0:00:01.400,0:00:02.650 So, 0:00:02.760,0:00:04.560 My name is Michelle ..... 0:00:04.680,0:00:06.320 I am a social psychologist and 0:00:06.370,0:00:08.380 teach at .......... College 0:00:08.519,0:00:11.404 in psychology and biomedical[br]humanities program 0:00:11.437,0:00:15.727 and I just wrote a book on Abilism[br]the causes and consequences 0:00:15.727,0:00:18.967 of disability prejudice.[br]My first memory 0:00:18.967,0:00:21.267 and I'll just back up and say in 1990, 0:00:21.267,0:00:23.730 when the ADA passed [br]I was in graduate school, 0:00:23.769,0:00:33.134 in Kansas, and disability prejudice,[br]the ADA or anything 0:00:33.134,0:00:38.954 related to disability issues [br]were completely off my radar, 0:00:38.954,0:00:43.578 and I worked at a place [br]where one of the pioneers 0:00:43.578,0:00:46.756 of disability studies worked, [br]Beatrice Wright, 0:00:46.756,0:00:50.396 and I had yet to have a class with her. 0:00:50.396,0:00:53.876 It really wasn't until 1995,[br]which was five years later, 0:00:53.876,0:00:58.566 when my daughter was born,[br]Sierra, with spina bifoda, 0:00:58.566,0:01:03.394 that I became aware [br]of disability and found the work 0:01:03.394,0:01:08.862 of Carol Gill and Simi Litton[br]and began to educate myself 0:01:08.862,0:01:15.348 on disability studies and its scope,[br]and the first memory I have of 0:01:15.348,0:01:22.571 confronting inaccessible spaces[br]was a few years later, when we enrolled 0:01:22.571,0:01:26.520 my daughter Sierra in a preschool,[br]at a Catholic preschool, 0:01:26.520,0:01:31.915 right down the road; and it just didn't[br]even dawn on me that we would have to 0:01:31.915,0:01:36.388 work so hard for her to be accommodated[br]as a preschooler, 0:01:36.472,0:01:41.209 and it was really a function of[br]the fact that the building was older, 0:01:41.252,0:01:47.109 there were steps, and they really didn't[br]know, nor did they need to legally know, 0:01:47.142,0:01:52.554 about reasonable accommodations [br]and civil rights of their students, 0:01:52.554,0:01:59.595 because they were a private facility and[br]weren't subject to the ADA's rules. 0:01:59.622,0:02:05.803 So it became clear to me that we needed [br]to find a new preschool, and luckily 0:02:05.851,0:02:10.461 we found another private place - [br]it wasn't a public school - 0:02:10.512,0:02:14.346 but it was a music school settlement[br]and they had resources 0:02:14.369,0:02:18.947 and they were already operating [br]under a sort of set of presumptions 0:02:18.989,0:02:23.216 about the value of diversity[br]and diverse perspectives, 0:02:23.263,0:02:28.998 and we didn't really have to ask for much,[br]because they bent over backwards 0:02:29.030,0:02:34.284 to include my daughter[br]in a typical classroom, with her peers, 0:02:34.324,0:02:38.987 her preschool peers, music classes,[br]there were so many eclectic-- 0:02:39.023,0:02:44.557 movement classes, and they even[br]purchased equipment 0:02:44.599,0:02:52.269 for their exercise room and movement room[br]that would be useful to her among others, 0:02:52.335,0:02:59.368 and she has since grown up to become this teacher [br]and has applied to work there 0:02:59.437,0:03:02.457 as a preschool teacher, so I think[br]it would be really amazing 0:03:02.457,0:03:08.531 if she came full circle, but I guess[br]to answer the broader question 0:03:08.531,0:03:14.820 about being frustrated and aware of[br]inaccessibility and lack of inclusion, 0:03:15.538,0:03:20.904 we were in a district that, when she then[br]was about to move to preschool, 0:03:21.020,0:03:25.272 I knew that she probably wouldn't be [br]able to go to a private school, 0:03:25.337,0:03:30.479 not only because of the financial cost[br]but also because they would not have to 0:03:30.524,0:03:34.471 think about best practices[br]and the law when it came to 0:03:34.568,0:03:37.441 accommodating their [br]students with disabilities, 0:03:37.500,0:03:41.293 and so I knew we would be[br]looking at the public school, 0:03:41.323,0:03:45.201 and the public school in our neigbourhood[br]was not accessible. 