US finally signs UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities
The United Nations passed a special convention for the rights of people with disabilities. During the Bush administration disabled advocacy groups all over the US asked the president to sign the convention but he refused during his 8 years in office. The convention outlined the basic rights of all disabled people on the planet and what countries, corporations, and individuals can do to help the disabled be useful and helpful members of society. (Source: AFB Blog)
Even though the United States passed the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1993 which gave back civil rights to those whose only crime is the inability to walk or use their arms. As the United States usually pushes that it is the sole country that helps those to gain their civil rights, no one was able to explain why they refused to sign the convention. After 141 countries signed the accord, the Obama administration has finally decided to show that the the US backs the social rights of all disabled people and recognizes that they deserve the same rights as the able bodied enjoy. Susan Rice, the US Ambassador to the United Nations and Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to President Obama signed the convention for the United States, making it the 143rd nation to agree to follow the convention to open up civil rights to the disabled. After the signing the ambassador announced that the State Department will create a new senior position to deal exclusively with disability issues internationally. For the first time in 233 years, the United States has joined the world community in helping the disabled live more fruitful lives.
After dealing with many of the craziness of the Bush Administration and their inability to show the disabled any help it is wonderful to have a breath of fresh air from the Obama Administration. Regardless of which side of the political aisle you are on, everyone must agree that the disabled are individuals just like anyone else and should be given the same civil rights as the able bodied. The disabled had to deal with "ugly" laws through the 1970’s and still have to sue corporations that refuse to make building accessible, to hire the disabled, and refusing entrance to those with service animals. These are just a small number of problems the disabled deal with on a daily basis as people that do not want the disabled around pretend that the ADA does not exist and allow new homes to be built such that someone in a wheelchair could not live in it. There are laws that force builders to make sure that a paltry 5% of homes be accessible by a wheelchair to the first floor. Why not make it 100%? Why is it necessary to produce structures that have no easement for the disabled to use?
The disabled understand many of the issues that Black Americans deal with. Country clubs that disallow Blacks or the disabled are found all over the country. The rules are unwritten, but the lack of those of color or disability in these areas are a sad commentary that we have a way to go before we are all truly equal. Pundits scream that we are demanding "special" rights that no one else has and that the ADA should be rescinded. Perhaps they should be forced to live in a wheelchair for a week and see what we are up against. Life as the disabled is difficult because of medical issues, disability payments that do not allow you to feed a family of four in dignity, and cities and builders that create structure we can never enter. The ADA was a good start, and the Obama Administration signing of the UN convention shows that the United States can make good decisions that help everyone. Lets not forget about this and push forward so everyone can be the best they can be and live a life that is rewarding and successful.
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