage of the ADA Amendments Act. L'chaim!
President George H. W. Bush signed the original Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 into law 18 years ago this month. As Jews, the number 18 holds special significance, representing the Hebrew word chai, or "life." I can think of no more fitting metaphor for the present situation of individuals with disabilities in the United States. Under current law, the courts have deemed people with diabetes, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Down syndrome and other conditions "not disabled enough" to be protected under law, effectively denying them the ability to earn a living when they are discriminated against in the workplace. If passed, the bill would reestablish Congress' intent in passing the original ADA, restoring the rights of people with disabilities to earn a livelihood, to generate income, to be productive members of society and to live free of discrimination.
On this special anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, let us commit ourselves to bettering the lives of others by ensuring Senate passage of the ADA Amendments Act. L'chaim!
Comments
I could help but point out that Chai Feldblum, law professor at Georgetown, "played a leading role in the drafting and negotiating of the Americans with Disabilities Act."
http://www.law.georgetown.edu/Faculty/FacInfo/tab_faculty.cfm?Status=FullTime&ID=251
Posted by: Mik Moore | August 6, 2008 11:24 AM