A great blog on Disability.gov written by Katherine Schneider about the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). It's interesting that the ADA has only improved access for 19% of Americans with disabilities. She highlights 25 kinds of access the ADA covers. It's neat to think about all the different things the ADA covers. How will you celebrate the anniversary?

Celebrating 25 Years of the Americans with Disabilities Act: What Will You Do?

By Katherine Schneider

This July, the 25thanniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) will occur. Access has improved for the 19 percent of us who have disabilities because of the ADA.1It is still a work in progress and involves much negotiating for access in many situations. But if we dont celebrate how far weve come, its easy to get discouraged. So what will you do?

So far, Ive started working on a display for my universitys library, nudged the local Aging and Disability Resource Center to have an open house and get the county board to pass a resolution, and started working on an art contest with the theme of What Does Access Mean to You?

The library display will highlight 25 kinds of access (for those who think only of ramps). They are:

1. Assistance animals more people know the laws and more kinds of assistance animals are allowed.
2. Old and new access symbols. (The new symbol shows motion.)
3. TheEyeNote app, which helps people who are blind tell the denominations of U.S. paper currency apart.
4. TheSchneider Family Book Awardsfor childrens books with disability content are receiving more entries every year, showing mainstream interest in disability as diversity.
5. Checkers or other accessible board games are more widely available.
6. Ramps are more common, although not universal like to pulpits, in churches.
7. Signsabout hearing loops are starting to appear.
8. Interpreters and captioners are at work in more places like medical appointments, school graduations, etc.
9. Playground equipment usable by kids with mobility impairments is more common.
10. Large print programs at worship services and public events are more common.
11. Print/braille books are sometimes available at public libraries for blind parents and sighted kids or vice versa to read together.
12. Buses and some taxis have access for wheelchair users.
13. Voting machines with audio capabilities, so people who are blind can vote independently.
14. Local sources of gizmos from Independent Living and Aging and Disability Resource Centers, so people who are newly disabled can try before they buy.
15. Powered carts to ride at grocery stores.
16. Hearing assistance devices provided in movie theaters.
17. Captioning devices provided in movie theaters.
18. Occasional audio descriptions provided in theaters and on television.
19. Captioned and/or audio described movies available at libraries.
20. Audio and touch tours of museums are more common.
21. Electronic access to websites, newspapers, email, etc. for people who are blind.
22. Occasional Braille menus, bank statements, greeting cards, etc.
23. Para-transit.
24. Reasonable accommodations, so jobs are accessible.
25. Electric doors are more common.

You, who advocate for access for yourself, family and friends, and the rest of the 19 percent of us who need it will make the next 25 years of implementation of the ADA even better. So lets celebrate how far weve come!

To get involved in celebrating the 25thanniversary of the ADA,contact your local independent living center, disability rights group or see whats going on atThe ADA Legacy Project.

Source: https://usodep.blogs.govdelivery.com/2015/01/09/celebrating-25-years-of-the-americans-with-disabilities-act-what-will-you-do/