#judy heumann

[sobuildabeautifulcity]

as it’s disability pride month, i decided that i would share some of the knowledge i gained about disability history (in the US) through writing my dissertation & share it on medium.

i wrote about the importance of diversity & intersectionality in the US disability rights movement, focusing on the 504 sit-ins in San Francisco & the Deaf President Now! protests at Gallaudet University in D.C. i also wrote about how our history is recorded, and how it has been overlooked.

there are two separate posts. the first is an easier to read version. this is for anyone who needs a more simple language version. it has more of a focus on the events rather than analysis, but does talk some about diversity. the sections are separate, so you can read about the 504 sit-in without reading any other section. it is about 1,500 words.

the second post is written in my regular writing style, and includes some bits copied from my dissertation directly. it is roughly 3,500 words long & includes a source list at the end.

please share this! reblogging helps spread the post to other people & means more people can learn about key moments in disability history.

[toacertaindeath]

Pickle’s a disabled ally!

[schar-aac]

"Judy Heumann"

Judy Heumann, a civil rights activist known as the mother of disability rights, speaking at the 504 protests in 1977. She has pale skin, short brown hair and glasses, and is speaking into a microphone. She wears a yellow shirt, blue jacket, and a badge that says 'sign 504'.

[chronic-cane]

Judy Heumann passed away on March 3rd, 2023

She said she believed it was her parents’ experience [fleeing from Nazi Germany and the Holocaust as children] that led them to reject doctors’ advice to have their daughter institutionalized after she contracted polio and lost the use of her legs. “They came from a country where families got separated, some children sent away, others taken from their families by the authorities and never returned — all part of a campaign of systematic dehumanization and murder,” she wrote in her memoir, “Being Heumann.” “Their daughter, disabled or not, wasn’t going anywhere.”

If you have Netflix, Heumann is in Crip Camp, an amazing documentary on disability rights.

Here is her website that lists her publications, including her recent 2020 memoir called "Being Heumann" (please do not pirate her publications out of respect. Buy them or find them at a library).

This woman is one of the main reasons why disabled children in the US can attend public school. She fought for accessibility in Federal buildings and work places before fighting for the ADA, for accessibility in all spaces.

I am heartbroken to hear of her passing. She has impacted the lives of millions if not billions of people for the better. May her memory be a blessing.

[autisticadvocacy]

ASAN is mourning for Judy Heumann, a pioneering disability rights activist who passed away yesterday at age 75. Through disability rights protests and legislative advocacy, her founding role in the independent living movement, and her work in government and in nonprofits, Judy was a leader in the disability rights movement for most of her life. She changed the lives of so many people with disabilities; many of us at ASAN have been able to attend school, work, and live in the community because of policies that Judy advocated for or helped to create. Meeting Judy was a highlight for attendees of our Autism Campus Inclusion program each year. The many advocates who she inspired and mentored must now work to preserve her legacy through service to the disability community. May Judy’s memory always be a blessing. 

[protoslacker]

Judy Heumann was the first person I called when, in 1987, I reported my first story on disability rights. Judy, who contracted polio when she was 18 months old, gave me the quote that perfectly summed up that little-known civil rights movement. "Disability only becomes a tragedy when society fails to provide the things we need to lead our lives — job opportunities or barrier-free buildings, for example," she said. "It is not a tragedy to me that I'm living in a wheelchair." That idea seemed so unexpected and strange that my editors at a newsmagazine decided not to publish my story.

Joseph Shapiro quoting Judy Heumann in a beautiful obituary at NPR. Activist Judy Heumann led a reimagining of what it means to be disabled

Julia Métraux  tweeted:

May Judith Heumann's memory be a blessing.

And let's make it the norm that disabled advocates are able to become disabled elders.

Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist

Judy Heuman Disability Rights Activist

[kirkwallhellmouth]

May her memory be a blessing.

Note: Heumann was Jewish, which means that “rest in peace” is not the respectful way to mourn/recognize her passing.

[veggiesforpresident]

it feels... a little evil actually that 90% of the photos of judy heumann, one of the most influential people in the disability rights movement and who viewed her wheelchair as a part of her body, are from the shoulders up. you literally wouldn't know she was a wheelchair user.

