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A disability is a physical or mental impairment that "substantially limits a major life activity." It may range from a limp to the loss of a sense to a degenerative disease. Defining disability is an ongoing project. For example, in 1998 the Supreme Court expanded the definition to include HIV-positive people.
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There are currently between 40 and 55 million people living with disabilities in the United States, and an estimated 500 million worldwide. With people living longer and surviving more illnesses and accidents, the numbers continue to grow.
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People's negative reactions to disability--ranging from outright pity and lurid fascination to doubts about a disabled person's ability to lead a productive life--often stem from a combination of ignorance about disability and fear they may have of becoming disabled themselves. These reactions have had a huge impact on public policy.
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The U.S. government's shabby treatment of people with disabilities has been reflected in everything from building codes to the statements of public figures--and has even been written into law. An old Chicago statute went so far as to ban "deformed" people from going out in public.
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On July 26, 1990, after decades of national campaigning, the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) made accommodation of people with disabilities a full civil right. Among other things, the law requires accessibility to public buildings and self-representation by disabled people in programs and policies directly affecting disability.
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The movement for disabled rights is about three decades old and has roots in the civil rights struggle. The Independent Living Movement was started by Berkeley University students with disabilities who were compelled to live at the campus hospital in the 1970s because there was no accessible housing.
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There are as many disability rights organizations as there are disabilities. Groups include People First, a 20-year-old international self-advocacy group, and Not Dead Yet, which has been active in opposing physician-assisted suicide. Resources for families and others are available throughout the internet.
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