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American School for the Deaf founded in Hartford, Connecticut
This was the first school for the deaf in the entire western hemisphere -
Columbia Institution
This was an institution for the blind, deaf, and dumb that got premission by the U.S. governemnt to grant college degrees. Also, this is the first school developed for people with disabilities -
The LEague for the Physically Handicapped
The League for the Physically Handicapped in New York City was formed to protest discrimination by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The Home Relief Bureau of New York City stamped all applications with “PH” which stood for physically handicapped. Members of the League held a sit-in at the Home Relief Bureau for nine days and a weekend sit-in at the WPA headquarters. These actions eventually led to the creation of 1500 jobs in New York City. -
WWII
Nazi Germany and Hitler decided to kill people with disabilities because they were considered "unfit" -
Hill-Burton Act
This act created grants for cities to create hospitals and public health centers for people with disabilities -
Kennedy's Move
President Keenedy created a board of advisors for the topic of mental retarduation -
Berkeley Center
This was the first center for people with disabilities in which they could live and "independent" life. -
Reagan's decision
The Reagan Administration terminated the Social Security benefits of hundreds of thousands of disabled recipients. Distressed by this action, several disabled people committed suicide. A variety of groups including the Alliance of Social Security Disability Recipients and the Ad Hoc Committee on Social Security Disability fought these terminations. -
Baby Doe
The parents of “Baby Doe” in Bloomington, Indiana advised their doctors to decline surgery to unblock their newborn’s esophagus because the baby had Down's syndrome. Although people protested the baby starved to death before it could make it to surgery. -
A Deaf President
Gallaudet University made King Jordan the president of the university. He was their first deaf president -
Bragdon vs. Abbott
This court case established that asymptomatic HIV was considered as a disability