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By Lance Robertson, Assistant Secretary for Aging and
Administrator, ACL
Twenty nine years ago today, our country took an important
step toward affirming the dignity and civil right of people with
disabilities when President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) into law.
Today, an entire generation of people with disabilities has grown up with
the protections, rights, and higher expectations offered by the ADA,
including many who are now leaders within the disability networks ACL
funds. Millions more who have acquired disabilities over the course of
their lives have also benefited from the more accessible and inclusive
world created by the ADA. Their experiences serve as living proof that with
the right services, supports, accommodations, and expectations community
living can work for all who seek it. Their experiences have also shown us
how much our communities and workplaces can benefit when we include people
with diverse abilities and perspectives.
The past 29 years have also taught us that fostering communities where
people of all ages and abilities are included requires us to work on many
fronts at once. This is why ACL funds such a diverse network of grantees
which at any given moment are working to protect rights, conduct rigorous
research, develop innovative new technology, reform systems, coordinate
services, train self-advocates and family-advocates and much more. It is
also why we are so committed to engaging our partners across federal,
state, and local government.
One area of particular interest for ACL and our federal partners is
promoting competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities.
Work is about more than a paycheck. It also is a source of dignity,
economic independence, and pride. This is why we are so excited to be
leading a first-of-its-kind multi-agency task force for the employment of
people with disabilities that will harness each agency’s expertise and
resources as part of a coordinated effort to improve employment outcomes
for peoples with disabilities.
ACL has also been working with the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services and states around the country to promote person-centered thinking and practice
and to help states
comply with the Home and Community-Based Settings rule. And our
partners at the U.S. Department of Justice have been
enforcing the Supreme Court's landmark Olmstead v. L.C. ruling
clarifying that under the ADA, people with disabilities cannot be
unnecessarily segregated and must receive services in the most integrated
setting possible.
Speaking of Olmstead, last month ACL hosted a celebration
of the twentieth anniversary of that decision. We heard from many important
people that day, but for me the most important voices were those of the
people with disabilities who have experienced the ADA's impact first hand.
These voices included Kayla McKeon, the manager of grassroots advocacy for
the National Down Syndrome Society and the first registered lobbyist with
Down syndrome; Liz Weintraub, senior advocacy specialist for the
Association of University Centers on Disabilities; and Kimberly Tissot, CEO
of the Able SC Center for Independent Living. If you haven’t already, I
would encourage you to watch the
full video of the event.
McKeon told us that living in the community gives her a voice
and independence.
“Community living is so crucial in today’s society,” she said.
"Being independent lets me work on my life goals such as grocery
shopping, going to the bank ... finding recipes that allow me to maintain a
healthy lifestyle, and making a meal for my family,"
ACL was formed around the belief that all people with
disabilities should be able to live where they choose, with the people they
choose, and participate fully in their communities. The ADA has helped make
this vision of community living possible for McKeon and millions of other
Americans of all ages with disabilities.
As we celebrate this progress, we also look forward to the
future and knocking down the remaining barriers to community living
encountered by Americans with disabilities.
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