In 1990, after several rounds of negotiations and hearings, Congress enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and, in doing so, marked a significant advancement for the civil rights of people with disabilities. In his Signing Statement, President George H.W. Bush said:
[N]ow I sign legislation which takes a sledgehammer to another wall, one which has far too many generations separated Americans with disabilities from the freedom they could glimpse, but not grasp. . . . I now lift my pen to sign this Americans with Disabilities Act and say 'Let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down.'
The ADA helped bring down this wall by providing comprehensive protections against disability discrimination in employment, public services, public accommodation and services operated by private entities, transportation and telecommunications.
President George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Pub. L. No. 101-336 on July 26, 1990.
