Q&A with Board Member Michael Szporluk
30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act
Board member Michael Szporluk answered some of our questions about growing up with a disability decades before the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became the law of the land. This month marks the 30th Anniversary of the ADA, a landmark civil right law to prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability.
Q: BEFORE THE ADA PASSED, WHAT WERE SCHOOLS LIKE IN AMERICA?
I was born at the end of the 1960's. When I was in elementary and junior high school, I remember the administration and teachers were silent on disability, either due to their lack of knowledge or unease about how to support children with disabilities.
In second grade, I recall a girl who was removed from our school and placed in a segregated school for children with intellectual disabilities — even though she didn’t have an intellectual disability. She was placed there simply because she was Deaf, and the school administration didn't have an interest in or resources for supporting her right to an inclusive education.
I remember thinking, even back then, that this didn't seem fair to the girl. I didn't, though, question whether segregated schools should exist for children with intellectual disabilities. It was only much later, as an adult, that I realized that inclusion is a right for all, and that communities need to be structured to promote inclusion of all persons, regardless of disability type or any other identifying characteristic.
Later, in fifth through eighth grades, I recall teachers who did nothing to intervene when other students harassed or intimidated me and the few other students with disabilities.
I know harassment still occurs, but with the passage of the ADA, school administrators have an increased understanding of their obligation to ensure more accessible and safe environments for children with disabilities, and there is legal recourse for persons who experience discriminatory practices.
Q: WHAT WAS LIFE LIKE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE PASSAGE OF THE ADA?
I graduated from college in 1991. After college I left the United States, and lived overseas for most of the next 15 years, so I wasn’t around to see immediate changes resulting from the ADA.
I spent roughly eight years in the Balkans, and nearly five years in the Netherlands. During my time in Serbia, I volunteered for Oxfam, where I became engaged in supporting their programs to raise awareness about the rights of persons with disabilities. That work was an incredibly valuable experience for me. I learned about the social and human rights models of disability. Prior to that, I had viewed my disability as something to be ashamed about, something not to be discussed.
During the 1990's in Serbia and Bosnia, persons with disabilities faced huge challenges, not only due to the war, but also due to inaccessible places and transportation, prejudice and stigma, and cultural and institutional barriers. To this day, persons with disabilities in the region face greater barriers than persons with disabilities in the United States.
As far as I can tell, the biggest change in the United States is that that the ADA has increased the public’s awareness about the fact that persons with disabilities need to be treated on an equal basis with others in terms of access, opportunities, and participation. And, when people with disabilities face discrimination, we have legal rights that can be enforced.
Of course, there is a lot of work still ahead – and still plenty of people need to be educated about a social and human rights approach to understanding disability, especially how it impacts persons who come from communities who are marginalized due to other characteristics and/or identity markers.
Q: DO YOU HAVE ANY FINAL THOUGHTS TO SHARE ABOUT WHAT HAS CHANGED OVER THE PAST 30 YEARS?
I'm honored to be serving as a Board Member of an organization dedicated to upholding the rights of persons with disabilities here in Oregon. Together, we can move society closer to being a place where persons with disabilities are recognized and included as integral and valued members of our communities.
