Disability Rights Movement

Reviews / Votes

"More than a history, The Disability Rights Movement documents the wrenching evolution of attitudes: From isolation and charity to confrontation and rights; from sheltered workshops to independent living; from telethons of pity to technology's power; from 'cripples' and 'invalids' to People with disabilities! Comprehensive and well-written, Fleischer and Zames capture the substance and spirit of the disability rights movement and bring it to life." -Frederick A. Fay, Ph.D., Chair, Justice for All, and disability rights advocate for four decades "Doris Zames Fleischer and Frieda Zames take the reader on a guided tour through the still-brief history of the Disability Rights Movement, and they draw upon many first-person accounts to enrich the narrative. Although I was 'present at the creation' of much of this, I still learned a great deal. A unique feature of this book is the first-hand recounting of the remarkable work of the Disabled in Action (DIA) of New York. This group never gave up in their struggle to make the nation's biggest city accessible, despite enormous odds and powerful political opposition. Their story alone is worth the price of this book." -Frank G. Bowe, Ph.D., Professor, Hofstra University, and author of Physical, Sensory and Health Disabilities "This eye-opening work...offers one of the first thorough histories of a movement for civil rights that has profoundly changed America. ... A fascinating book." -The Sacramento Bee "Frieda Zames and Doris Zames Fleischer have crafted the most comprehensive history of the disability rights movement to date. Many firsthand sources and never-before-published interviews make this a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the roots of today's most pressing disability rights issues." -Mary Johnson, Editor, Ragged EDGE "Here at last is a book about our civil rights movement written by one of us: Frieda Zames, a polio survivor and activist...The Disability Rights Movement stands out for its insiders' point of view and the sheer thoroughness of ground covered. ...the authors turn what could have been a rather dry historical book into one that absolutely compels us to read on. They accomplish this not only through meticulous research, but also through their inclusion of information and opinions gleaned from interviews with movement leaders and other people whose lives have been directly affected. ...[the book] is far more than just a history book. It's a cautionary tale of rights won and now in jeopardy. It's a tale of a people who have won some legal battles but still face mass discrimination each day. ... It is an excellent beginning..." -Sally Rosenthal, Ragged Edge "Fleischer and Zames offer an encyclopedic treatment of the development of the disability rights movement...[They] provide a useful starting point for inquiries into a plethora of disability rights issues." -New Political Science "Fleischer and Zames' concise and elegant overview of the current state of the disability rights movement...fills a huge void in the literature and hopefully will provoke greater examination of the issues at stake." -Socialism and Democracy "...makes an impressive contribution to the understanding of how social movements arise, organize and effectively address entrenched challenges of discrimination and social injustice... the book is readable and engaging. It should be consulted by anyone interested in knowing how people who are discriminated against can overcome and bring about substantive social change." - Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare