The theme for Women's History Month changes annually and, over the years, more diverse perspectives have shaped the annual celebration. But the foremost goal of the month remains the same: to provide education on how women helped shape the nation and to empower children by introducing them to historical role models. As an organization that trains both mobility service and autism service animals for children with special needs, one name stood out, Judith Heumann. “The mother of disability rights”, Judith Heumann pioneered so many things that we take for granted today going from “fire hazard” to total girl boss.
Born in 1947, Judith contracted polio at 2-years-old, and permanently lost her ability to walk. When Judith Heumann tried to enter school at the age of five the principal physically blocked her stating that her attendance at the school would be a “fire hazard.” Not unlike our W.A.G.S mothers, Judith Heumann’s mother refused to accept this discrimination. Through her mother’s determination, Heumann was able to attend a special elementary school and a public high school.
It was through watching her mother fight for her rights that Judith’s own passion for advocacy was sparked. The first of many battles for inclusion began during her college years when Heumann organized students to start demanding ramps for access to classrooms. Entering the workforce, she once again faced exclusion. In 1970, Judith’s teaching license was rejected because administrators feared she couldn’t evacuate both herself and her students during a fire. Heumann took the New York City school system to court in a landmark trial Heumann v. Board of Education of the City of New York. A local newspaper ran a headline of 'You Can Be President, Not Teacher, with Polio'. Heumann won becoming the first teacher in New York City to use a wheelchair. Judith Hermann’s fight for equal rights was just getting started.
Through Heumann’s trial experience her focus turned to policy work and advocacy as she had become a beacon for persons with disabilities throughout the country and received many letters, inspiring her to found Disabled in Action (DIA) in 1970, an organization that focused on securing the protection of people with disabilities under civil rights laws through political protest. Originally called Handicapped in Action, Heumann disliked that name and lobbied to change it.
Early versions of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 were vetoed by President Richard Nixon in October 1972 and March 1973. In 1972, DIA demonstrated in New York City with a sit-in protesting one of the vetoes. Led by Heumann, eighty activists staged this sit-in on Madison Avenue, stopping traffic. It wasn’t until 1973 that Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act was introduced stating, “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States shall, solely by reason of his or her disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” After twice being vetoed, the Rehabilitation Act was signed by President Richard M. Nixon. But four years later, the law had yet to be implemented.
During this time (1975 – 78), Heumann worked as Deputy Director for the Center of Independent Living where she was an early adopter of the Independent Living Movement. Heumann is credited for the implementation of legislation at the national level for programs in special education, disability research, vocational rehabilitation, and independent living, serving more than 8 million youth and adults with disabilities. She can also be credited with assisting in developing legislation that became the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Turning her attentions back to New York in 1977, it became clear that the administration had no plans to put Rehabilitation Act regulations in place as Joseph Califano, U.S. Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, refused to sign meaningful regulations for Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which was the first U.S. federal civil rights protection for people with disabilities. Califano had issued orders that no meals or medication would be allowed in the HEW federal building to force them out, and frustration erupted.
A sit-in led by Heumann, supported by the Black Panther Party with meals and snacks, was put into action that lasted a total of 28 days, the longest sit-in at a federal building to date. Legislators signed both Education of All Handicapped Children and Section 504 on April 28, 1977. The signing of Section 504 laid the foundation for the writing of the Americans with Disabilities Act and was the first legislation in American history to recognize people with disabilities as contributing members of society.
“We were creating a community that hadn’t existed earlier,” Ms. Heumann said, reflecting on the lasting effects of the sit-in. “We stayed together because people were recognizing and really were believing that we could make a difference.” Forty-five years later W.A.G.S 4 Kids is proud to be a part of that community, we know that the children in our W.A.G.S family have and will make a difference.
Heumann went on to co-found the World Institute on Disability and hold multiple special offices representing disability rights including the first Director for the Department on Disability Services for the Mayor of the District of Columbia and as the Clinton Administration’s Assistant Secretary of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services at the US Department of Education from 1993 to 2001 and the first Special Advisor on International Disability Rights for the U.S. State Department appointed by President Barack Obama.
W.A.G.S 4 Kids is lucky enough to have been founded during a time when laws were already in place that prohibited discrimination against individuals with disabilities but there was a time when that was not the case. And yet, discrimination against persons with disabilities continues to exist on the macro and micro level. Let us continue to celebrate the ones that came before us and continue their work in advocating for accessibility and inclusion always….in all ways….
Sources: