Robert Lanier, Chairman of the transit authority serving Houston, Texas, when asked if federal legislation should require all transit systems in the country to provide both paratransit and mainline bus accessibility, said: because if you do I think you need to provide both For some people with disabilities who lead or would like to lead spontaneous, independent lives integrated into the community, paratransit is often inadequate or inappropriate for the following reasons, among others: the need to make reservations in advance often conflicts with one's work schedule or interests in going out to restaurants and the like; the cost of rides when used frequently is often exorbitant; limitations on time of day and the number of days that the paratransit operates; waiting time; restrictions on use by guests and nondisabled companions who are excluded from accompanying the person with a disability; the expense to the public agency; and restrictions on eligibility placed on use by social service agencies. Marchell Hunt, Chairperson of an Indianapolis disability organization, prefers to use the city's buses but was forced to rely on its paratransit services because the city had only six lift-equipped buses: The day I was released from the hospital, Metro called to say that they could not pick me up even though I had scheduled my ride three weeks in advance. Currently, there are more than 100 persons on a waiting list to utilize this very limited form of accessible public transportation. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 101-57, October 6, 1989, p. 71.) However, witnesses also stressed that there are some people with disabilities who are so severely disabled that they cannot use accessible mainline transit and thus there is a need to have a paratransit system for these people. Several communities which have committed to achieving mainline accessibility have done so with the full involvement of people with disabilities both within and outside transit authorities. The results they have attained are impressive and serve to illustrate that reasons commonly provided as to why mainline accessibility cannot be accomplished reflect myths. Cambria County Transit Authority in Johnstown, Pennsylvania is 100 percent accessible and operates without problems, notwithstanding hilly terrain and inclement weather, including snow, flooding, and significant extremes in temperatures. When the decision was intitially made to make the fleet 100 percent accessible there was fear and reluctance on the part of the disability community, the drivers, and the general public. That fear and reluctance has now disappeared. The General Manager of the Cambria County Transit Authority concludes that mainline access works in his community because of the commitment of everyone to make it work. This includes a need to train and educate top management, drivers and the general public as well as the local disability community. The new generation of lifts are not having the maintenance problems experienced in the past and they can operate in inclement weather. The Architectural Transportation Barriers Compliance Board has reported that currently most problems with lift operation are the direct result of driver error and that lift maintenance is but one facet of a good maintenance program. Thus, transit, authorities reporting problems with lifts are generally those that also report problems with general maintenance. With respect to intercity transportation, the Committee learned about reasonably priced lifts that can be installed on buses which will enable people using wheelchairs to have access to these buses. This is particularly critical in rural areas where these buses are often the only mode of transportation that is available. TELECOMMUNICATIONS Gregory Hlibok, President of the Student Body Government at Gallaudet University, described some of the obstacles to daily living faced by hearing impaired people: Many of us confront discrimination every day. We have experienced the disappointment of being turned down for a job or promotion because we were told the communication barriers were too great. My own deaf brother was told he had to pay for his own interpreter on his job. We have tried to call the police for help using our telecommunications devices for the deaf, but the police hang up on us, because they had no TDD's. I remember when I was fifteen I left school without money to take the bus home. I had no way to call my parents or the police. I had to walk the 3 miles home in the snow. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education and Senate Subcommittee on the Handicapped, S. Hrng. 100-926, September 27, 1988, p. 80.) Mr. Hlibok concluded that accessible communications systems are necessary for deaf and hearing impaired people to participate equally and effectively in society. Currently, 19 States have intrastate TDD relay systems in place which enable hearing impaired and communication impaired persons who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD's) to make calls to and receive calls from individuals using voice telephones. Ten more states are scheduled to begin intrastate service within the next year. The requirement for nationwide intrastate and interstate relay services will enable deaf and hearing impaired people who use TDD's to make calls to and receive calls from individuals using voice telephones in any part of the United States, which enhance both their personal lives and employment opportunities. ENFORCEMENT Several witnesses emphasized that the rights guaranteed by the ADA are meaningless without effective enforcement provisions. Elmer Bartels, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission, stated "We know that any law is not self enforcing and that continued efforts to educate and press for policy implementation and support will be necessary." Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100-109, October 24, 1988, p. 24. Sandy Parrino related her personal experiences as the mother of two disabled children in lamenting the poor enforcement of existing federal disability rights legislation requiring school buildings to be accessible: There is not enough compliance. The village I live in, in Westchester County (N.Y.), Briar Cliff Manor . . . could not see fit to put a ramp in until just this year. Therefore physically disabled people were never able to get into that town hall. That is just one example that has certainly irritated me for many years . . . There has not been enough compliance with the 504 regulations. . . It is not enough to just have it down on the books .. Many schools do not have the elevators or the accessibilities, to this day, 13 years after the bill was enacted. They still are not accessible and the classrooms are not accessible. