03/12/2020
March is Women’s History Month!
In 1949, at the age of 18 months, Judith Heumann contracted polio. The disease left her wheelchair bound for the rest of her life, and we in large part have her to thank for all the ways people with disabilities are able to access the world similarly to able-bodied people. In elementary school, Heumann was refused access to the public schools because her wheelchair made her a “fire hazard.” Her mother fought the school board at every turn, and won access for Heumann for a special school for disabled children. When she graduated college and applied for a teaching license in New York City, again that “fire hazard” phrase came up again. The Board of Education settled out of court and Heumann became the first wheelchair user to teach in New York City.
Heumann’s lawsuit against the Board of Education drew lots of national attention, and soon she was working with other activists around the country for disability rights in many aspects of public life. She founded an organization focused on advancing protections for disabled people through political protest called Disabled in Action. In 1977, the organization staged a 28-day sit-in, the longest in a federal building to date. Heumann and her colleagues were successful: significant federal regulations protecting general civil rights for all disabled people and rights for disabled children in education were then signed by the U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. Heumann has served on countless boards, commissions, and advisory panels throughout her career. She served in the Clinton and Obama administrations, and most recently helped the Ford Foundation, one of the biggest philanthropic agencies in the country, integrate disability issues and body diversity into their work. Check out her TED talk or her recent interview on the Daily Show with Trevor Noah to learn more about the work of this trailblazing advocate who never took “no” for an answer.
Source: Wikipedia and Abrams, Abigail (2020). “1977: Judith Heumann.” Time. https://time.com/5793652/judith-heumann-100-women-of-the-year/ “Disability only becomes a tragedy when society fails to provide the things we need to lead our lives.”
~Judith Heumann
The Baker’s wife is transitioning the ladies room at Village Baker into a gallery of female heroes. Come check it out.
