Saturday, July 25, 2015

Murals in D.C. this weekend mark Americans with Disabilities Act 25th anniversary

From The Washington Post: (Google video on the history of the ADA:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrM5hZX0hNc

Take a walk around D.C. this weekend, and you may stumble across some newly installed murals honoring leaders in the fight for equality for people with disabilities. 
This Sunday marks the 25th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disability Act — landmark legislation signed into law in 1990 that prohibits discrimination on the basis of someone’s disability. 
Google.org — the philanthropic arm of Google — is celebrating the anniversary and the start of the Special Olympics this weekend with these installations throughout the city. There are 10 temporary pieces at six locations in the city. The murals are stickers, illustrated by Darren Booth, and will be removed Sunday. 
Each mural honors a different person with his or her portrait and a quote. Among those honored are Tia Nelis, the president of Self Advocates Become Empowered; Tom Harkin, the former lawmaker who introduced the ADA in the Senate; Kathy Martinez, the former assistant secretary of labor; and former President George H. W. Bush, who signed the ADA into law. 
The murals can be found at the National Portrait Gallery, National Museum of American History, Woodrow Wilson Plaza, Newseum, Gallaudet University and the Carnegie Library.
Google will also have these sticker murals displayed in Los Angeles, where the Special Olympics is being held this year.