30 years ago, the Americans
with Disabilities Act
was signed into law.
Passage of the ADA
changed the lives
of people with disabilities,
giving them access to public
buildings and services.
30 years later, what
has the impact been
and what work is yet to be done?
Joining us to talk about
the ADA is Meredith Kujala,
the Adult and Family Services
Manager for Arc Northland,
and Russ Stover works
at North Country Independent
Living in Superior.
Welcome, thank you
both for being here.
Beginning with you a Meredith,
this year does mark the
30th anniversary since ADA.
What was the importance
do you think of...
what was accomplished
with this Act so long ago?
- You know what was
accomplished was quite a bit.
It really opened the
eyes, I think of society
showing that everybody
deserves equality
and they didn't have equality,
and they didn't
have equal access.
So I think bringing it
uproot and showing people,
it really, really opened
a lot of people's eyes
and it opened the country up.
- Russ, do you think
what happened with ADA
has been accomplished or is
there still a ways to go?
- Oh no, there's still
quite a bit to do.
- Like what?
- I mean we still need access
to all public amenities,
but there's always
more things to do.
A lot of it is just that people
are just not knowledgeable
about what is and
what isn't acceptable.
So there are
organizations like ours
to let people know that
there's a different
way to do things.
And it does benefit
everybody when the ADA
has complied with.
- But how did ADA change
the lives of folks
with disabilities?
- It gave equal access to
things like housing, education,
transportation, job
opportunities, any
public amenities,
those things are still
being worked on all the time
and changing.
And especially in some of
the smaller communities,
sometimes they don't have
the money and the resources
to catch up the codes and
just don't have the resources.
- Meredith, what's your
reaction to businesses
maybe in this area who aren't
in compliance with ADA?
And there's gotta
be several areas
where there is noncompliance.
- Yeah, unfortunately,
you know there are.
You would think though with an
Act that's been 30 years old,
you would think that
everybody be in compliance,
but sadly, they aren't.
Not all businesses are.
And it's shocking.
When I come into a business
or I see a business
that isn't accommodating,
they don't get my business.
And I try to educate
those places and
those business owners,
because it truly is
unfair for individuals.
And sometimes it's just that
business owners don't know
about the accommodations
that they need to make.
So it's really, like Russ said,
it's about the education
and keep talking about
and keep talking about it.
- Are either one of you,
or maybe both of you
still finding there
are business owners
or people who run a
myriad of organizations
who just aren't
even aware of ADA?
- Not as much as before,
but what they don't know
is the guidelines
and what to do.
Certainly don't wanna
call out any names
on public television.
- Yeah.
- (laughs) But there are
still people out there
that either they just
don't have the time
and don't wanna deal with
it or they just don't know.
- Yeah.
As a person with disabilities,
do you feel you're
treated differently?
- That's a good question.
And I think having grown up my
whole life with a disability
and never have been
an able body person
so many things just
go over in my head.
Sometimes my friends will
notice it around me and I won't,
so it's like, I don't
know it is what it is,
but the worst thing you can do,
I'm glad you brought that
up because the worst thing
you can do when you meet
somebody with a disability
is approach them with pity.
Pity as the most disabling
disability that is.
- Yeah.
Meredith what about yourself?
How do you react to that?
- No, I can totally
agree with Russ,
living with a
disability my whole life
I know no different, obviously.
I think, my friends and
family get disgusted
more than I do sometimes,
or see things that
I might not see.
It might go over my head
literally, or mentally.
But I like to take those
moments that I do see
that discrimination
as an education tool,
especially with youngsters.
I can't blame any youngster
for discriminating
or staring or whatnot.
So I take that as
an education piece.
Now, adults, that's
a different story.
And I try to educate
as much as possible
and try to keep
that open mind that,
maybe some people just
don't know or understand,
but it definitely, it's
still happens unfortunately.
- Do you sometimes maybe both
of you get the feeling that
gosh, they should
know better than that.
- Well, you run into
a few of those people,
but what I haven't
noticed you're talking
about kids Meredith.
What I have noticed in my,
what it's getting to be
a longer life now is that
(panelists laughing)
when I was younger and
kids would just like stare
and be absorbed with
somebody in a wheelchair,
it's like, "Mommy, mommy,
what's that doing in there?"
And nowadays it doesn't
seem like any big thing
for children to see
because of mainstreaming
of people with disabilities
in the schools.
It's no longer unusual
for a little kid
to see someone in a wheelchair.
- Thinking back to
my early childhood
and early school years,
oftentimes if a child had
a disability, they were sent
elsewhere for education,
weren't they?
- Yeah.
- They weren't mainstreamed.
- I'm one of those kids.
- Were you?
- Yeah.
- Okay.
- I was actually...
Mr. Anderson I was the first kid
in a wheelchair
mainstreamed into 709.
- Really?
- Yeah.
- And so that has totally
changed now, has it not?
- It absolutely has.
And as one of my jobs
at Arc Northland,
I worked with the Special
Education quite before.
Sections at schools and making
sure that these students
are mainstreamed and
still get the services
that they need-
- Sure.
but still let them be
mainstreaming with their peers
and their other students
so that they can feel
that normalcy and not be
treated any differently.
- What is Northland Adult
and Family Services?
What is that?
- Arc Northland Adult
and Family Services?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah,
what is that?
- We are an advocacy
agency or we're a nonprofit
that works specifically for
people with disabilities.
And we have variety
of different services
from PCA services to housing,
to education and training,
which is what I do.
And so a big part of my
job is getting out there
and training professionals,
community members,
society about
disabilities and the ADA,
and how buildings need
to be accommodating
and getting in those
schools and making sure that
these kiddos are being
mainstreamed like
any other students
and being treated fairly.
- Are you finding people
more willing to learn today
that maybe they would
shun this years ago?
- I think it's gotten to the
point now where everybody knows
somebody with some
kind of disability.
So they many times
they wanna be aware.
- Yeah.
Do you go out and give talks?
- I have.
- Okay.
- Also she has to go.
- Oh yeah, absolutely.
I think just going
out in the community,
I'm giving a talk, just
in my personal life,
we come about somebody that
kind of looks at you funny.
Well, let's talk about it
instead of walking away.
- As a person with a
disability, I asked you before,
if you feel like you're
being treated differently,
do you outgrow
that at all or no?
- I don't know.
I have a hard time recognizing
sometimes like I say,
sometimes I see it
sometimes I don't, but.
- I think when it's your
norm, it's when all you know,
you don't really,
like he said,
- Yeah, exactly.
you don't see it
unless somebody's
pointing it out at you,
but when you eat, sleep
and breathe it every day,
- Sure.
it's just part of life
and you accommodate.
- If you had some
advice for other people
who are watching tonight
who have disabilities,
what would you say to them?
- Persevere.
- Such as, how do
you mean there Russ?
- Well, just stay at
it and keep consistent
and things will
come on all right.
But if you are looking for
somebody that can guide you
in Superior and the eight
counties in Northern Wisconsin,
they can look up
northcountryil.org.
And there's a list
of services there.
And some of them are,
you can join groups,
and get on a life service
with other people.
And it's actually, there's
a lot of things on there
that can help you.
- Okay, sure.
Well, it's been 30
years since ADA.
Let's hope in the next 30 years,
a lot more has improved.
- Yes.
Yeah, thank you both
for being here tonight.
I appreciate it very much.
- Thank you sir.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
- All the best of both
of you and continue to do
what you're doing.
You're certainly
helping the community.
- Thank you sir.
- Thank you both very kindly.
