Disabled Rights: American Disability Policy and the Fight for Equality

by Jacqueline Vaughn

"Freedom and Justice for all" is a phrase that can have a hollow ring for many members of the disability community in the United States. Jacqueline Vaughn Switzer gives us a comprehensive introduction to and overview of U.S. disability policy in all facets of society, including education, the workplace, and social integration. Disabled Rights provides an interdisciplinary approach to the history and politics of the disability rights movement and assesses the creation and implementation, successes and failures of the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by federal, state and local governments.

Disabled Rights explains how people with disabilities have been treated from a social, legal, and political perspective in the United States. With an objective and straightforward approach, Switzer identifies the programs and laws that have been enacted in the past fifty years and how they have affected the lives of people with disabilities. She raises questions about Congressional intent in passing the ADA, the evolution and fragmentation of the disability rights movement, and the current status of disabled people in the U.S.

Illustrating the shift of disability issues from a medical focus to civil rights, the author clearly defines the contemporary role of persons with disabilities in American culture, and comprehensively outlines the public and private programs designed to integrate disabled persons into society. She covers the law's provisions as they apply to private organizations and businesses and concludes with the most up-to-date coverage of recent Supreme Court decisions-especially since the 2000-2002 terms-that have profoundly influenced the implementation of the ADA and other disability policies.

For activists as well as scholars, students, and practitioners in public policy and public administration, Switzer has written a compassionate, yet powerful book that demands attention from everyone interested in the battle for disability rights and equality in the United States.

Genres: Disability, History, Nonfiction

336 pages, Paperback

First published February 13, 2003

Reviews

[Michael Burnam-Fink · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a solid review of disability rights in the United States. The book covers a shift from a medical to a civil right paradigm, and covers in depth the passage, provisions, and status of the Americans with Disability Act. Politics, interest groups, and the actions of the courts are the major focuses of the book. There's not enough room to cover everything in detail (the lack section on 504 and special education is a black mark, IMO), but the bibliography is a valuable resource, and within its topics, it's quite readable and comprehensive.