Thanks to advocacy work, Congressional action, and landmark court cases, the scope of rights guaranteed to Americans with Autism and other disabilities has broadened considerably in recent decades. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the most fundamental law protecting the civil rights of people with all types of disabilities, including those with Autism. The ADA provides civil rights protections to people with Autism similar to those provided to individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion (Autism Society, 2020). It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with Autism in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications. The ADA was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H.W. Bush (Autism Society, 2020).
Meeting the Letter of the Law?
The big question here is whether or not the accommodations the ADA put into place are sufficient enough to actually help those with autism function better in society. Quite frankly, we could do better. The ADA did amazing things like restructuring jobs to be more accommodating and inclusive, wheelchair access into every public transit or building, telecommunication devices for the deaf or non-verbal, and it even prohibits coercing/threatening or retaliating against individuals with disabilities or those attempting to aid people with disabilities in asserting their rights (Job Accommodation Network, 2022). However, what about making sure those with autism have the accommodations they need when out in public? Sensory breaks at work for when someone with autism gets overstimulated. Sensory "safe" places in public areas that are regulated and lawfully there. Autism is so complex, as it is very different for every single person and the ADA does a great job at starting the conversation but we have a long way to go. We now have accommodations within the workplace, but let's make the workplace somewhere someone with ASD can stand to be...let's make the public a place where someone with ASD feels safe and comfortable.
Spirit of the Law
The (ADA) promotes social justice by protecting disabled persons from discrimination and prejudice. It seeks equality of opportunity for them and protects their well being by giving them fair access to goods, services and benefits. These rights however, have the potential to be restricted by cost, efficiency, utility, and certain social mores. The ADA offers little direction about how to set priorities when these values come into conflict, or about whether equality or opportunity favors equivalent or preferential treatment for disadvantaged people (Kopelman, 1996). To summarize, the ADA does morally right when protecting those with disabilities and putting laws in place that require fair access to the basic necessities of life. However, there is a lot of gray area with cost and even lack of resources on how to obtain these goods which is very unfair.
Video on Meltdowns:
Impact on Family/Friend, Environment, and Society
While the ADA makes it easier for those with autism to get around, find jobs and have reasonable accommodations given to them- this does not help with the issue of "what happens when I am out in public and have a meltdown?" Suzanne Davies (2019) an autistic adult explains it best when she says "Meltdowns are an autistic person’s way of treating over-stimulation. When you feel over stimulated, you may explode to let all the emotions out. This can usually entail screaming, hitting something, or hurting yourself to get the frustrations out." She also goes onto relate it to other people by saying how for those who don’t know about autism/know somebody with autism, or even for those who are familiar with it, this can be shocking. Adults aren’t supposed to show intense emotion, and an autistic adult may be in trouble if not just but embarrassed over the situation (Davies, 2019). No autistic adult should have to fear being in trouble or embarrassed in public and should have a place to go in case a meltdown happens. This can cause them to not go out in public.
As for family and friends- this can make them not want to go out with their child/sibling or friend. Parents may not be able to bring their child out grocery shopping due to embarrassment or stares from having nowhere to go if their child has a meltdown. People are quick to judge and assume a child is just throwing a temper tantrum, so parents often opt to keep their child at home when running errands which can really affect a family dynamic. As for the environment and society, those with autism are unable to participate in the things that everybody else their age is doing due to fear and embarrassment, which is unjust and unfair. We have come so far, but we have so far to go!
This is just one video on the positive impact on sensory spaces have for those with autism (and even those without):
References:
Autism Society. (2022, July 20). Legal https://autismsociety.org/resources/legal/#:~:text=Americans%20with%20Disabilities%20Act&text=It%20guarantees%20equal%20opportunity%20for,1990%2C%20by%20President%20George%20H.W.
Davies, S. (2019, June 3). Handling meltdowns as an autistic adult. Autism 360™. https://www.autism360.com/news/handling-meltdowns-as-an-autistic-adult/ Job Accommodation Network. (2022, July 26). ADA: Overview. https://askjan.org/articles/The-Americans-with-Disabilities-Act-A-Brief-Overview.cfm
Kopelman L. M. (1996). Ethical assumptions and ambiguities in the Americans With Disabilities Act. The Journal of medicine and philosophy, 21(2), 187–208. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/21.2.187
Comments
Post a Comment