In the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr and the Civil Rights Movement I want to expose another movement, a movement that like many others I did not know existed. This movement is the Disability Rights Movement. In 2011 PBS released 60-minute documentary called “Lives Worth Living” by filmmaker Eric Neudel. The film follows the evolution of the disability rights movement beginning in post-World War II through the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. The film shows the parallels between the disability rights movement and other equal rights movements and famous people from history and includes interview with leaders of the movement, the legislators who worked on ADA, and historical footage of advocates who took action to create change. Check out the trailer for “Lives Worth Living”
For me this film was a real eye opener and is worth 60 minutes of anyone’s time to watch. It’s crazy to think that the Americans with Disabilities Act was not signed until 1990.