July is Disability Pride Month, and Toledo resident Joy Parker has been thinking about how much things have changed for people living with disabilities.
TOLEDO, Ohio — Joy Parker knows how to persevere through great odds and continue her dedication.
She was born with cerebral palsy and has a disability that requires her to use a wheelchair, which makes her life difficult in many ways and often results in her being discriminated against by others.
“We just want people to be treated normally, and it’s been a tough road, but it’s slowly getting better over time,” Parker said.
Parker was forced to retire after teaching at Owens Community College for 20 years.
Despite the struggles, Parker said she finds joy in small things like playing tabletop games at home, which she said are proof she can live life on her own terms.
But in the decades before the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed, things were much more difficult.
It wasn’t until 1990, when the federal government made it illegal to discriminate against people with disabilities, that Parker’s life really began to turn around.
After this law was passed, organizations like the Lucas County Developmental Disabilities Commission were formed.
The committee found ADA-compliant housing for Parker and helped her get nursing care approval.
“I just couldn’t physically work anymore, so I don’t know what I would have done if the board hadn’t helped me out,” Parker said.
Nabil Shaheen, community outreach and communications manager for the Lucas County Board of Developmental Disabilities, said the passage of the ADA was a milestone for people living with disabilities, but more needs to be done.
“We’ve made very significant progress, but there’s still a lot of work to be done,” Shaheen said. “Again, it’s about continuing to pick up where the key players left off on this bill and how we build on it.”
On the 34th anniversary of the ADA’s passage, Parker says the law has changed the lives of people like hers, bringing a little joy to their difficult lives.