Symposium Abstract

The 2003 symposium, "Justice for All? Exploring Gender, Race, and Sexual Orientation within Disability Law," focused on the intersections between American experiences of disability, gender, race, and sexuality. 

Many of the topics in the symposium related to the Americans with Disabilities Act.  General topics related to the included a discussion of types of major life activities incorporated into the ADA, the problems of enforcing the ADA, and the Supreme Court’s application of Title VII principals to the ADA.  Panels also considered the complexities associated with persons with disabilities in the employment context.  For example, topics included the provision of reasonable accommodations in the workplace, the costs of providing the required accommodations, and the difficulty in assessing and identifying intellectual disabilities in the workplace.

Other panels considered issues involving the education of students with disabilities.  Panelists specifically addressed the relationship of special education to Brown v. Board of Education as well as the needs of English Language Learners.

Symposium Articles

Peter Blanck, Keynote Address, "Justice for All? Stories about Americans with Disabilities and Their Civil Rights.

Ruth Coker, "Homophobia, AIDS Hysteria, and the Americans with Disabilities Act"

Beth A. Ferri & David Connor, "Special Education and the Subverting of Brown"

Sharon E. Rush, "Lessons From and For 'Disabled Students'"

Michael Waterstone, "Civil Rights and the Administration of Elections – Toward Secret Ballots and Polling Place Access"

Mark C. Weber, "Opening the Golden Door: Disability and the Law of Immigration"

Ann Laquer Estin, "Voting Right and Human Rights: Comments on 'Civil Rights and the Administration of Elections'" (Commentary)