0:03:45.401,0:03:49.384 We went to visit it,[br]the playground had a little house 0:03:49.694,0:03:52.046 that she wouldn't have been [br]able to get into, 0:03:52.254,0:03:55.876 and it was really disheartening[br]and so it came at a time 0:03:55.876,0:03:58.340 when we were already [br]looking for other opportunities, 0:03:58.393,0:04:01.573 and my husband got an opportunity[br]to move us as a family 0:04:01.660,0:04:04.079 to the West Coast[br]of Portland of Oregon, 0:04:04.162,0:04:10.507 so the way I-- so the way we had to[br]navigate her early educational experiences 0:04:10.574,0:04:17.591 was to only look at spaces and schools[br]that were in districts that were new, 0:04:17.647,0:04:23.109 so that had buildings [br]and had training in terms of 0:04:23.178,0:04:26.311 accommodating their diverse students[br]and their disabled students, 0:04:26.369,0:04:31.262 because just having the brief experiences[br]that I did with the preschool 0:04:31.319,0:04:38.810 and IEP meetings that were going to[br]require me to fight at every juncture 0:04:38.868,0:04:42.941 for her basic rights [br]to show what she knows 0:04:42.976,0:04:47.312 and participate and recognize herself[br]as a valuable contributor 0:04:47.360,0:04:50.910 to the school community.[br]We're not going to be forthcoming 0:04:50.943,0:04:54.411 without a fight, [br]and so we narrowed our search 0:04:54.454,0:04:57.194 to a district,[br]and thank God we had the opportunity 0:04:57.221,0:05:02.445 and the resources to do this,[br]that was pretty known for their 0:05:02.513,0:05:04.012 inclusivity. 0:05:04.095,0:05:07.731 We did that also when we came back [br]to the Cleveland, Ohio area. 0:05:07.806,0:05:12.346 We were able to avoid all districts[br]that weren't at the cutting edge 0:05:12.412,0:05:16.514 of full inclusion and proof of excellence[br]and had newer buildings 0:05:16.583,0:05:19.333 that could accommodate those [br]with disabilities, 0:05:19.373,0:05:25.867 but I guess that that was my earliest[br]memory of how, 'Oh, we have a road 0:05:25.918,0:05:32.402 ahead of us and we have to take it upon[br]ourselves to either continue to fight 0:05:32.468,0:05:40.316 battles that had already been won, [br]legislatively, or, finds spaces, places 0:05:40.379,0:05:42.932 and organizations that were ahead[br]of the curve 0:05:42.982,0:05:50.434 in terms of implementing, monitoring and [br]just execute the basic civil rights 0:05:50.484,0:05:52.938 of their various constituents 0:05:53.016,0:05:58.568 The impact that all of that has had on me [br]is to just be able to communicate 0:05:58.640,0:06:02.284 with other parents and students [br]with disabilities 0:06:02.334,0:06:09.035 about not only knowing their rights but[br]knowing how to get those rights 0:06:09.086,0:06:17.342 how to advocate for ensuring that those [br]rights are addressed, are met. 0:06:17.408,0:06:21.139 I think the ADA has made [br]a huge difference 0:06:21.202,0:06:24.755 and the 'ah ha' moment was even when I was[br]collating information for this book 0:06:24.807,0:06:28.922 on disability prejudice, I realised that [br]when I was a kid, 0:06:28.956,0:06:33.641 when I was growing up in the 60s and 70s, [br]people with disabilities weren't able to 0:06:33.693,0:06:39.357 do any of the things that we took for [br]granted as kids- go to the movies 0:06:39.432,0:06:44.474 go to restaurants, go to visit a friend,[br]at a friend's house, or invite 0:06:44.546,0:06:46.725 others to your birthday parties. 0:06:46.779,0:06:54.992 Since the ADA passed in 1990, it wasn't [br]an immediate set of changes, 0:06:55.011,0:07:01.842 as, there has been significant progress[br]made, particularly in public spaces 0:07:01.927,0:07:07.910 and in employment settings, where there[br]are even employers 0:07:07.959,0:07:13.827 who are part of an organization [br]of inclusive excellence, who 0:07:13.876,0:07:18.677 recognize that disabled employees are [br]actually more reliable and 0:07:18.724,0:07:23.145 have less turnover and are worth[br]investing in and promoting. 