Bishop's Blog: Celebrating 30 Years of the ADA

I was serving as a pastor for an all-Deaf congregation when the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) law was signed July 26, 1990.

For my congregation it meant there would be a free relay service for telecommunications. What an incredible thing! A Deaf person could now call a relay operator using their TTY.

This was a telephone device that allowed a Deaf consumer to type words on a keyboard that would appear onscreen for a person with the same device through the phone line. The relay operator would contact a hearing person for the Deaf consumer, who did not have a TTY, and speak vocally for them the words of the Deaf person’s typed TTY message. Then that same operator would type into the TTY the words that the hearing person was speaking back to the Deaf person.

This was part four of the Americans with Disabilities Act: “Telecommunications.” It meant that Deaf people could then make confidential calls to whomever they wanted without having to go through a hearing volunteer (like me) or a hearing family member.

The other benefits I could see from the ADA included more access to paid sign language interpreters in many places, such as hospitals, doctors’ offices, and state and local museums. Many Deaf people began to have sign language interpreters at their places of work for the first time.

When we went on a bus trip to see “Sight and Sound” in Lancaster, PA, the theater had professional interpreters for the show, and I no longer had to volunteer to interpret, as I had to in the past. Not everything that the ADA envisioned was accomplished, but much good was done.

Improvements in accessibility but employment lags

Through the years, progress continues to be made. More buildings are accessible, employers are making needed accommodations in the workplace, and people with all kinds of disabilities are able to live more independently and contribute to society. Employment is still one of the most difficult areas with the national average of full-time employment for people with disabilities at 36%. This is a “work in process” as are all of our journeys toward equality and human rights

The United Methodist Church affirms the sacred worth of people with disabilities, and in our Social Principles we state that our churches should be accessible and welcoming. We encourage our churches to do Accessibility Audits each year, as well as observe a Disability Awareness Sunday in January.

American Sign Language sign for "Love."

The federal ADA law exempts churches and religious organizations from compliance. Yet, the law of love requires that we not only follow these principles of inclusion and accommodation, but even go the second mile.

On this anniversary of the ADA, please consider the progress that your church has made. Is there some work that still needs to be done in your building to improve accessibility? Remember how very important restrooms are! Who is left out of your ministry because of your building’s structure? Who cannot access your video services because of their disability? What child with autism is not able to come to Sunday School?

Also, consider how you would react if a pastor with a disability was appointed to your church. Would you welcome them and their gifts for ministry or focus on their disability and see them as a liability or a burden? Pastors with disabilities often report disappointing responses when they are introduced to their new church for the first time.

Some churches write letters to the bishop asking for a reconsideration, or ask what they did to “deserve” a pastor with a disability. Surely, the beloved community is better than that. Gifts for ministry are not always found in perfect bodies. The truth is: none of us are perfect and yet God uses everything we are and everything we have for God’s purposes. God’s power is made perfect in weakness (II Corinthians 12:9).

Bishop Johnson, a longtime advocate for people with disabilities (or people who are differently abled) will be featured at An Interfaith Reflection on the ADA: 30 Years Later, sponsored online by the Interfaith Disability Advocacy Collaborative (IDAC), on Wednesday, July 22nd, 12pm – 1pm EST. She will participate in a panel discussion with Jewish, Muslim and Christian leaders. The General Board of Church and Society, on which she serves, is a member of the IDAC. To register and receive participant instructions, use this form: https://bit.ly/ADA30years. See the flyer.

Also, Bishop Johnson recommends, “Theology and Disability Ministry" as “a good resource for disability equality information. It helps with ableism eradication.”

Also see: Statement on reopening churches by the United Methodist Association of Ministers with Disabilities

A Litany to Celebrate the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)

For thirty years of being treated like we matter,

We give you thanks O God.

For millions of barriers taken down,

We give you thanks O God.

For the opportunity to have meaningful work,

We give you thank O God.

For a way to get into church buildings so we can worship,

We give you thanks O God.

For accessibility in public spaces and employment

We give you thanks O God.

For accessible tele-communication,

We give you thanks O God.

For no longer being left out of many cultural activities,

We give you thanks O God.

For space to hope and a chance to dream,

We give you thanks O God.

For the opportunity to share in the American dream of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,

We give you thanks of God.

Lord, thirty years ago we had a great start, but we still have a long way to go.