July 26, 1990: The Americans With Disabilities Act

July 26, 1990: President George H.W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act into law at the White House.

Note: Since then, when someone in Washington uses the initials "ADA," they mean this Act. Previously, starting in 1947, it usually meant Americans for Democratic Action, a liberal advocacy group, which had lobbied for, among other things, this Act. Although the earlier ADA is still in operation, it has faded into the background since the 1960s, when its influence peaked.

In 1986, the National Council on Disability had recommended the enactment of an Americans with Disabilities Act, and drafted the first version of the bill which was introduced in the House of Representatives and the Senate in 1988.

It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made discrimination based on race, religion, gender, and other characteristics illegal. In addition, unlike the Civil Rights Act, the ADA also requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, and imposes accessibility requirements on public accommodations.

The main group supporting the bill was the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD). Its co-founder, Justin Dart Jr., is known as "The Godfather of the ADA." That's him in the hat at the right of the photo. He and his brother Peter both contracted polio as boys, and Justin ended up in a wheelchair. Their father, Justin Dart Sr., was the president of pharmaceutical company Dart Industries. Their mother, Ruth, was the daughter of Charles Walgreen, founder of the chain of drugstores that bears his name.

A broad bipartisan coalition of legislators supported the ADA, while the bill was opposed by business interests, who argued the bill imposed undesirable costs on business; and conservative evangelicals, who opposed protection for individuals with HIV.

But the bill proved to have bipartisan support. It was introduced by Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa; and co-sponsored by, among others, Senators Bob Dole, Republican of Kansas, then the Minority Leader, who was himself partially disabled, losing the use of his right arm while serving in World War II; and Ted Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, whose son, Ted Jr., had lost a leg due to cancer.

On July 12, 1990, the House approved it, 377-28, with 27 members not voting. The next day, the Senate approved it, 91-6, with 3 members not voting. All 6 Senators voting against it were Republicans: The old segregationists Strom Thurmond of South Carolina and Jesse Helms of North Carolina; alleged budget hawk (but fond of tax cuts) Phil Gramm of Texas; Ted Stevens of Alaska, William L. Armstrong of Colorado and Steve Symms of Idaho.

It was a different time: Among the people invited to the ceremony was my mother, who worked to lobby for it with The Arc of New Jersey -- and I got to go as her "plus-one." That's right: A Republican was President, and I was on the grounds of the White House.

It was an outdoor ceremony, and a very hot day. First Lady Barbara Bush was there. So was Vice President Dan Quayle. George W. Bush was not there: He was then the owner of the Texas Rangers, and I was a baseball nut, so if he had been there, I would have recognized him.

In his speech before the signing, the elder George Bush said:

I know there may have been concerns that the ADA may be too vague or too costly, or may lead endlessly to litigation. But I want to reassure you right now that my Administration and the United States Congress have carefully crafted this Act. We've all been determined to ensure that it gives flexibility, particularly in terms of the timetable of implementation; and we've been committed to containing the costs that may be incurred...

Let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down.

Bush the son ran for President in 2000 on a theme of "compassionate conservatism." By making this statement, and signing the bill into law, Bush the father actually showed it.

In the photo above, he was flanked by wheelchair users Evan Kemp, Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, on the left; and Justin Dart, Chairman of the President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, and a businessman who advocated extensively for the ADA. Behind him were the Reverend Harold Wilke, a prominent figure in the disability rights movement, who was born without hands, and delivered an opening prayer at the ceremony; and Sandra Parrino, Chairperson of the National Council on Disability, a federal agency heavily involved in the development and passage of the ADA. 

Watching the ceremony, with a recession beginning but not yet as bad as it would become, with the Cold War over, and with Bush working with the Democrats in Congress to address the federal budget deficit, I then thought that maybe I was wrong about him when he was elected in 1988, and that he would have a good Presidency after all.

But there was a troubling headline in that day's Washington Post, one I glanced over, and only saw as significant in hindsight: Iraq was massing troops on its border with Kuwait, threatening to invade. Just 7 days later, they did. So began the Persian Gulf War, the event by which Bush hoped his Presidency would be judged. Instead, it would be the recession, costing him re-election in 1992.

In 2008, the Americans with Disabilities Act was amended, due to the U.S. Supreme Court having made certain rulings on the definition of "disability" that called parts of the Act into question. The amended bill clarified things, and George W., in the final days of his Presidency, signed it into law.

Yes, it was a different time: Such a bill could never get passed today. Even if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had a disability as noticeable as that of Dole, he wouldn't allow it to be passed through his Senate.

In 2018, a Republican-controlled House voted to approve a bill that would have gutted the protections of the ADA, so that big business could scale back on accommodations. It was a typical Trump-era "The cruelty is the point" move. Though the Democrats were the minority in the Senate, they managed to bottle the bill up, killing it.

*

July 26, 1990 was a Thursday. These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The Texas Rangers, owned by the aforementioned George W. Bush, were not scheduled, so he could have come to Washington to watch his father sign the bill. Also not scheduled that day: The New York Yankees, the Baltimore Orioles, the Chicago White Sox, the Cleveland Indians and the Milwaukee Brewers.

* The New York Mets split a doubleheader with the St. Louis Cardinals at Shea Stadium, making up a rainout from June 18. The Mets won the opener, 6-1. Ron Darling went the distance for the win. Daryl Boston went 4-for-4. The Cards won the nightcap, 3-1. Ken Hill allowed only 3 hits, outpitching Bob Ojeda.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Tim Raines singled Delino DeShields home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals, 7-5 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto. George Brett went 2-for-3. For the Jays, Mark Whiten hit his 1st major league home run. Three years later, with the St. Louis Cardinals, he would hit 4 home runs in 1 game. But he retired with just 105.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 12-4 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. Barry Bonds went 0-for-2 before leaving the game due to an injury.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Boston Red Sox, 10-4 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit.

* The Seattle Mariners beat the Minnesota Twins, 6-4 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Edgar Martinez and Ken Griffey Jr. hit home runs.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Houston Astros, 8-2 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves, 8-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* The California Angels beat the Oakland Athletics, 4-2 at the Oakland Coliseum. Donnie Hill hit a 2-run home run off Dennis Eckersley in the top of the 11th inning.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds, 4-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.