How much progress has been made in the disability rights movement?

It was moderated by Dominique Jean-Louis, who is the chief historian at BPL-CBH. Panelists for the conversation were the former Commissioner of the New York City Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) Victor Calise, disability historian and activist Warren Shaw, New York State Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon, and Executive Director of the Center for Independence of the Disabled of New York (CIDNY) Dr. Sharon McLennon-Wier.

The disability community is the largest minority, and also the most complex one because of the number of different conditions and agendas and histories that go into what amounts to a coalition, according to Shaw. He continued discussing the issue of education in the community. 

“In the education system, disability has traditionally been absent,” stated Shaw. “That has started to change in higher education. There are now more than 200 disability studies programs in the United States. That hasn’t reached the primary school level so far. The education system has made some progress, but the visibility isn’t there yet because I think most of those disability studies classes are taken by people with disabilities in the culture.” 

He added that the subject of disability should be more visible by having people with disabilities in schools, as well as guest lecturers and adjunct professors in colleges and universities. 

In discussing opportunities to help the movement grow bigger, Dr. McLennon-Wier, who is blind, said, “I think people have to recognize that being disabled can happen at any time to anybody, and I think once people realize that it can be you or me, that can also help. The other piece is the fact that disabled doesn’t mean that you are poor, you are unworthy, and you can’t achieve. I think those are the things that people think about and that keeps our community really in the bottom where we should be rising to the top.” 

Calise and Simon then shared some of the challenges and advantages of working in the system of government and using the tools inside and outside the system to engage in the politics of the movement.

Calise, a wheelchair user, stated, “People in general, when they see people inside government, they don’t think they’re working hard for them. A lot of people think they’re against them when in fact we’re trying to go against the system and advocate for people. 

We need allies outside of government to be able to push us inside government. When your voices are loud and when you vote, you make a difference. Those things matter. But if you’re not engaged in government, it does not work for you, right? One of the things that I’ve been really pushing for since I’ve been disabled is; ‘Who am I bringing along with me and where are the youth that are going to be able to carry what we’ve done?”  

Additionally, Simon shared about technology, and said even though there’s much more adaptive software being built into devices and a more universal design, nobody realizes it anymore and it can be difficult to understand new changes with it. 

“In the name of progress, we took progress away from a whole group of people and we have to really keep in mind that, as we continue progress, that progress has to include everybody and not repeat those mistakes of the past.” 

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