Human Rights
Disability Rights Archive
AA08023
Cole, Yoji CORPORATE AMERICA IN A POST-ADA WORLD (DiversityInc, vol. 6, no. 10, November/December 2007, pp. 70-76)
Full Text available from your nearest American Library
The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) opened some doors in the workplace but opportunities for people with disabilities remain elusive. However, executives with disabilities, interviewed for this article, credit the ADA with broadening the opportunities in corporate America but emphasize that legislation alone cannot create a culture completely accepting of people with disabilities. For that to happen, more people with disabilities must self-identify and demonstrate their talents. ADA requires employees to provide access and technology to help people with disabilities succeed at work but it does not force recruitment efforts. This is changing as the lack of skilled workers in the United States has forced corporations to focus attention on the talents of a group of people previously ignored, including people with disabilities and people of color. The article includes a list of organizations that provide support for the almost 305,000 members of the U.S. military who were disabled in the line of duty during the Iraq War.
ACCESS FOR ALL: FIVE YEARS OF PROGRESS. A REPORT FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE ON ENFORCEMENT OF THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT.
United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. October 11, 2006.
Full report [pdf format, 80 pages]
This report reviews the actions of the Civil Rights Division during the last five years to enforce the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enhance opportunities and improve access for millions of Americans with disabilities. The report also cites specific cases that demonstrate access compliance successes in areas ranging from health care to employment to emergency services. The report highlights the progress of Project Civic Access (PCA), a comprehensive program focused on ensuring that towns and cities across America comply with the ADA.
PCA has significantly expanded efforts to assist communities all across the U.S. as they take steps to make their programs and services accessible to disabled persons. As part of PCA, Department of Justice investigators, attorneys, and architects survey state and local government facilities and programs across the country, working with communities to identify modifications necessary to achieve ADA compliance. There is also an extensive mediation program, through which disabled persons can file complaints about public or private sector barriers to access. Through the mediation program, for example, the report features the progress of Project Civic Access (PCA), a comprehensive program focused on ensuring that towns and cities across America comply with the ADA. Under the leadership of the President through his New Freedom Initiative, PCA has significantly expanded efforts to assist communities all across America as they take steps to make their programs and services accessible.