PhilosopherCrip

I’m not sure if the government “officially” designated October as Disability History Month, but it is widely celebrated as such in the disability activist community.  In some states (like NC and soon to be MI if all goes well), the public schools even teach a disability history curriculum during the month of October by mandate of state legislation.

If you have time, this is a good time to pick up a book about the history of the disability rights movement.  The industry standard is No Pity by Joseph Shapiro.  A more focused, but still fascinating and important book is activist and attorney Harriet McBride Johnson’s biography Too Late to Die Young. I was very lucky to be able to see Harriet speak and have her sign my copy a few years ago and am sad that I will not get to see her speak again now that I have read her book — she passed over the summer.

I can’t figure out how to embed a google video right into my page like I can youtube, but here is a link to a VERY well made short film about some major figures in the history of disability activism.  It summarizes the stories of Ed Roberts (visionary founder of the Independent Living movement), Wade Blank (original organizer of ADAPT, which uses grassroots non-violent direct action activism), and Justin Dart (my favorite Republican - except my dad - who is responsible for educating the entire country, from the grassroots to the president, about his vision for the inclusion of crips in mainstream society, which eventually became the ADA).  These are the heros of “crip town” and some of the patriots we should aspire to emulate.