Introduction
In 1867, San Francisco passed the nation's first "Ugly Law," which was used to prohibit "street begging", specifically by people who were, in the words of the law makers, "diseased, maimed, mutilated, or in any way deformed" from being seen in public. In her book, The Ugly Laws, Susan M. Schweik explains that the law was used as a blueprint for similar legislation throughout major cities in the Western, Midwest, and Eastern parts of the United States and had a detrimental effect on people with both physical and mental disabilities. 1 These laws were used to marginalize people with disabilities, rendering them invisible.
This marginalization was a result of science and industry's push towards efficiency. 2 The ideas that followed laid the groundwork for special education and the parallel education system in which I work. In many ways being labeled as different has led to the creation of a polarization of visibility.
Disability has often been surrounded by the notion of (in)visibility. Societal constructs place people with disabilities, and more specifically "severe" disabilities in categories of dependence and uselessness. Much of this comes from the norms of our built environments and societal hierarchy. Words like "cripple", "handicapped" and even "disabled" only promote these thoughts of separation and inferiority. Physical access is limited in many parts of the country and as a result, people with disabilities are unable to engage with the built environment as efficiently as an able-bodied person can. This lack of physical accessibility only compounds itself to envelope a larger lack of accessibility in the emotional, economic and social realms. If people with disabilities are restricted from engaging in the built world physically, their ability to feel a sense of community, belonging, and acceptance is compromised.
Though the Bay Area of California was the first place to adopt a discriminatory law against people with disabilities, much of the groundbreaking legislation and work towards independence and social equality for people with disabilities occurred there as well. The Bay Area is rich with disability history and has become a Mecca for adherents of the independent living movement and the push for equality for people with disabilities. Activists like Ed Roberts spearheaded this effort towards greater independence for everyone. These efforts have resulted in changing attitudes as well as changing cityscapes. This geographic region has, more than any other in the country, pushed for greater visibility to a largely invisible people.
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