Judith “Judy” Heumann - Mother of Disability Rights

Born: December 18, 1947, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
Died: March 4, 2023, Washington, D.C., U.S.A.

Judy Heumann was an activist and leader in the disability rights movement.

Heumann was raised in a German Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York. When she got polio at 18 months old, she became quadriplegic. Judy’s childhood was full of community and friendship, but she faced systemic barriers in getting an education. When her parents tried to take her to kindergarten, the principal physically blocked the entrance of the school. When Judy could finally go to school in fourth grade, she was only allowed to enroll through a program that separated her from non-disabled students. Her fourth-grade classmates were aged 9-21, and they met in a basement. The non-disabled students took classes upstairs.

Heumann knew that society’s expectations for her education were low, but she was determined to learn. She attended a public high school and graduated from Long Island University (LIU). She also attended and worked at Camp Jened, a summer camp for disabled people. Many prominent figures in the disability rights movement met at Camp Jened.

In 1970, the New York Board of Education (BOE) refused to give Heumann her a teaching license, claiming she could not evacuate herself or her students in a fire. Heumann sued. She successfully argued that her disability did not prevent her from acting in an emergency. Her story was published in the New York Times, and she received a settlement. She was the first teacher in the state of New York to use a wheelchair.

With her new platform, Heumann cofounded Disabled in Action, a cross-disability protest group. She moved to Berkeley, California to be a part of the Movement for Independent Living and work at the Center for Independent Living (CIL). She temporarily went to D.C. to work on what would become the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). While in D.C., she cofounded the American Coalition of Citizens with Disabilities. In 1975, she graduated with a master’s in public health from UC Berkeley.

In 1977, Heumann organized an important protest. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act made it illegal for federally funded institutions (public schools, universities, hospitals, etc.) to discriminate against disabled people. The act had been signed in 1973, but four years later, it still lacked regulations needed to enforce it. Secretary of health, education, and welfare (HEW), Joseph A. Califano Jr., said he wanted to change the 504 regulations before authorizing them. Activists across the nation objected. They demanded that the original form of the law be authorized by April 4th, 1977.

On April 5th, Califano had not acted. Judy Heuman appeared at the HEW building in San Francisco with over 100 disabled protestors. The group staged the longest sit-in to have taken place at a federal building. The government cut the building’s water and phone connections, but deaf protestors passed messages out of the building through sign language. The Black Panther Party helped supply food, and San Francisco’s mayor George Moscone sent mattresses. Judy and others traveled to Washington, D. C. to participate in a congressional hearing. The sit-in persisted. On April 28th Mr. Califano signed section 504.

Heumann continued her work. In 1983, she co-founded the World Institute on Disability (WID), a global organization led by people with disabilities. From 1993-2001, she served as the Assistant Secretary of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services. After that, she was appointed by President Obama as the first Special Advisor on Disability Rights for the U.S. State Department. She later worked as the Director of the Department of Disability Services for the District of Columbia and collaborated with organizations that included World Bank and Human Rights Watch. She passed away in 2023.

References:
Aggeler, Madeleine. “How I Get It Done: Disability-Rights Activist Judy Heumann.” The Cut, The Cut, 28 Sept. 2020, www.thecut.com/2020/09/how-i-get-it-done-disability-rights-activist-judy-heumann.html.
Heumann, Judith, et al. “Judith Heumann: DRILM: Pioneering Disability Rights Advocate and Leader in Disabled in Action, New York; Center for Independent Living, Berkeley;World Institute on Disability;and the US Department of Education, 1960s-2000.” Digital Collections, Regional Oral History Office, 1 Jan. 1970, digicoll.lib.berkeley.edu/record/221954?ln=en&v=pdf.
“Judy Heumann, Who Led the Fight for Disability Rights, Dies at 75 (Published 2023).” The New York Times, Mar. 2023, www.nytimes.com/2023/03/05/obituaries/judy-heumann-dead.html.
Rothberg, Emma. “Biography: Judith Heumann.” National Women’s History Museum, www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/judith-heumann.

Keywords:
Civil Rights, Justice, Courage, Perseverance, Freedom, Responsibility, Challenge Injustices, Stand Up for Your Beliefs

Explore ARTEFFECT projects about this Unsung Hero:
Judy Heumann Artworks

View Discovery Award projects about this Unsung Hero:
‍Judy Heumann - Discovery Award 2024
‍Judy Heumann - Discovery Award 2024