Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Sped 117 Final Project
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Statement of the Issue
Despite having the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in place, people with disabilities often face discrimination either at their workplace or during recruitment. A survey done in 2004 showed that only 35% of people with disabilities who are employable are employed compared to the employment rate of 78% (United Nations, 2021). Discrimination and stereotypes continue to slow down the impact of the enacted law.
Defining the Issue
* The U.S. economy was primarily agricultural-based in the 17th to 19th century, and many people with disabilities contributed to their families’ income. Those who were severely disabled had to rely on others for assistance.
* In the mid-1600s, American colonists designed discriminatory laws where disabled people were banned from social events, hidden, disowned, or neglected. People who developed disabilities later in life had a chance to be incorporated into the workforce as they had the expertise and experience in their work areas.
* As the United States economy became industrialized, people moved from working in farms to industries. As more people moved to urban centers, the urge to define productive and unproductive labor increased, thus increasing the unemployment rate for the disabled to the point that they needed management because of their numbers (Borghouts-van de Pas & Freese, 2017).
* In 1832, Samuel Gridley Howe established a school for the blind and instilled hope that they could have careers in the future (Wolfensberger, 2021).
* After World War 1, programs to rehabilitate veterans who became disabled were established under the Insurance Act Amendments of 1917. The Smith-Fess act began rehabilitation for all disabled U.S. citizens in 1920.
* In 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) was formed to protest against discrimination, leading to 1500 jobs. In 1940, The American Federation of the Physically Handicapped called for a National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week, enacted and declared law in 1945.
* In 1960, the Social Security Amendments ruled that disabled workers receiving benefits had to be above 50 years. In 1964, President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act, which prohibited discrimination based on race, religion, and ethnicity.
* In 1971, the U.S amended the Fair Labour Standard Act of 1938 to include disabled people in the sheltered workshop system.
* 1n 1986, the U.S passed the Employment Opportunities for Disabled Americans Act to allow the disabled to retain benefits after being employed.
* In 1990, President George Bush signed the ADA act to provide civil rights protections for the disabled (Office of Disability Employment Policy, 2020). It instructed that public and commercial facilities make necessary modifications to allow access to people with disabilities.
* Since 1990, various amendments and laws have been enacted to continue sensitizing people about the inclusion of the disabled in society and workplaces.
Legal Considerations
In 1990, President George W. Bush signed the ADA into law. In 1992, the U.S amended the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to emphas...