The Mother of the Disability Rights Movement: Judy Heumann

Without Judy Heumann, it’s hard to see how we would ever have achieved the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Disabled by polio at just 18 months old in 1949, Judy grew up in a time when nothing prevented discrimination against people with disabilities. In fact, so-called “ugly laws” even outlawed the appearance in public of people who were “diseased, maimed or in any way deformed.” But Judy didn’t let any of this stop her. Instead, she became a trailblazer that transformed the state of disability rights in the United States and the rest of the world. In this special episode, we speak with the legend herself: Judy Heumann.

Judy Heumann passed away on March 4th, 2023. Her life’s work has sparked a growing movement that continues to this day. You can learn more about Judy’s legacy in her memoir Being Heumann, the documentary Crip Camp, and her podcast the Heumann Perspective.

May her memory be a blessing.

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