President Biden Delivers Remarks to Celebrate the Americans with Disabilities Act Transcript

Good boy, stay.

Me too.

Yes. Stay. I feel so powerful all of a sudden. Okay, this is on. I don’t need this. This is for someone else, correct?

For me.

Okay. The real guy. Hello, I am Selma Blair, and I’m here before you today as a proud disabled woman with my cane and my service dog, Scout, by my side, to celebrate the anniversaries of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act, the legacy of the leaders who came before. Although I’d had symptoms since the age of seven, it took a lifetime of self-advocacy to finally lead me to a diagnosis at age 46. After living most of my life in pain and self-doubt, it was the late, great Judy Heumann, without whom we would not be here today, who taught me my worth.

(01:24)
Looking out at all of you, seeing so many of the people she mentored and befriended, I see the beauty of how she prepared the next generation of community leaders I stand proudly alongside today. In my own disability advocacy, I have realized that these historic pieces of legislation were vital steps towards fairness. But the push towards equity continues. Our laws and policies must reflect that our disabled lives are not of lesser value. In partnership with the disability community, the Biden-Harris Administration is working to do just that. Breaking down barriers that exist today in transportation, healthcare, education, employment, voting and more. It is an honor to introduce a friend to the disability community, and a president who knows that every American deserves a life of dignity and respect, President Joe Biden.

(02:48)
Scout, release. Scout, release, side.

Beautiful.

Thank you. Oops.

Be careful.

(03:12)
My name’s Joe Biden, I’m Jill Biden’s husband. What I told this beautiful lady when we met inside, she’s doing so much to change people’s lives. All of you are. I look out there and I see one of the guys that got it started, Tom Harkin. Tom, stand up. Stand up for people to see you. Good to see you, Tom. Elizabeth Dole, Bob Dole was a major, major player in all of this. He really was. I remember getting in trouble because someone was criticizing Bob Dole on the floor for why do we need curb cuts? Why do we need all those kinds of things? I got myself in trouble. Anyway, he was great. There’s so, so, so many really important people here that made all this possible.

(04:16)
Tammy Duckworth, she’s too young. Steny Hoyer. Steny. Madeline Dean, Jared Huffman. I think they’re supposed to be here. Mark Pocan. And Mark, you here? Well, I guess what… Mary Kay Scanlon. I keep telling them I think we’re related. I found out when I went to Ireland, they did my genealogy and they think I got a Scanlon in the background, so I may be your 19th cousin. Jan Schakowsky. Jan, good to see you. Dina Titus. By the way, is Tim Shriver here? Tim, thank you, pal. You’ve been there the whole time at the Special Olympics. It’s incredible what you’ve done. I’m not going to read all the organizations because you’ll get sunstroke by the time I get finished doing that. But look, I want to welcome all to the White House. Selma, thank you for the introduction. But more importantly, thank you for your advocacy. Your advocacy has given people hope, you’ve changed people’s lives, along with the rest of you who are here.

(05:45)
Kamala and Doug are here. I want to thank them for being here. They’re strong, strong, strong supporters as well. I want to thank you, Kamala, for your leadership. We’re joined by many members of Congress, as I said, including some of the biggest champions of this disability rights community. I think I’ve gone through most of the names already. But here’s the deal. A big thanks to the courageous activists here who work so hard to make the country more accessible and more just. One of my first acts as a United States Senator, I know I don’t look old enough to do it, but one of my first acts was I was a co-sponsor of the Rehabilitation Act. The first time in the nation’s history, we declared in law what we knew to be true, that an American with disability deserved dignity, respect, an equal chance at the American Dream.

(06:43)
The Rehabilitation Act is one of the most consequential civil rights laws in our nation’s history, banning discrimination on the basis of disability, by any entity funded by the federal government. It promoted equal access to our communities, authorized independent living services, and research that supports disabled people in living their lives that they want to lead. Folks. But after the Rehabilitation Act was signed in the law, its implementation was delayed. In response, disability advocates staged sit-ins named for the section of the law that the government had failed to implement. One of those was, as you’ve already mentioned, Judy Heumann, who we lost earlier this year. We’re joined today by so many of Judy’s family and friends. Would her family stand up? Any of Judy’s family? Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

(07:47)
As an infant, you all know Judy contracted polio and lost the ability to walk. At the age of five, she was prohibited from entering kindergarten because her principal deemed her wheelchair a fire hazard. A fire hazard. Judy turned that pain of this rejection, and then many more that followed, into purpose. After the Rehabilitation Act passed, she led demonstrations in San Francisco, testified in congressional hearings, demanding that the people in power actually implement the law that was passed. After four years of protest, Judy and disabled activists all over the country were successful. History shows it’s often not the people in power, but the power of the people, that moves the nation forward. All of you did. The Rehabilitation Act laid the groundwork for another landmark law celebrated today, the Americans with Disabilities Act.

(08:51)
Steny Hoyer led the charge in the house along with Major Robert Owens, Tony Coelho, as well as Tom Harkin and Bob Dole. They led the fight in the Senate. I was enormously proud to be a Senate cosponsor. Today, three decades after it’s passage, many of us can still recall the America where a person with disability could be denied service in a restaurant or a grocery store. Where an employer could refuse to hire because of a disability. When we passed this law, we made a commitment to build an America for all Americans. For all Americans. Perhaps most importantly, we did it together. This was a bipartisan bill, signed into law by Republican President George H.W. Bush 33 years ago on this spot on the south lawn of the White House. It marked progress that wasn’t political but personal for millions of disabled American veterans and families.

