Disability Rights: Past, Present, and Future — 'A Roadmap for Disability Rights'

Abstract

This foreward contextualizes the panels and papers of the UDC Law Review's 2019 symposium on Disability Rights: Past, Present, and Future. The multidisciplinary symposium focused on the 10th anniversary of the ADA Amendments Act and the progress made towards disability justice since its enactment. It was designed to explore the ways in which disability intersects with other identities such as race, national origin, sex, gender identity, immigration, incarceration, and military status. The symposium also situated disability matters in other contemporary subjects such as employment, access to public benefits, education, housing, and voting. In different ways, the symposium explored the history of the disability movement, the present status of disability laws, and hopes for the (uncertain) future of the disability rights movement. This essay captures the voices, central themes, and perspectives shared by 45 speakers and 12 authors. It concludes with a call to action to further advance disability justice.

Keywords: Disability, ADA, ADAAA, IDEA, USERRA, FMLA, Olmstead, Workplace, Education, #MeToo, Gender-Based Violence, Gender Identity, Gender Dysphoria, Healthcare, Criminal Justice, Military, Veterans, Voting, Housing, Benefits, Disaster Planning, Caregiving