The History They Left Out

On Columbus Day, I traveled to Buffalo, New York with Regional Center for Independent Living’s Youth Leadership group, YO! – Youth Own to visit the Museum of disABILITY History then to take a tour of the University at Buffalo campus! The campus visit was great, but for this blog I want to talk to you about our tour of the museum exhibit.

There was considerable history I already knew about, things I didn’t know and things that, in my opinion, were completely left out. As the tour took place, I was already aware of some of the attitudes society had about people with disabilities throughout history, and that our people were used as entertainment, segregated from society, or simply killed because we were seen as a burden. Folks used words like “lame, stupid, crippled” and many other derogatory terms to describe us. We were beaten, raped, abused, punished, locked away in asylums and so much more. We have come a long way since then, with so much work to still be done, so what I would really like to talk about are the things that were left out.

A lot of our history is still happening today. People with disabilities continue to be segregated from society. We are still being institutionalized and viewed as burdens. The oppression of people with disabilities remains today, but there are strong movements that have been fighting against this for many years, and we have made a lot of changes in society as a result of these movements. The museum left out the Independent Living and Disability Rights movements that started with Ed Roberts in the 1960s. They also left out the fight for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that started in the late 1980s then later signed into law at the White House on July 26, 1990.

Many activists with and without disabilities have been at the forefront of the fight for access, equality, and civil rights for many years. Only a few of those names were mentioned. They forgot to mention Anita Cameron, Justin Dart & Yoshiko Dart, Bob Kafka, and many other members of National ADAPT and the Disability Community who put their lives on the line for our rights and freedom. If you are not involved with the Disability Community, you will most likely not recognize some of the names I have listed. But this is the history that I have been taught from my mentors.

I was taught we didn’t always have curb cuts. I have learned about ableism, which is the idea that people with disabilities are less than people without disabilities. I was also taught public buses weren’t always equipped with ramps and our community was told it would be impossible to install them. Many activists refused to accept that as an answer, and people blocked buses across the country to change it. There are also many local and national Fallen Warriors (http://www.rcilyo.org/fallen-warriors/) that were at the forefront of this fight and many other fights. None of us would benefit from the ADA if it weren’t for all the passionate people that were in the trenches, fighting for a more accessible world.

Although our community continues to face many issues, I am forever grateful for the activism in our history. We need to reflect on our past in order to fight for a better future. When talking about our history, I urge you to remember there are many things being left out. People with disabilities are still being segregated from our community, forced into institutions, paid subminimum wages, and discriminated against. Our fight is far from over.

Contact: Jensen Caraballo