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Disabilities
 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 9 to 12
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   8.9

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    complaint-driven, deep-seated, inaccessible, non-veterans, violation, accessible, oppressive, complaint, prior, mandate, tremendous, comprehensive, pension, lawsuit, wretched, burdens
     content words:    After World War, Franklin D., Social Security Program, Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, Harold Russell, World War II, George Solas, Rhode Island, Judi Chamberlin

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Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
By Phyllis Naegeli 		  
1     America is called the "Land of Opportunity." The Statue of Liberty invites many to our country with the words:

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me.
I lift my lamp beside the golden door."

 
2     For many groups of people the battle for liberty, civil rights, and equal access has been hard fought. This includes people who are disabled. After World War I, many soldiers returned from battle permanently disabled. Prior to this war, the government granted a pension to disabled veterans. However, the help they needed to readjust to life with a disability was missing. The government stepped in to help. Now disabled veterans were given the opportunity to learn skills needed to find work and regain their daily activities. However, disabled non-veterans were still without assistance until 1935. Under the direction of Franklin D. Roosevelt (who himself was disabled due to polio), the Social Security Program was formed. This program included payments to the permanently disabled to assist them in living. After centuries of being thought of as "burdens to society," public sentiment towards the disabled began to change.
 
3     However, change is difficult. The barriers in society for the disabled to overcome were tremendous. Not only were there deep-seated fears and misunderstandings in the minds of people, there were physical barriers that needed to be changed. People who used wheelchairs could not gain access to many public buildings. Phones, water fountains, and even fire alarms were inaccessible to those who used wheelchairs. The deaf and blind were unable to receive many types of information. Many changes were needed.

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