It is important to know where we have been, in order to know where we are going.
I am the parent of a child who was identified as having a disability shortly after birth. My daughter was premature, her health was fragile and she was in and out of the hospital many times in those first few years. I took life one day at a time, I did not think about or plan for my daughter’s future because I wasn’t sure if she would be with me tomorrow; instead I cherished each moment, each day.
When my daughter was about two years old, a friend invited me to have lunch at her home. For the first time I left my daughter under the care of a grandparent. When I arrived for lunch there were a number of other guests, but my friend said, “I want you to meet June, you and her have a lot in common.” I looked at this woman, many years my senior, and soon learned what we had in common was we were both parents of children with disabilities. As we talked I had reason to wonder out loud what would school look like for my child. She said your child will have every opportunity because of parents like me. She remembered when her son was young, he attended kindergarten at a Denver Public School. The next year on the first day of school he insisted that he walk to school with the other children in the neighborhood. She watched as he walked down the path of their house, pencil box in one hand and writing tablet in the other. Each day at the evening meal he would talk about school, the teacher said this, a boy did this, a girl did that, today we learned. . . he was excited about his learning. About two weeks into the school year his mom saw him walk up the path to the house. He had his writing tablet in one hand, but she noticed he had his pencil box in his other hand. This puzzled her because the pencil box always remained in his desk at school. When he walked through the door, she noticed a note pinned to the collar of his shirt. The note said “We have determined that your child cannot be educated. You will need to make other arrangements for him.” The note was signed by the principal. She was outraged. She and her husband went to the school the next day and met with the principal. The principal said it is obvious that your child is an “imbecile” and as principal of this school, I have the authority to refuse enrollment. The parents reached out to district leadership, the Colorado Department of Education and everyone stood firm in supporting the principal and the school district’s decision. The year was 1954, and in 1954, children with disabilities did not have a right to a free appropriate public education. In 1954 parents were encouraged to institutionalize their child if they had an intellectual disability.
Parents lobbied first at a local level and then a national level for policy that would afford their child a public education. In today’s history classes educators’ teach our children the important history of the Civil Rights movement/demonstrations in the 50s and in particular the 60s. Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. were leaders who led the community forwarding change. Parents remember that as these leaders discussed civil rights, such gave them permission to talk about the human rights of their children and adults with disabilities. Public Law 94-142 Education for all Handicapped Children Act was passed in 1975. For the parents who stood firm in the 50s and 60s, their children were too old to go to school, but nevertheless they took pride in the fact that they had opened the door to public education for future generations of children with disabilities.
The Denver County Chapter of the National Association for Retarded Children (later named Arc of Denver) was established May 12, 1954, by parents to address the lack of access for children with disabilities to public education and in-home supports. We were one of the first Arc Chapters in the country. AdvocacyDenver is a local affiliate of the Arc of the United States. The state chapter was established June 1, 1954. The Arc of Denver formally changed its name to AdvocacyDenver in 2009.
This year AdvocacyDenver will celebrate its 70th anniversary. Over the next year we will share the history of our organization and the disability community. It is important that we take the time to honor the parents, families, self-advocates and providers who stood firm demanding the human rights of individuals with disabilities.