The Americans with Disabilities Act celebrates 35th anniversary.

  A common joke in the disability community is, “I’m only in this for the parking spaces.” Those blue signs with the wheelchair silhouette that signify parking spaces for people with disabilities usually are located closer to a store, movie theater, library, restaurant, park, beach or other public facility than the rest of the spaces.

The parking spaces were not always as ubiquitous as they are today. After my cervical spinal cord injury, I left a rehabilitation hospital in 1972 in my wheelchair and started riding in cars. Back then, the so-called handicap spaces were as rare as drivers today who don’t speed, honk their horns only when absolutely necessary, never look at their phones and don't toss trash out the window.

We have gained a lot more than parking spaces in those 53 years. It strains my brain to list all the accommodations we take for granted now: ramps, wide doors, elevators, curb cuts on sidewalks, Braille signs, crosswalks with the blinking yellow lights, wide stalls and lower sinks in public bathrooms. 

A couple of pieces of legislation made our lives a lot easier. The first was the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. I see it as the flip phone of disability rights. It prohibits discrimination based on disability in federal agencies and entities that receive federal funds, such as public schools.  

The second one was a life changer, for tens of  millions of Americans: The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was like the first personal computer or the smart phone of the disability movement. It changed life as we knew it for the better. 

The ADA is a federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in every day activities. The ADA guarantees that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to enjoy employment opportunities and participate in state and local programs. The law affects housing, public transportation and access to private businesses such as retail stores, movie theaters, fitness centers, hotels and other facilities that are open to the public. The ADA is complex and has many components that I will cover in future posts.

Events that mark the 35th anniversary of the ADA take place this week nationwide and locally.

On Wednesday July 23 in Stamford, city officials and members of the mayor’s ADA Advisory Council will speak at a rally/walk from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the city’s Cove Island Park.

Greenwich is scheduled to host an ADA anniversary event Friday July 25 at 12:30 p.m. at the Cohen Eastern Greenwich Civic Center.

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