New documentary highlights Gallaudet’s role in the fight for the Americans with Disabilities Act

As a key player in the history of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Gallaudet’s campus was a natural choice for previewing a new documentary about the story behind the law. A screening of “Change, Not Charity: the Americans with Disabilities Act,” produced by the PBS series “American Experience,” was hosted by the Schuchman Deaf Documentary Center (SDDC) and the Center for Democracy in Deaf America (CDDA) on March 12. The event included a Q&A with writer/producer Chana Gazit, American Experience executive producer Cameo George, and director Jim LeBrect. 

Dr. Brian Greenwald, ’96, Director of the SDDC, was pleased to see a full house in attendance. “It’s crucial to understand our history and how we arrived here because too often, people take progress for granted—and we can’t afford to do that,” he says. “This is a valuable opportunity for the Gallaudet community to come together and recognize that the path to the ADA was anything but easy.” 

The day of the screening, March 12, coincided with the anniversaries of two central events that contributed to the passage of the ADA — and are featured in the film. It was the 35th anniversary of the Capitol Crawl, in which disabled protesters pulled themselves up the inaccessible 83 steps of the Capitol building. And, 37 years ago, it was the 7th day of Deaf President Now (DPN). 

Through the filter of time, people may assume that Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA were regulations that were signed into effect with ease. But the film makes clear that neither would have happened had it not been for the everyday people who came together in a true civil rights movement. After years of officials refusing to implement Section 504, only demonstrations and physical occupations of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW), forced its signing and implementation in 1977.

The next few years saw repeated legal attacks on Section 504, making the creation and passing of a “failsafe” bill imperative to disability advocates. “Change, Not Charity” offers a fascinating look into the massive amounts of work put in by the many individuals who made the ADA happen despite immense pressure from powerful business lobbyists roaming congressional halls who did not want to pay for accessibility, calling it the “bankruptcy bill.”

Just down the Hill, in March 1988, another movement was mobilizing that would galvanize the fight for the ADA. The film includes the same footage the world saw at the time–the power of the Gallaudet community coming together to demand a Deaf president for the first time in its history. Clips of I. King Jordan describing the unfolding of DPN highlight its impact on the journey to the ADA’s passing. 

Two years later, in March 1990, hundreds of activists from the disability community marched to the Capitol, where 70 people got out of their wheelchairs and crawled up the marble steps chanting, “Access is a civil right!” Gallaudet’s Jordan and other leaders delivered powerful speeches to the crowd. The next day, more activists chained their wheelchairs together in the Capitol’s rotunda and occupied congressional offices. The pressure was too much for lawmakers, and the tide began to turn.

For the first time on the Senate floor, a speech was delivered in American Sign Language (ASL) by SODA (Sibling of a Deaf Adult) Senator Tom Harkin, author and chief sponsor of the ADA. On July 26, 1990, President George H. W. Bush signed the ADA into law. 

Dr. Brendan Stern, ‘05, CDDA’s Executive Director, told the audience, “After watching the movie, I hope you feel a sense of pride, as the ADA has direct ties to Gallaudet. Senator Harkin, who had a deaf brother, stated that the passage of the ADA wouldn’t have happened without the Deaf President Now movement. Thirty-five years later, despite everything, we still have the power to change the world.”

During the Q&A session after the screening, the film’s creators described how the film came to be. Executive Producer George emphasized, “This movement created the law. Ordinary regular people changed this country. I thought it would be criminal if everyone in this country didn’t understand this movement, this law, and how we all benefit from it, not just the disability community.” Gazit added that despite being well-versed in history, she hadn’t known much about the ADA, but when she learned more, “it just seemed like a monumental event that really needed to be chronicled.”

Staff member Aubrey Moorman, ‘23 asked what takeaway the creators wanted the GU community to leave with. Gazit stressed the importance of knowing history, how people come together in struggles, and how those struggles lead to victory as “a really important foundation for us to take into our present.” Indeed, audience members pointed out the film’s direct relevance today, as seen in the lawsuit Texas v. Becerra, a court case in which 17 states are currently suing to declare Section 504 unconstitutional. LeBrect added, “When you see something wrong, we all have a responsibility to do something. We have to speak up, not just for ourselves, but for those around us who are being treated with cruelty and unfairly. And if we do that, if we speak up for others, one hopes that people will speak up for us.”

The documentary, Change Not Charity: The Americans With Disabilities Act, is an American Experience Film premiering on March 25 on PBS. And save the date for May 16th for the premiere of Deaf President Now!  on Apple TV+