Political Quotes

“earlier this month, America celebrated the 41st anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Next month, we will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, one of the most important civil rights victories in our Nation's history. Those are two of the most important achievements in civil rights in our Nation since the ratification of the Bill of Rights. Today, I want to reflect for a few minutes on another critically important achievement in civil rights: the enactment 15 years ago this week of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I recently saw a young man wearing a T-shirt. In large letters on the front of his shirt were the words: ``The ADA . . .'' On the back, the shirt read, ``. . . boldly going where everyone else has already been.'' I think that young man's T-shirt sums up the ADA pretty well. The Americans with Disabilities Act does not grant people with disabilities any special status or position. To the contrary, it simply removes certain barriers that for too long had made it difficult--if not impossible--for people with disabilities to make the most of their God-given skills and abilities, and to participate fully in their communities and in the workplace. Before the ADA, if you needed a haircut, if you needed to see a doctor, if you just wanted to meet a friend for a cup of coffee, you probably had to rely on family, friends, or a social service agency.…”