[eugenes-axe]

Gonna do a presentation about Judy Heumann and 504 legislation tomorrow lolll

[talkethtothehandeth]

Judy Heumann died a couple of weeks ago, and I didn’t know what to say, but I need it to be something because of the scale of this loss has in the disability community.

For anyone who doesn’t know, Judy Heumann was, in short, the Mother of Disability advocacy. She lived her life fighting for the rights that you and I have as disabled people today. Though the resources we have now aren’t as accessible as they should be, we would have far less if it were not for Judy.

During her life, Judy took it upon herself— with the help of other disabled people— to demand, not ask, that disabled Americans— people, be offered equity, not just equality. If you’re a disabled American, you’ve likely benefited from some of her achievements thanks to these two large movements that changed disability history.

504 Sit In: April 5th, 1977

Section 504 is a portion of the Rehabilitation Act that states disabled people, solely because of their disabilities, cannot be discriminated against. We were to be given the same outside access as others, the same inside access as others, and the same access to an education, employment or otherwise basic resources and rights. President Nixon vetoed the Act, twice in the span of five months.

In protest of the denial, multiple sit ins were set at the Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) building, most notably the location in San Francisco. They did not plan to leave the building until 504 was signed into the Act by Joseph Califano, who was Jimmy Carter’s secretary at the time.

Mr Joseph Califano gave orders that no meals or medication, vital or not, would be allowed in the building that they camped in. Please note: the Black Panthers helped them get through the time in the building, they brought supplies— medicine, food, water. The Black Panthers helped take care of them for a month; they sat in the building until Califano caved and signed 504. The people in the building described how their symptoms began to take over during their time there, one person saying they basically ate sleeping pills to drown out the pain.

National Museum of American History has the story, “The physical effects of the occupation lasted long after the sit-in ended. For Brad Lomax and Steven Klein . . . the stress led both men to have “pretty severe exacerbations of their MS.””

"The discomforts... meant nothing in comparison to the importance of 504 being signed."

Capitol Crawl— March 12th, 1990.

A demonstration was held on the nation’s capitol building, outside on the steps. The protesters that were located here were there to demand that The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) would be put into place, denying discrimination towards disabled people in the outside world, widening accessibility that we didn’t have before.

This was done in an attempt to display the struggle of being physically disabled in a world made for abled bodied people, and why it was important to demolish the barriers between us and the general public; this was meant to show the disparities of navigating daily life between disabled people and able bodied people. People left their walkers, wheelchairs, electric chairs, crutches, braces, canes and other mobility aids down at the bottom of the steps of the capitol building and crawled up each step, as far as their bodies allowed.

Judy fought her entire life for us to be able to continue living in an ever growing society as a disabled person. She helped us have access to public places, buildings, spaces, education, accommodations, and work opportunities.

Unfortunately, disabled Americans still do not have equal rights for marriage, but we’ve come a long way thanks to the collaboration of disabled people, cripple punks, The Black Panthers, and the LGBT community.

I love you Judy. Thank you for everything.

[littlebydigital]

Judy Heumann - "She's considered the mother of disability rights and she's badass"

Women's History Month

[imkrisyoung]

I just heard about Judy Heumann, and I’m heartbroken. May her memory be a blessing. 💐

[cerebralpauseart]

"Change never happens at the pace we think it should. It happens over years of people joining together, strategizing, sharing, and pulling all the levers they possibly can. Gradually, excruciatingly slowly, things start to happen, and then suddenly, seemingly out of the blue, something will tip." - Judith Heumann

'The Mother'

I painted this over the last month to honor the passing of the founder of the disability civil Rights movement Judy Heumann. People living with disabilities, such as myself would not have half the opportunities that we do without this woman and though there's still plenty of fighting to be done she blazed a hell of a trail for the rest of us to follow, we'll miss you Judy

(If you haven't watched 'crip camp' on Netflix you should)

[protoslacker]

CRIP CAMP: A DISABILITY REVOLUTION | Official Trailer | Netflix | Documentary

Netflix

Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution

[northernlibrary]

In honor of the great disability rights advocate Judy Heumann's passing, I would like to tell everyone to go watch the documentary "Crip Camp" on Netflix.

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“Our anger was a fury sparked by profound injustices. Wrongs that deserved ire. And with that rage we ripped a hole in the status quo.”

Judith Heumann

[senadimell]

Just remembered that you can watch Crip Camp on youtube. Link to follow.