0:07:23.229,0:07:28.810 But, there are still so many places, [br]small businesses, educational institutions 0:07:28.937,0:07:41.383 that are not carrying out basic gains and[br]practices that the ADA has made possible 0:07:41.458,0:07:45.131 there's just way too much variation,[br]and I think part of that 0:07:45.232,0:07:48.983 is just a lack of education in terms what 0:07:49.135,0:07:54.635 is reasonable and what is necessary 0:07:54.711,0:07:56.933 in terms of accommodating your citizenry 0:07:57.008,0:08:01.185 and lack of resources in some cases but 0:08:01.260,0:08:03.633 also a lot of misinformation about whether 0:08:03.734,0:08:08.236 or not it's worth it. The ADA is going to 0:08:08.293,0:08:12.462 be 30 here in July. We're celebrating all 0:08:12.544,0:08:15.543 over the country and we are still fighting 0:08:15.638,0:08:19.813 for businesses to do what they should have 0:08:19.914,0:08:22.316 done 30 years ago, those that have been 0:08:22.392,0:08:25.493 around this long. They have not, they have 0:08:25.563,0:08:27.769 have waited for complaints or they have 0:08:27.846,0:08:31.416 failed to do but the bare minimum in 0:08:31.466,0:08:34.871 terms of recruiting the largest minority 0:08:34.922,0:08:37.693 I work in the education sphere and to me, 0:08:37.792,0:08:40.220 we could be doing so much more with 0:08:40.318,0:08:42.820 advertising and recruiting for those kinds 0:08:42.943,0:08:45.621 of students that we tend to really, at 0:08:45.697,0:08:49.244 least my institution, do well to retain 0:08:49.395,0:08:52.944 because we're a small, intimate college 0:08:53.019,0:08:55.847 Hiram College. For years I've tried to 0:08:55.922,0:08:59.624 encourage us to consider more universally 0:08:59.723,0:09:02.348 designed approaches but also approaches 0:09:02.451,0:09:06.949 that do more when it comes to housing and 0:09:07.022,0:09:09.600 extracurricular accommodations for 0:09:09.678,0:09:12.398 students to who use mobility devices. For 0:09:12.525,0:09:15.424 example, my daughter ended up having to be 0:09:15.577,0:09:18.251 carried in her chair, to various club 0:09:18.449,0:09:20.556 meetings while she was on the Hiram 0:09:20.653,0:09:24.503 College campus. She was told that, [br]during the 0:09:24.554,0:09:28.102 winter, when the ice storms came, that 0:09:28.141,0:09:30.561 they couldn't transport her up the long 0:09:30.561,0:09:33.172 hill, while they were[br]telling everyone 0:09:33.192,0:09:37.324 else to walk like a penguin, and we had 0:09:37.324,0:09:41.271 vans to do this. We had to file with the 0:09:41.271,0:09:45.332 Ohio Disability Rights Commission and 0:09:45.408,0:09:48.242 request that the school thinks about other 0:09:48.242,0:09:50.506 ways of accommodating her should there 0:09:50.506,0:09:52.558 be a storm, an ice storm, and she can't 0:09:52.633,0:09:55.177 get up to campus.[br]And the solution 0:09:55.177,0:09:57.787 was to have her move to a[br]new dorm. 0:09:57.787,0:10:00.012 You can't just do that over night. 0:10:00.012,0:10:01.862 You can't just move all your bedding 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and all your bathroom supplies 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and your whole... you know at the moment's 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 notice, when the weather changes 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and so it has been my experience that 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 still a lot of places have done[br]the bare minimum approach 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and think that that's all they need to do 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 when instead, they could be following more 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 of the latest practices and [br]implementation's science 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and making it easier for people to 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 register concerns or complaints.