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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 143 / Thursday, July 29, 2021 / Presidential Documents
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Presidential Documents
Proclamation 10236 of July 26, 2021

Anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act, 2021
By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation Thirty-one years ago, on July 26, 1990, our Nation moved closer to the fulfillment of its foundational promise when we passed the Americans with Disabilities Act ADA. This landmark law affirms and protects the fundamental rights of people with disabilitiesthe right to equal opportunity, economic self-sufficiency, independent living, and equitable participation in every aspect of American life. For more than three decades, the ADA
has made our communities, our economy, and our country stronger and more vibrant. It has helped to uphold the dignity of the estimated 61
million Americans who live with a disabilityin short, it is a triumph of American civil rights.
I was enormously proud to co-sponsor the ADA, the passage of which was a testament not only to fearless advocacy, but to bipartisan progress.
A Democratic bill signed by a Republican President, the ADA was made possible thanks in no small part to the passion and persistence of Senators Tom Harkin and Ted Kennedy and Congressmen Major Owens and Tony Coelho. I will never forget the moment just after the ADAs passage, when Senator Harkin delivered a speech in American Sign Language from the Senate floora tribute to his older brother, Frank, who was deaf. That moment was an emotional reminder for all of us of just how personal and powerful the passage of the ADA would be for millions of American families.

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Despite the extraordinary progress we have made over the past 31 years, the fight for equitable access and inclusion is far from over. The COVID
19 pandemic has compounded the longstanding inequities and biases that exist for people with disabilities; persistent discrimination and the inability to access services continues to threaten the health and well-being of far too many Americans. Throughout the pandemic, people with disabilities have faced heightened risksparticularly those who lack access to caregiver or support services, those who live in community homes, and the disproportionate share of people with disabilities employed in industries that suffered due to the pandemic. Children and students living with disabilities have also faced an especially challenging year, forced to navigate and adapt to online learning as the virus upended their usual school routines.
As we work to finish the job of defeating COVID19, my Administration is committed to building on the legacy of the ADA. The American Rescue Plan is providing funding to expand access to homeand community-based services under Medicaid, which will allow more people with disabilities to live safely and independently in their homes. My Build Back Better agenda would build on this by making significant investments in homeand community-based services for people with disabilities and older Americans. It will also spur the creation of quality jobs with good pay, good benefits, and the ability to organize and collectively bargain for caregivers.
My Administration is also committed to advancing the rights of people with disabilities in the workplace to support economic self-sufficiency. I
have proposed eliminating outdated provisions in the Fair Labor Standards Act that allow employers to pay workers with disabilities less than the
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