January 20, 2023
Source: Found SF
From his days studying political science at UC Berkeley to his time as director of the California Department of Rehabilitation, Ed Roberts was an unrelenting advocate for disability rights. Roberts, who [had] polio and had to use an iron lung, is known as the “Father of Independent Living” for his accomplishments fighting for accessibility in Berkeley, across California, and throughout the country via passage of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and later the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. Throughout, his sense of humor and adventurousness proved essential to his struggle for accessibility.
Learn more about Ed Roberts by visiting these websites or checking out Southeast ADA Center posts on social media.
Ed Roberts – Disability Rights Advocate & Founder of the Independent Living Movement
Born: January 23, 1939
Died: March 14, 1995
Source: Found SF
Link: foundsf.org/index.php?title=Ed_Roberts:_The_Father_of_Independent_Living
YO! Ed Roberts Day Celebration 1/23/22
Source: YO! Youth Organizing – Disabled & Proud, California Foundation for Independent Living Centers (CFILC)
Link: youtube.com/watch?v=5IJftRsD-0w
More YO! Resources, Media, and Information
Link: yodisabledproud.org/ed-roberts-day
Ed Roberts: A Pioneer for Equality
A January 2020 blog post.
Source: Access Living
Link: accessliving.org/newsroom/blog/ed-roberts-a-pioneer-for-equality
Ed Roberts’ Life and Legacy
Source: Minnesota Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities
Link: mn.gov/mnddc/ed-roberts/index.html
Ed Roberts, the Disability Rights Movement and the ADA
Sources: American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), Google Arts and Culture
Link: artsandculture.google.com/exhibit/ed-roberts-the-disability-rights-movement-and-the-ada-aapd/VwLy4PBo_Ty9Jg?hl=en
Video: Fifth Annual Ed Roberts Awards (2021)
Video with captions and ASL [45:07 mins.]
Source: Facebook – Center for Independent Living (Berkeley, California)
Link: facebook.com/watch/?v=179070920644581
Ed Roberts Campus
A group of disability organizations committed to the independent living movement in the U.S and worldwide joined together to build a universally designed, transit-oriented campus in South Berkeley, California.
Link: edrobertscampus.org/about
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