(10:03)
Folks, for more than 61 million Americans living with a disability, these laws are a source of opportunity, meaningful inclusion, participation, respect, and as my dad would say, the most important of all, dignity, being treated with dignity. Ensuring the American Dream is for all of us, not just for some of us. A [inaudible 00:10:27] against discrimination and a path to personal independence. For our nation, these laws are a testament to our character as a people, a triumph of values over selfishness. But of course, these laws didn’t bring an end to the work we need to do. Disabled Americans are still three times less likely to have a job, and they often earn less for the exact work someone else is doing is not disabled. Too often, disabled Americans are unable to vote, to get to and from work and school, to enjoy public spaces. But thanks to all of you, we’re continuing to make progress.

(11:06)
In my first few months in office, I was around to sign an executive order, proud to do it, establishing a government-wide commitment to advancing equality and equity in federal employment, including for people with disabilities. It brought together the Department of Labor and the Office of Personal Management to ensure that we’re making federal workplaces all over fully accessible to people with disabilities. So, the dignity and rights of disabled Americans are lifted in every policy we pursue. The whole purpose of engaging my labor department is to help protect workers with disabilities and fight to end to unjust employment practices. We are also helping state and local governments, businesses and nonprofits, access federal funds to hire more disabled Americans. We continue to make sure this administration looks like America, appointing people with disabilities to positions all across our government.

(12:13)
Over my first two years, in my administration, we’ve seen a 22% increase in people with disabilities employed by the federal government. We’re going to continue to grow it. We’re making the federal government a model employer when it comes to wages, accommodations, opportunities to advance for people with disabilities. We’re also taking action to improve access to healthcare for disabled Americans. Today, as many of you unfortunately know, some doctors and hospitals are denying medical treatments related to organ donations or lifesaving care for disabled Americans based on their disability alone. That’s why the Department of Health and Human Services just proposed the rule barring these kinds of denials from medical treatment because no American, no American, should be deprived of healthcare they need, period. It’s simple. No American. The Department of Health and Human Services also launched long COVID clinical trials and created the Office of Long COVID Research and Practice for the first of its kind initiative in our history. And because of your advocacy, the National Institutes of Health just designated people with disabilities, a health disparity population.

(13:37)
You all know what that means, but I’m going to try to briefly explain that to people listening, which opens up new funding for research into unmet health needs specific to disabled Americans. We also launched ARPA-H to drive breakthroughs in biomedicine to prevent, detect, and treat diseases including cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and other neurological diseases like MS.

(13:59)
The American Rescue Plan provided billions of dollars to all 50 states to expand home and community-based services under Medicaid. So again, in my experience, with friends who are disabled, it also just continues to provide the dignity They’re looking for. Just dignity. More people with disabilities, including intellectual and developmental disabilities, can live independently at home. The Inflation Reduction Act, cap the cost of in insulin $35 a month and out-of-pocket prescription drug costs are going to be limited to $2,000 a year for older Americans, no matter what the disability, no matter how expensive, no matter what drugs they use. Even if you’re using cancer drugs that are $10,000, $12,000, $14,000, no more than $2,000 a year.

(14:59)
Our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law makes the biggest investment ever, $1.75 billion to make transit and rail stations more accessible. We’re modernizing airports by adding wheelchair ramps, accessible restrooms and so much more. The Department of Transportation issued a rule that now requires all new single aisle aircraft over a certain size to have wheelchair accessible restrooms. The Department of Justice proposed standards for state and local governments to make their internet content and mobile apps more accessible to disabled Americans, so they can easily do things like travel to and from work and school, care for themselves and their loved ones, and vote.

(15:48)
Look, accessibility is the cornerstone of ensuring government works for everybody. Accessibility. So let me close with this Judy Heumann, in reflecting on her life, wrote, and I quote, “Change never happens at a pace we think it should. It happens over years of people joining together, strategizing, sharing, and pulling all the leavers they possibly can.” Well, that’s a story we’re celebrating here today. Progress hard fought and won, making real our nation’s founding promise that every American, every American, has a right to be recognized and respected for who they are. Millions of Americans with a disability, this is a source of identity and power. This is the essence of the disability pride. Look folks, it’s the essence of what Judy and so many of you here today have fought so hard for, and the progress we’ll continue to make together.

(16:45)
Folks, as I look out on all of you, I can honestly say I’ve never been more optimistic about America’s future. I mean that from the bottom of my heart. Never. We just have to remember who in hell we are. We’re the United States of America. There is nothing beyond our capacity, if we set our mind to do it and we work together. Folks, there’s so much more, because it’s so hot out here, I don’t want to keep you. But folks, the fundamental research going on for all the various disabilities is staggering. It’s staggering.

(17:28)
For example, whether it’s we’re spending billions of dollars on research and development for health disparities, everything from… Anyway. But it’s because of you all not only had the physical courage to deal with whatever your disability is, those of you who are in this community, but you stood up, you spoke for everybody else. You spoke not just for yourself, but for everybody. You’ve changed people’s lives for the better. You’ve given people hope, you’ve allowed them to regain their pride, their dignity, and be able to do what they want to do as best they can. So I think this is just the beginning. I think someone’s going to be standing here 20 years from now talking about how fundamentally it’s changed across the board. We can never stop. God bless you all, and may God protect our troops. Thank you. Thank you.