President George Bush
1030 15th St., N.W.
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 336-7080	Fax: (202) 336-7117
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President Bush on Disability Issues

Our courageous forefathers built this nation on simple yet
honest beliefs, one of which is that all people are created
equal and are endowed with certain inalienable rights. 
Tragically, this has not held true for the 43 million Americans
who suffer from disabilities.  For too long they have been the
victims of segregation and discrimination.

Frankly, this is intolerable.  Ours is a society that prides
itself in righting wrongs.  As Americans, it is our sacred duty
to ensure that every other American's rights are also
guaranteed.  I am sure that I speak for all Americans when I say
that I will not accept, I will not excuse, and I will not
tolerate discrimination in America.

Two years ago, it was my privilege to sign into law the
Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, the world's first
comprehensive declaration of equality for people with
disabilities.

The ADA ensures that all disabled Americans are given the basic
guarantees for which they have worked so long and so long:
independence, freedom of choice, control of their lives, and the
opportunity to blend fully and freely into the American
mainstream.

I worked hard to enact the ADA because it improves the lives of
disabled Americans in four important ways:

(1) Employers covered by the act cannot discriminate against
qualified individuals with disabilities.

(2) Public accommodations such as restaurants, offices, hotels,
and shopping centers must ensure access for disabled individuals.

(3) Transportation services must expand access for disabled
passengers.

(4) Telephone companies must provide equivalent services for
individuals with speech or hearing impediments.

I believe that we must remove the physical barriers that we have
created for the disabled and the social barriers that we have
accepted.  For ours will never be a prosperous nation until all
within it prosper.  I call on the business community to
recognize that by hiring individuals with disabilities, you are
unlocking a resource of untapped human potential that, when
freed, will enrich us all.

Individuals with disabilities represent a tremendous pool of
talent that brings diversity, loyalty and a proven low turnover 
rate to America's work force.  They as only one thing: a chance
to prove themselves.

Each year, federal, state and local governments spend a combined
$200 billion to support Americans with disabilities - in effect,
to keep them dependent.  I want to promote their desire to be
independent, to be a part of our economic mainstream.

As your president, I will continue to embrace all Americans for
their abilities and for their disabilities, for their
similarities and for their differences, and, of course, for
their past courage and their future dreams.  And I pray for the
day when all individuals with disabilities can grasp, not just
glimpse, the freedom they rightful deserve.


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