20 years after the ADA was passed Americans with disabilities experience discrimination in daily lives on a regular basis

Chris Clarkson (image, Globe Gazette)

By Kristen Buehner, Globe Gazette, MASON CITY, Iowa — The 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act made it illegal to discriminate against people who are mentally or physically disabled.

But there is still a long way to go, advocates say.

“I think it’s a constant process,” said Chris Clarkson, 51, of Nora Springs.

More buildings still need to be made accessible, said Clarkson, who has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair.

Beyond getting through the front door, there are other issues.

Store aisles are often not wide enough to accommodate people in wheelchairs, Clarkson said. Clothing racks lack space  for wheelchairs to pass between them.

Clarkson, who drives a van and a pickup that have lifts for his wheelchair, recalled a recent trip with his family to an out-of-state park. Although the parking lot had handicapped parking, the lot was edged with a curb, which made it impossible for him to enter the park without assistance. 

A service gate that would have provided ground-level access was locked.

“I think 20 years later that we can think how can we step up again,” he said. “Human dignity and human rights need to be protected. It’s a part of discrimination.”

Mason City resident Gary Schriver, 58, a member of the State Commission for People with Disabilities, said playground equipment is being built that does not meet ADA guidelines and could not be used by disabled children.

And although curb cuts are great, he said, they must be kept clear of snow in winter to be useful.

Service Dog not allowed

During a convention of Lions Club International in Chicago, Schriver, who is legally blind, was denied access to the restaurant where the Lions were meeting when he attempted to enter with his service dog.

“She never apologized,” Schriver said. “(Yet) it’s federal law.”

A grocery store in Ames also refused him admittance.

Since his blindness, which occurred as a result of diabetes, Schriver said he has also been unable to find employment.

Under the ADA, employers are expected to make reasonable accommodations in the workplace to people who may be disabled but are otherwise qualified for the job.

Declared legally blind in 1983 at the age of 31, Schriver is a husband and the father of two grown sons. Prior to losing his sight, he was employed as an accountant in Minneapolis.

After losing most of his vision, he went back to school and graduated with a degree in social work from Iowa State University in 1986, then earned a master’s degree in vocational rehabilitation-personnel management from Drake University.

“Basically I wanted to help people with disabilities find employment,” he said.

His instructors told him he would never get a job in the private sector “because I was blind and couldn’t drive.”

When he attempted to find employment with the state, he was told no because they couldn’t afford to hire a driver for him, Schriver said.

Lionel Foster, director of the Mason City Human Rights Commission, said that nationally, ADA complaints about employment are up substantially since the reauthorization of the ADA legislation in 2009.

The ADA was reauthorized, or redrafted, in 2009 to clarify the legislation, Foster said.

“In 1990, the courts didn’t like (the ADA),” he said. “They didn’t understand it. It got to the point where they said if you’ve got a disability, it’s covered by Medicare. It let the employer off the hook on having to make accommodations and on liability.”

Locally, human rights officials couldn’t process complaints because of the constraints placed on them by the courts,” Foster said.

Equal Opportunities Commission

The Equal Opportunities Commission handled 21,451 ADA cases in 2009, up from 18,108 in 1997, Foster said.

Locally, statistics on the numbers of cases are unavailable, Foster said. But he estimated there are 70 open cases having to do with employment due to disability.

“The ADA  is intended to mainstream people with disabilities so they can enjoy everything I can,” Foster said. “We want to make sure they are not denied employment because of disability and that they do not lose their job because they’ve gotten a disability.”

The Human Rights Commission also handles fair housing complaints by tenants with disabilities who say they asked their landlords for an accommodation and didn’t get it.

Fifty million Americans — one out of six — has a disability, Schriver said.

“Anyone can become disabled,” he said. “I didn’t think I would be disabled.

“I still think there needs to be education,” Schriver said. “There’s got to be a change in attitude and that’s slow in coming. A piece of paper can’t make it happen.”

On Sunday …

We told you about the effects of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Read the story at www.globegazette.com.