00:00 The History of the Americans with Disabilities Act and its significance as a civil rights law.

05:57 The Americans with Disabilities Act was the result of a political movement that forced society to confront the issue of who belongs, and this episode explores the history of disability as a civil rights issue and the ongoing fight for equality within the disability community.

11:34 After World War II, there was a movement led by disabled veterans to live regular lives and not be hidden away in institutions, which led to the development of programs and accommodations for people with disabilities, although these accommodations were limited and exclusionary.

16:41 Mary Lou, a polio survivor, faced numerous physical and social barriers in accessing education, employment, and public spaces due to her disability.

21:09 Disabled individuals begin to realize that their inability to access public spaces and services is a civil rights issue, leading to the formation of the Center for Independent Living and the start of the disability civil rights movement.

26:45 Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act was a game changer for the disability rights movement, as it recognized discrimination against people with disabilities and shifted the responsibility for accommodations onto society and community, but it was largely ignored until a group of disabled individuals staged a 26-day takeover of a federal building in San Francisco, forcing the Carter administration to enforce the law and leading to the founding of the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF), which later played a role in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

32:25 The ADA was introduced as a new frontier in civil rights and aimed to shift the perspective on people with disabilities from objects of pity to individuals with the right to be treated fairly, and the media's lack of coverage on disability issues perpetuated the stigma surrounding it.

38:32 In March of 1990, ADAPT organized the Capitol Crawl, where hundreds of people with disabilities crawled up the steps of the Capitol to bring awareness to their second-class citizenship and to advocate for their ability to be seen as full contributors to society, and after the crawl, most politicians from both parties, including President George H.W. Bush, supported the ADA, which was signed into law on July 26, 1990.

45:02 The ADA, although a significant civil rights law for people with disabilities, required ongoing advocacy and enforcement to ensure compliance and implementation of accommodations.

50:50 The ADA has led to higher expectations for full opportunities in American life for people with disabilities, as well as a broader definition of disability rights that includes disability justice and intersectionality.

56:41 The ADA has led to a shift in federal funding towards community living opportunities rather than institutionalization, but there is still a long way to go in terms of societal acceptance and inclusion for people with disabilities.