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education and Senate Subcommittee on the Handicapped, S. Hrng. 100926, September 27, 1988, p. 38.) Howard Wolf, Chairman of the Board of The Institute of Rehabilitation and Research and a practicing attorney in Houston, Texas, stated that successful attempts to weaken the remedies available under the ADA would make the ADA an "empty promise of equality." Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 101-56, August 28, 1989, p. 64. SUMMARY As the summary of the testimony before the Committee demonstrates, the unfortunate truth is that individuals with disabilities are a discrete, specific minority who have been insulated in many respects from the general public. Such individuals have been faced with a range of restrictions and limitations in their lives. Further, they have been subjected to unequal and discriminatory treatment in a range of areas, based on characteristics that are beyond the control of such individuals and resulting from stereotypical assumptions, fears and myths not truly indicative of the ability of such individuals to participate in and contribute to society. Finally, such individuals have often not had the political power and muscle to demand the protections that are rightfully theirs. The simple fact that this Act has taken this long to pass Congress, twenty-five years after other civil rights legislation has been passed, is a testament to that fact. This Act will finally set in place the necessary civil rights protections for people with disabilities. THE EFFECTS OF DISCRIMINATION ON INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES Discrimination has many different effects on individuals with disabilities. Arlene Mayerson of the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund testified about the nature of discrimination against people with disabilities: The discriminatory nature of policies and practices that exclude and segregate disabled people has been obscured by the unchallenged equation of disability with incapacity and by the gloss of "good intentions." The innate biological and physical 'inferiority' of disabled people is considered self-evident. This "self-evident" proposition has served to justify the exclusion and segregation of disabled people from all aspects of life. The social consequences that have attached to being disabled often bear no relationship to the physical or mental limitations imposed by the disability. For example, being paralyzed has meant far more than being unable to walk-it has meant being excluded from public schools, being denied employment opportunities, and being deemed an "unfit parent." These injustices coexist with an atmosphere of charity and concern for disabled people. (Testimony before House Subcommittees on Select Education and Employment Opportunities, Ser. No. 101-51, September 13, 1989, pp. 78-79.) Sandy Parrino, Chairperson of the National Council on Disability explained that: Disability does not mean incompetence. The perception that persons with disabilities are dependent by nature is the result of discriminatory attitudes, not the result of disability. (Testimony before House Subcommittees on Select Education and Employment Opportunities, Ser. No. 10137, July 18, 1989, p. 71.) Charles Crawford, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, explained that: For far too long and far too many centuries, disabled people have felt the pain of discrimination, of being held separate, at being looked at as different, as somehow being viewed as lesser . . . I personally have felt the discrimination, the isolation, the sense of helplessness and the sense of no ability to relate to other people because they have shut me out. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100-109, October 24, 1988, p. 27.) Charles Sabatier stated: Sometimes we get robbed of our dignity, our self-respect, we swallow insults on a daily basis to continue to get along in our society. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100-109, October 24, 1988, p. 36.) Emeka Nwojke made the same point when he said: It is the elimination of dignity associated with being a human being that I am talking about. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100- Judith Heumann explained that: In the past disability has been a cause of shame. This forced acceptance of second-class citizenship has stripped us as disabled people of pride and dignity... This stigma scars for life. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education and Senate Subcommittee on the Handicapped, S. Hrng. 100-926, September 27, 1988, p. 74.) Larry Espling stated: At the ethnic festival in Waltham in 1986, I wanted to buy a book on Lithuania at one of the booths. The person sitting thee said, "Why do you want this book? You can't read." Another misconception is that if a person with cerebral palsy marries, any children will have C.P. I know of two C.P. couples with normal children. It's not hereditary People say things sometimes as if you can't hear them. I was on a bus and two men near me said, "He'll be put away." I've had things like that happen before. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100-109, October 24, 1988, p. 188.) Virginia Domini explained: You know the general public doesn't want to see you doing your laundry, being a case worker, a shopper, or a Mom. It is difficult to see yourself as a valuable member of society, and sometimes it is hard to see yourself as a person worthy of so much more respect than you get from the general public. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100-109, October 24, 1988, p. 87.) Discrimination produces fear and reluctance to participate on the part of people with disabilities. Fear of mistreatment and discrimination, and the existence of architectural, transportation, and communication barriers, are critical reasons why individuals with disabilities do not participate to the same extent as nondisabled people in public accommodations and transportation. Ruth Long, Peer Advocate Counselor for the Vermont Center for Independent Living testified about the factors that isolate people with disabilities, and how they are amplified by the rural factor. "Nobody believes that there is really a disabled community in the State of Vermont because they are invisible," she stated. (Testimony before House Subcommittee on Select Education, Ser. No. 100109, October 24, 1988, p. 185.) Discrimination results in social isolation and in some cases sui cide. Justin Dart testified before the Committee about how his brother and two other family members had committed suicide because of their disabilities and about a California woman, a mother and a TV director before becoming disabled, who said to him: |