Judy Heumann was an activist who spent her entire adult life advocating for disability rights. Her work helped lead to the Americans with Disabilities Act, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and the Rehabilitation Act. She helped make New York City schools wheelchair accessible, served as an advisor to the World Bank, and was assistant secretary of the U.S. Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services, among many other accomplishments.
- Died: March 4, 2023 (Who else died on March 4?)
- Details of death: Died in Washington, D.C. at the age of 75.
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Early Life
A daughter of Jewish immigrants who fled Germany just prior to World War II, Heumann contracted polio at 18 months old. The disease left her in a wheelchair. Struggles with being allowed to attend public school – she was called a “fire hazard” by one school for being unable to walk – gave her awareness of the plight other people with disabilities faced in their day-to-day lives. She went on to attend Long Island University and the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a Masters of Science. It was in college where she began her lifelong fight for disability rights.
Advocacy Highlights
In 1970, Heumann sued the Board of Education of the City of New York for denying her a teaching license due to her inability to walk. The case was settled, and city schools began their first steps towards accommodating wheelchair users. The attention the case received prompted her to form the advocacy group Disabled in Action. Heumann’s fights continued up the rungs of government. In 1974, she helped develop the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. She helped lead the 28-day “504 Sit-in,” which led to further access to education for children who are disabled. She co-founded the World Institute on Disability, was Washington D.C.’s first Director of the Department on Disability Services, was a special advisor for International Disability Rights for the U.S. State Department under President Barack Obama, and was a Senior Fellow at the Ford Foundation, among many other accomplishments. Beginning in 2021, she was also the host of a podcast, “The Heuman Perspective.”
Full Obituary: New York Times
