In this month, July 25th will be the 25th anniversary of Americans with Disability Act (ADA). DEAF, Inc. recognizes and celebrates this historical moment of the 25th anniversary of the ADA. Please watch the video for more information.

TRANSCRIPT:

TOMMY-
This weekend, DEAF, Inc. takes a moment to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

25 years ago, on July 26th, 1990 President George H.W. Bush signed into law the ADA that allowed people with disabilities to be granted equal opportunities as everyone else including communication access for deaf/hard of hearing individuals.

The ADA is the most comprehensive human rights law passed since the 1964 Civil Rights Act. While the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, sex, national origin, and similar characteristics, the ADA included disability in its provision.

The ADA was in response to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The intent of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was similar to the ADA to provide equal access for all, but there were two major gaps in that Rehabilitation Act: 1) it did not include private businesses such as hospitals/doctor’s offices, private companies, and law firms, also 2) there was no strong enforcement.

There were many deaf-based organizations and deaf individuals that were instrumental to the passing of the ADA. Today, I want to share with you three major influences from the deaf community that impacted the passing of the ADA;

1) Frank Bowe, a deaf person, and at that time founding director of the American Coalition of Citizens With Disabilities (ACCD), dissatisfied with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, led a 10-city protest in 1977 that led to the enforcement of section 504 that was fundamental to the passing of the ADA.
a. Show photo of him
2) However, before the ADA was passed in 1990, Gallaudet University’s Deaf President Now movement in 1988 spurred Congress to take action on removing communication access barriers including 1) the Telecommunications Assistance Enhancement Act (TTY’s) and 2) the Television Decoder Circuitry Act (closed captioning – interestingly which was spearheaded by Frank Bowe) which then along with the language from the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; became a part of the ADA. Because the DPN movement was in Washington DC, it had a lot of visibility by Congress and had the support of the nation’s law makers to convince Congress that laws such as the ADA was needed.
a. Show photo of Gallaudet Tower Clock and DPN images in front of Capitol
3) The chief architect and sponsor of the ADA Bill was Senator Tom Hawkin from Iowa. His brother was deaf so Mr. Hawkin growing up with his deaf brother, saw first hand the injustice and failure our government to provide effective communication access. For that reason, Mr. Hawkin made it his mission to remove communication access barriers for deaf/hard of hearing people including guaranteeing the provision of reasonable accommodations such as interpreters for public entitles such as courts and schools/universities. When Mr. Hawkin delivered the introductory speech of the ADA, a part of speech was in sign language so that his deaf brother can understand.

TOM HARKIN-
Mr. President, today is my proudest day in my 16 years of Congress. Today, the Congress opens the doors to all the Americans with disabilities.

Senator Hawkin’s speech is the first ever to be conducted in sign language from the Senate floor. Today, we declares "no" to fear, "no" to idiocracy, and "no" to prejudice. ADA is the 20th century of the Emancipation Proclamation for all Americans with disabilities.

TOMMY-
That video is Senator Harkin's speech being the first ever to be conducted in sign language from the Senate floor.

Today, we recognize the strong influence that the deaf community has contributed to the passing of the ADA.

There is still more work to be done, but today, DEAF, Inc. recognizes and celebrates this historical moment of the 25th anniversary of the ADA.

"On July 20, 2015, President Obama delivered remarks on ADA's 25th Anniversary in the East Room at White House"

PRESIDENT OBAMA-
Twenty-five years later, we come together to celebrate that groundbreaking law -- (applause) -- and all that the law has made possible. Thanks to the ADA, the places that comprise our shared American life -- schools, workplaces, movie theaters, courthouses, buses, baseball stadiums, national parks -- they truly belong to everyone. Millions of Americans with disabilities have had the chance to develop their talents and make their unique contributions to the world. And thanks to them, America is stronger and more vibrant; it is a better country because of the ADA. (Applause.) That’s what this law has achieved.