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The Americans with Disability Act Amendments Act: the Forgotten Civil Right

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The Americans with Disability Act Amendments Act: the Forgotten Civil Right The Americans with Disability Act Amendments Act: The Forgotten Civil Right Interviewer: Isabelle Jeppsen Interviewee: Andy Imparato Instructor: Amanda Freeman February 10, 2016 Jeppsen 2 Table of Contents Statement of Purpose 3 Interview Release Form 4 Interviewer Release Form 5 Biography 6 "Disability History of The ADA and The ADAA" 8 Interview Transcription 20 Interview Analysis 46 Works Consulted 52 Jeppsen 3 Statement of Purpose The purpose of this oral history project and interview with Andy Imparato is to create a primary source document of the Americans with Disability Act Amendments Act of 2008 (“ADAA”). By reading this oral history project, one will understand the significance of The ADAA, the need for greater protections for individuals with disabilities, and that the fight for the rights of individuals with disabilities as a forgotten civil right. Jeppsen 4 Jeppsen 5 Jeppsen 6 Biography Andy Imparato was born in Huntington, New York in 1965. He spent part of his early childhood in Scarsdale, NY and Westchester, NY and then moved to Los Angeles, California. While in California, Imparato went to a public high school in Beverly Hills and graduated in 1983. From 1983-1987, he attended Yale as an undergraduate. After Yale, he attended Stanford Law School and received his Juris Doctor (J.D) in 1990. After law school he moved to Boston, Massachusetts where he completed a two-year Jeppsen 7 fellowship working in the Disability Law Center, advocating for children and adults with disabilities. It was through his fellowship, as well as his own experience with bipolar disorder, that he was inspired to continue working for the disability community. Imparato eventually moved to Washington, DC, where he worked under Senator Harkin twice, from 1993-1994 for the Senate Subcommittee on Disability Policy, and from 2010- 2013 as a senior counsel and disability policy director on The Senate Committee of Education, Labor, Health, and Pensions. Andy Imparato was a key figure in the legislation of the ADAA. In 2007, he testified before the House Education and Labor Committee in support of the Amendments and eventually helped the bill pass with overwhelming bipartisan support. Imparato also served from 1999-2010, as the CEO and President of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), one of the nation’s largest disability rights organizations. In 2013, Imparato became the Executive Director of the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD). AUCD is a network of interdisciplinary centers advancing policy and practice for and with individuals with developmental and other disabilities, their families, and communities. Mr. Imparato maintains an inspiring and unifying view of disability, that "disability is a human issue and can bring the world together". He is passionate about ensuring that younger generations are educated on the rights and protections for individuals with disabilities and that they learn to advocate for themselves. Jeppsen 8 Disability History of The ADA & The ADAA Neil Marcus, an artist and playwright in the disability community, stated that "Disability is not a brave struggle or 'courage in the face of adversity.' Disability is an art. It's an ingenious way to live" (Langtree Ian ). Neil Marcus profoundly shed a positive light on having a disability, but as later discussed, society can differing other views on disability. Therefore, in order to understand the perspective of someone who participated in the ADAA, it is important to first examine the history of discrimination of disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a disability as "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of such individual." This definition of disability provides for a broad range and type of disability (JAN Department of Labor Office). Discrimination against individuals with disabilities was prevalent for a long time and became a major cause of the disability movement. Discrimination most often took the form of exclusion from many basic life activities, including the right to vote, hold office, access to employment, facilities, transportation, and even the ability to hold a driver’s license. (Rouse, Ralph D). One of the more severe examples of the discrimination against individuals with disabilities was The Ugly Laws. The Ugly Laws stated "any person who is diseased, maimed, mutilated, or in any way deformed so as to be an unsightly or disgusting object, or an improper person." (Schweick). The Ugly laws were enforced mostly in cities such as, Chicago, New Orleans, Philadelphia and New York. The words “unsightly”, and “improper”, underscore the disdain for individuals with disabilities who were exposed in public in the city streets. The laws aimed at controlling appearance, therefore forcing Jeppsen 9 disabled individuals to feel invisible and hidden (Schweick). The diction “disgusting” portrays individuals with disabilities as being "contaminants" to the community. (Schweick) Another significant basis for the disability movement was its correlation with the 1960's civil rights movement. During the 1970s, a disability rights group known as Americans Disabled for Accessible Public Transportation (APADT) became a voice for the movement, protesting access to buses and making sure that buses were equipped with lifts. Reverend Wade Blank, a non-disabled director of a nursing home serving individuals with disabilities, founded APADT. Other key players were Evan Kemp and Diane Coleman, who both had physical disabilities and were wheelchair users (Minnesota Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities). Similarly, the bus was an important symbol during the civil rights movement, where the bus sparked the fight for equal rights, thereby demonstrating the correlation between the disability and civil rights movements. ADAPT continues to be an important supporter and promoter of disability rights in the 21 century. (Transcription) One of the most significant pieces of legislations that contributed to the ADA was The Section 504 regulations of The 1973 Rehabilitation Act, which was signed into law on September 26, 1973. On April 26, 1977 President Ford sent an executive order to The U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (H.E.W.) to aid in the regulations. A year later California signed the regulations, which became known as The HEW Section 504 regulations. The significance of Section 504 Regulations was to promote equality for qualified disabled individuals by ensuring their participation and freedom from discrimination in programs and services funded by the government. (Rouse, Ralph D) Jeppsen 10 Therefore Section 504 served as one of the first regulations to promote non- discrimination against individuals with disabilities, serving as a basis for the protections we have today. Court cases also served as an important basis for the ADA. One of the first federal discriminations actions based on disability was brought before the Supreme Court in 1979, in the case, South Eastern Community College vs. Davis. Davis was a student with a hearing disability who was interested in the nursing program at South Eastern Community College. South Eastern Community College denied admission to Davis, stating that she was not qualified to participate in the program, as she could not fulfill all of the clinical requirements. Section 504 was given little deference and the Court ruled against Davis. This ruling was clearly a set back for individuals with disabilities and the disability rights community. However, in 1984, the disability community had a victory in the Supreme Court decision, Consolidated Rail Corporation v. Darrone, where the Court upheld the application of Section 504. The central issue in Consolidated Rail Corporation v. Darrone was whether employment discrimination was covered under Section 504. Darrone was not only seeking protection for individuals with disabilities who had been discriminated against in the workplace and to test the validity of Section 504, protections, but also educate the highest Court in the United States. In order to effectively educate the Court, The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREF) filed an amicus brief in support of the application of Section 504 with respect to discrimination in employment. The Supreme Court became educated and applied Section 504 in the Darrone case. (Mayerson) Jeppsen 11 Unfortunately, for those advocating for disability rights, in the 1980's during the Regan Administration, Reagan created the Presidential Task Force on Regulatory Relief. The Task Force stated that Section 504 was to be deregulated, and therefore it should not be enforced. The disability community fought against the position of the Presidential Task Force by writing letters to the White House, calling for regulation under Section 504. These persuasive efforts were effective and the Regulations of Section 504 were ultimately enforced and efforts at de-regulation were stopped. Section 504 Regulations became an important warning sign to Government that discrimination based on disability would not be allowed, while also providing the basis for the greatest law in support of individuals with disabilities, the ADA. (Arlene Mayerson). Section 504 recognized the disability community as a group, a group where everyone faced the same discrimination. It also recognized individuals with disabilities as persons with fundamental civil rights worthy of protection under our laws (Mayerson). In addition to passing the Rehabilitation
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